Trails & Ales! Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park / Galloway Tavern

History

Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park spans over 7,000 acres, making it the largest park in the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks system. It encompasses forests, prairies, and wetlands, stretching along 13 miles of Big and Little Darby Creeks, both designated as State and National Scenic Rivers. The park includes over 1,600 acres of restored wetlands and prairies, showcasing efforts to preserve the area’s natural biodiversity.

The park is home to a herd of American bison, reintroduced in 2011 from The Wilds in partnership with the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. The herd, which roams freely in two enclosed pastures, has grown with the addition of four calves born in spring 2024. Bison, once nearly extinct in Ohio, play a key role as a keystone species, helping maintain the restored tallgrass prairie by grazing and aerating the soil.

The land now part of the park was historically inhabited by indigenous peoples, including those associated with the Fort Ancient culture (circa 1000–1750 AD). A reconstructed Fort Ancient mound is a notable feature in the park, reflecting the cultural and historical significance of the area’s pre-colonial inhabitants. These indigenous groups lived in the region long before European settlers arrived, utilizing the rich resources of the Darby Creek watershed.

The park’s landscape is shaped by the Darby Creeks, which have carved through the region over millennia, creating a diverse ecosystem. Big Darby Creek is one of the most biologically diverse aquatic systems in the Midwest, supporting a variety of fish, aquatic insects, and other wildlife. The park’s restored prairies and wetlands reflect Ohio’s pre-settlement ecology, offering a glimpse into the area’s geologic and ecological history before intensive human development.

The park was established in 1948, with much of its land donated by the Battelle Memorial Institute. In the 1980s, the park expanded significantly after the cancellation of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dam project on Big Darby Creek, which had been halted due to construction issues and public opposition. In 1984, Battelle provided a $1 million grant, supplemented by federal funding, to acquire 2,440 acres for conservation, helping protect the ecologically sensitive watershed.

Summary

For this event, we'll hike around 5 miles on the Cobshell, Indian Ridge, Terrace, and Ancient Trails. The hike will be moderately strenuous in places, a bit more so than Highbanks, in my opinion.

The trails are wide and well-graveled, though, like Highbanks (except for the Ancient Trail, which is largely grass). There can also be a few spots of mud, so I recommend hiking shoes and a change of socks for after the hike. Some of the hike, particularly on the Ancient Trail, is largely unshaded, so be ready for the possibility of some sun.

Where We'll Meet

This is one of my favorite events, because I love Battelle Darby and I love the hole-in-the-wall we're going to afterwards. However, I don't think Battelle Darby Metro Park plays very well with Google Maps.

We're meeting at the Cedar Ridge Picnic Area. However, there's no super-easy or straightforward way of putting this into your Google Maps and having the correct location properly display.

Your best bet (besides using the map pin I've provided here), is to directly type the Picnic Area's address into Maps: 1775 Darby Creek Dr, Galloway, OH 43119.

Cedar Ridge is a large, popular picnic area. It has two restroom buildings (each of which also has water fountains) that are on your right as you enter the Area. Drive down to the second set of restrooms for this event; that's where we're meeting.

After the Hike

Galloway Tavern is a hole-in-the-wall that doesn't even have its own website. When last I was there, I got a very good half-pound burger, fries, and a beer for under fifteen dollars, with tax. The pizza is also very good, and they sell a lot of it. I would mildly recommend extra sauce if you get a pizza (though I generally do this everywhere).

The actual address of the Tavern is 1954 Galloway Rd, Galloway, OH 43119. It's 7 or 8 minutes from Cedar Ridge, and it will be on the way back to I-270 for most of us. We should be there by 5 if you can't make the hike and just want to meet us for drinks.