Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve
Portage County, Ohio · 4.5 trail miles in ODNR's guide
Our take written by Nature Awed
Eagle Creek in Portage County follows a creek through a wide floodplain of beaver dams, marshes, small bogs and buttonbush swamps, with beech and maple on north-facing slopes and white oak on the south-facing ones.
ODNR counts over 100 woody plant species, 70 species of spring wildflowers and over 20 ferns, and its sphagnum bog holds round-leaved sundew and northern pitcher-plant. The page lists over 3 miles of trails, and the guide prints 4.5.
Our plain-language reading of the ODNR text quoted on this page. It adds no facts of its own.
Verify current visiting hours and access restrictions with ODNR's page for this preserve and ODNR's permit page before relying on this summary.
What ODNR says about it
This 570-acre preserve encompasses a variety of communities supporting a diversity of flora and fauna typical of northeastern Ohio. Eagle Creek meanders through a wide floodplain dotted with beaver dams, marshlands, small bogs and button bush swamps. The north-facing slopes are forested by beeches and maples; white oak woodlands are common on the drier, south-facing slopes.
There are more than 100 species of woody plants including uncommon trees, such as cucumber magnolia and yellow birch, as well as 70 species of spring wildflowers. More than 20 species of ferns have been cataloged in the preserve, including ostrich ferns nearly five feet tall. The sphagnum bog shelters such northern rarities as large cranberry, winterberry holly, tawny cotton sedge and insect-eating plants including round-leaved sundew and northern pitcher-plant.
Visiting
Open 1/2 before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset
Stay on designated trails at all times
Pets are not permitted
No public restrooms
Verify current visiting hours and access restrictions with ODNR's page before relying on these hours.
Trails
Over 3 miles of hiking trails
In ODNR's preserve guide
| Address | 11027 Hopkins Rd, Garrettsville, 44231 |
|---|---|
| Trails (miles) | 4.5 |
| Visitor information | Near Nelson Kennedy Ledges, West Branch and Mosquito Lake state parks |
Eagle Creek Portage 11027 Hopkins Rd Garrettsville, 44231 4.5 Near Nelson Kennedy Ledges, West Branch and Mosquito Lake state parks
Access permit
Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve is not on ODNR's list of preserves that require an access permit, and its ODNR page as quoted here doesn't call for one. ODNR also says: An access permit is required to leave trails within a state nature preserve.
(ODNR: State Nature Preserves Access Permit).
The land on ODNR's map
| LANDS_NAME | COUNTY | PROP_TYPE | SUM_CALC_ACRES | MANAGING_AGENCY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve | PORTAGE | Dedicated Nature Preserve | 569.1 | null |
| Mapped acres | 569.10 (our sum of the parcels ODNR's GIS layer maps under this name) |
|---|---|
| Access permit | No whole-preserve permit requirement identified in the sources we check; named-area or activity permits may still apply |
| Centre of mapped land | 41.2883, -81.0667 (our calculation; not an entrance or parking lot) |
Statewide rules
Ohio Administrative Code chapter 1501:17 sets rules for nature preserves and natural areas under ODNR's supervision or its designated custodian, on pets, drones, picnics, collecting and more. Can I…? quotes them rule by rule, with their exceptions.
Pets are prohibited at all state nature preserves, except Blackhand Gorge State Nature Preserve where leashed pets are only allowed on the multipurpose paved trail.
Check before you go. Verify current hours, access and trail information on ODNR: Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve and ODNR: State Nature Preserves Access Permit; our checker last found the quoted words there on October 14.
Nearest other preserves
Straight-line miles between the centres of mapped land (our calculation), not driving distance.
- Mantua Bog State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 7.0 miles · permit
- Tummonds State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 8.9 miles
- White Pine Bog Forest State Nature Preserve · Geauga County · about 12 miles · permit
- Burton Wetlands State Nature Preserve · Geauga County · about 12 miles
- Novak Sanctuary State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 12 miles