A week or so ago my buddy Phil asked me if I had ever heard about this nature preserve down in Loveland. Living near Loveland it came as a surprise that I’ve never heard of it. Well Phil told me that it’s called East Loveland Nature Preserve, and that it’s real close to the fire house on Route 48. So today I went exploring, and I’m certainly glad that I did. What a nice preserve!
With O’Bannon Creek flowing to the North, and East Loveland Avenue to the South, this 16 acre gem is a nice quiet retreat just a short walk from downtown historic Loveland.
Bares Run with flows under East Loveland Avenue, flows North towards O’Bannon Creek, and forms the Western border of the preserve.
Bares Run
What’s really nice about this preserve is that it’s an interpretive preserve. The trails are well marked, with signs posted along the way talking about about the various flora, fauna, geology, and the history surrounding this area. And every so often they will have a sign with a map showing where you are, even though you really can’t get lost.
A typical sign with the map showing your location.
The trails were great, even with the little rain we had last night, it only helped dampen your foot steps as you walked through the lush vegetation. Most of the trails were wide enough to allow 2 people to walk side by side.
One of the trails ran North along Bares Run till it emptied into O’Bannon Creek, then it made a right turn as it followed the creek up stream.
I found this female Northern Cardinal foraging amongst the rocks of O’Bannon Creek.
Looking East towards the rising sun along O’Bannon Creek.
Most of the time the trails were enveloped in shade, which made for a somewhat cooler walk. However the humidity was understandably higher as the sun rose . With little or no breeze to speak of the Honeysuckle vines were giving off their wonderful perfume as you passed by.
A view down onto O’Bannon Creek
As you approached the farthest point of the preserve, I came up this bridge that was a Boy Scout Eagle project.
You can see that the Scout had personalized the post, and dated it.
Mr Turtle basking in the morning sun.
I don’t know what’s the name of this bug, however they were all over. They were this wonderful iridescent blue, and difficult to get close to.
A poor picture of an Eastern Towhee.
A local woman’s group from Loveland helped in the construction of this bird blind. Even though the structure is still sound, there were signs of vandalism as boards were kicked out along the front and sides. There were also 2 feeders that have seen better days, as they looked a little forlorn and weather beaten.
There were several Bluebird boxes located throughout the preserve, however I don’t think they were occupied by anything, especially Bluebirds.
I really wanted to cover this area well, so I spent about 4 hours going over and over the same ground making myself familiar with this preserve. As the day wore on more and more people started using the preserve. There were families taking walks and others jogging. I also saw a group start into it with their fishing poles. A very nice park tucked into this suburb which I’ve passed a hundred times without ever noticing. Shame on me, but not any more.
Notable birds for the day include:
- Acadian Flycatcher
- Northern Rough-winged Swallow
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Northern Cardinal
- Willow Flycatcher
- Indigo Bunting
- Chimney Swift
- Red-bellied Woodpecker
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Downy Woodpecker
- Carolina Chickadee
- White-brested Nuthatch
- Tufted Titmouse
- Blue Jay
- House Wren
- American Robin
- Crow
- Eastern Wood Pewee
- Prothonotary Warbler
- Yellow-throated Warbler
- Eastern Goldfinch
- Eastern Towhee
- Scarlet Tanager
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Turkey Vulture
- Northern Flicker
- House Sparrow
- House Finch
A Birder's Notebook 