Backpacking Near Me

Fast-paced 6 mile hike

Hike Sharon Woods

**Let’s meet at the Maple Grove Picnic Shelter. We’ll do the paved 4 mile loop at a 17-18 min/mile pace.**

Blendonwood Ravine Day Hike, 10:30 am

Candle Making and Dinner

Back by popular demand, we will be doing our candle making and dinner outing! Now is the perfect time to get out and make your signature Autumn scent. Come hang out, make candles, and grab dinner afterwards

Gahanna Woods Hike

Join us as we hike 2 miles in the Gahanna Woods park this Tuesday, at 6:30 pm. We will hike about a mile in the state nature preserve and a mile in the Gahanna city park on dirt trails and wooden boardwalks. We look forward to hiking with you!

Taco Tuesday

🍂 Leaf It to Us: A Thriving in Motion Hike 🍁

Visit A.P.E.S. Primate Sanctuary, then hang out at NACHOFEST!

Meet at the American Primate Educational Sanctuary (A.P.E.S.), 8380 Kennedy Rd. Blacklick. A.P.E.S., the American Primate Educational Sanctuary, is a non-profit organization that cares for eight White-Handed Gibbons. Located in Blacklick, they house primates that were previously kept as household pets. They are committed to be protectors, conservationists, caregivers and educators for all primates, especially the Capuchin monkey and the endangered White-Handed Gibbon. [https://apesohio.weebly.com/](https://apesohio.weebly.com/) They ask for a $10 donation toward the care of the animals. When finished at A.P.E.S., we will head on over to Edison Brewery, 785 Science Blvd, Gahanna, for NACHOFEST for an afternoon of live music, community, and a celebration of the NACHO community (stay as long as you'd like; it's open until 6 pm). There are bands playing throughout the event, including the TBDBITL Alumni Band, Clintonville Community Jazz Band, NACHO Saxadillas, Cap City Funk, and the NACHO Street Band\*. The Taquitos Food Truck will be there. \*The NACHO Street Band is made up of Nationwide Children’s Hospital staff, family, and friends working to raise awareness and money for the hospital and the Ronald McDonald House of Central Ohio. Free to attend and donations can be made to the campaign for the Mid-Ohio Food Collective. Every dollar donated means 2 1/2 meals for those in need. Great music for a great cause, not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon! Links: A.P.E.S. [https://apesohio.weebly.com/](https://apesohio.weebly.com/) Edison Brewery [https://www.drinkedison.com/](https://www.drinkedison.com/) NACHO Street Band [https://www.facebook.com/NACHOStreetband/](https://www.facebook.com/NACHOStreetband/)

Cycle 22 miles on the TJ Evans Trail (Johnstown to Granville)

Ride 11 miles from Johnstown to The Station in Granville for lunch, then 11 miles back. Ride at your own pace, I'll ride around 12 mph but can go slower or faster. https://www.stationgranville.com Seriously, doesn't that raspberry dessert just look the best??? If you don't ride you can always meet us to eat :).

Blendon Woods Hike

Meet at the Nature Center parking lot at Blendon Woods to hike the Sugarbush, Hickory Ridge, Overlook, and Brookside trails approximately 4 miles at 18 min/mile pace. Optional lunch if there is interest :)

Trails & Ales! Blacklick Woods Metro Park / Eastside Brewing Co

**History** The deep indigenous history of the land comprising [Blacklick Woods Metro Park](https://www.metroparks.net/parks-and-trails/blacklick-woods/) came to light in stages, beginning with a major discovery during the park's mid-century expansion. In 1961, the park district acquired a 100-acre parcel of land where a previous owner had stripped away topsoil and gravel from a five-acre section. Beneath the surface, workers uncovered 16 ancient fire rings buried roughly 30 inches underground. The park district promptly invited Dr. Raymond S. Baby, the respected Curator of Archaeology at the Ohio State Museum, to evaluate the site. After a thorough review, Dr. Baby confirmed the authenticity of the find and determined that the fire rings were the unmistakable remnants of a prehistoric Late Woodland period Indian village dating between AD 600 and AD 1200. This incredible area was proudly highlighted as the "Indian Village Site" on official Blacklick Woods park maps throughout the 1960s, anchoring the park's identity in Ohio's rich indigenous heritage. Decades later, the park's archaeological timeline expanded significantly when a completely separate, grander feature was discovered hidden just west of Blacklick Creek. In 2017, David Lamp, an eagle-eyed former archaeologist from Lancaster, was systematically analyzing historical aerial photographs kept by the USDA to locate undocumented native structures. While examining a photograph captured in 1954 -- back when the property was still a rural farm owned by the Ashton Lamp family -- he spied a massive, distinct dark circle. Because perfect circles are an extreme anomaly in the natural world, Lamp immediately recognized the shadow as the footprint of a forgotten indigenous monument. Before the land became a protected park, decades of heavy agricultural plowing and livestock grazing had flattened the ground, wearing the structure's physical height down to an easily overlooked 10 inches tall. To verify Lamp's incredible aerial find, a team from the Heartland Earthworks Conservancy partnered with park staff to clear away dense brush and trees covering the site. Renowned volunteer archaeologist Jarrod Burks led a sophisticated geophysical survey on September 24, 2017, inviting the public to watch the science unfold in real time. Burks pulled an array of highly sensitive magnetometers across the soil, measuring minuscule variations in the ground's magnetic content. Because topsoil holds a higher magnetic signature than deeper substrate layers, the instruments clearly mapped a massive, ancient ditch that had filled with topsoil over centuries of erosion. This advanced technology produced a stunning, flawless digital visualization of a hidden prehistoric circular earthwork buried right beneath the feet of unsuspecting park hikers. The data collected by Burks revealed that the Blacklick Circle originally featured a three-to-five-foot earthen embankment pairing with a distinct interior ditch. The structure is estimated to have a total diameter of just under 100 feet, and the magnetic imaging perfectly captured the precise location of the circle’s original eastern entranceway. Archaeologists attribute this monumental construction to the ancient Adena or Hopewell cultures, pushing the park’s human history back roughly 2,000 to 2,200 years. While the Adena and Hopewell peoples are famous throughout the Ohio River valley for building giant burial mounds, circular enclosures like this one served distinct communal purposes. Because these earthworks do not contain human remains, they are understood to be highly sacred, carefully engineered gathering spaces for spiritual ceremonies and social alignment. Today, the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks system treats this miraculous discovery as a crown jewel of regional cultural heritage. Rather than excavating and disrupting the sacred ground, the park utilizes a creative technique known as interpretive mowing. By cutting the grass at strategic heights, rangers visually outline the exact contours and entrance of the ancient circle so visitors can appreciate its scale from the adjacent recreational trail. Educational signs and informative placards now stand near the site, teaching families about the advanced architectural and mathematical skills of the region's first inhabitants. The discovery stands as a powerful reminder that our local green spaces are not just nature preserves, but deeply sacred, historical landscapes that have drawn human communities together for millennia. **Map of the Park** Here is a [map of Blacklick Woods](https://www.metroparks.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/BLK-map-May-2025-with-extended-greenway_1980px.jpg). **Summary** For this event, we will hike about 4.5 miles by doing a couple loops of the Buttonbush, Tucker, Maple Loop, and Beech trails. Blacklick Woods is a very nice park, but it is generally flat and not strenuous, so this will be one of our easier hikes. **Where We'll Meet** Drive all the way to the back of the park to the parking lot that is nearest the Nature Center. There are restrooms here next to the [Canopy Walk](https://www.metroparks.net/parks-and-trails/blacklick-woods/#canopy-walk). We'll meet near these restrooms. **After the Hike** Afterward, we'll head over to [Eastside Brewing Co](https://www.eastsidebrewingco.com/) for drinks and [food](https://www.facebook.com/p/Smash-N-Eatz-61578406199442/). The actual address of the brewery is [1421 Davidson Dr, Reynoldsburg, OH 43068](https://www.google.com/maps/place/1421+Davidson+Dr,+Reynoldsburg,+OH+43068/@39.9541807,-82.8056303,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x8838648e132b4655:0x9d9c1d48e854e09b!8m2!3d39.9541807!4d-82.8056303!16s%2Fg%2F11bw49sw7m?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDkxMy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D). We should be there by 5 if you can't make the hike and just want to join us for drinks.

Old Beechwold; What You Don't Know May Surprise You

On this tour we'll enjoy a 2.5 miles stroll through beautiful Old Beechwold. We'll learn about its unique origin, discuss its transformations through time, and witness its hidden gems. Due to the lack of any sidewalks and the narrow, winding roads here the tour size is limited. If you have weak knees or balance issues please bring a hiking pole or two as we may go "off trail" for a bit of our tour, depending on interest. We can discuss lunch options afterward for those folks who would like to go to lunch nearby. I will cancel this tour in the event of likely rain.