Fall hikes and bike rides: Hit the trails at local parks, nature preserves at these events

Joseph Dits, South Bend Tribune
·4 min read
A hike Thursday, Sept. 30, will return to Chikaming Township Park and Preserve, honoring the birthday of the late Kirk Schrader who created the mountain bike trails there. Seen here is the hike/bike ride held last year on this date.
A hike Thursday, Sept. 30, will return to Chikaming Township Park and Preserve, honoring the birthday of the late Kirk Schrader who created the mountain bike trails there. Seen here is the hike/bike ride held last year on this date.

Local parks and nature preserves are hosting lots of autumn hikes, bike rides and other jaunts in the coming weeks. Here's a look.

Hike the bike trail

Hike the first 1.5 miles of the Kirk Schrader Mountain Bike Trails at Chikaming Township Park and Preserve in Harbert, Mich., at 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 30 with the Harbor Country Hikers and Janet Schrader, whose late husband, Kirk, had created the trail with volunteer help. It will be on Kirk’s birthday. The park is north of U.S. 12 on Warren Woods Road, just east of Interstate 94 and 1.4 miles east of the Red Arrow Highway.

All about trees

Elkhart County Parks will teach big folks and preschoolers about trees in this foliage-minded season at Ox Bow County Park, 23033 County Road 45 between Goshen and Elkhart. First, all ages will learn to identify trees from 6-7 p.m. Friday.

Bring a collection bag, marker and tape for collecting specimens. It’s free, but registration is needed by Thursday. The second program, for ages 3-5, will be from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Oct. 5 and 6, with stories, crafts and a short hike where kids will learn about trees types and what critters use them for home. Cost is $4 per child; register by Friday. Registration for both is at elkhartcountyparks.org.

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Berrien wellness walks

Love Creek County Park naturalists will lead up to 90-minute hikes at 10 a.m. each Wednesday now through October in the Berrien County Parks. The hikes will be today at Paw Paw River County Park, 650 N. Main St. Watervliet; Oct. 6 at Love Creek at 9292 Huckleberry Road, Berrien Center; Oct. 13 at Madeline Bertrand County Park, 3038 Adams Road, Niles; Oct. 20 at Galien River County Park, 17424 Red Arrow Highway, New Buffalo; and Oct. 27 at Love Creek. The only charge will be $3 at Love Creek unless you have a park pass.

Fall color walks

St. Joseph County Parks will lead free hikes at 10 a.m. on Thursdays in October: Oct. 7 at St. Patrick’s, Oct. 14 at Ferrettie-Baugo Creek, Oct. 21 at Spicer Lake Nature Preserve and Oct. 28 at Bendix Woods county parks.

Horses on the beach

Bring your own horse for a rare chance to ride Saturday at the West Beach of Indiana Dunes National Park in Gary. Options are from 10 a.m. to noon or 2 to 4 p.m. CDT. Cost is $25 per horse. Registration is required at 219-395-1882.

Nature appreciation

Shirley Heinze Land Trust will lead a series of hikes Saturday in its preserves in four northwest Indiana counties. That includes hikes at 10, 10:30 and 11 a.m. at Lydick Bog Nature Preserve, 25898 U.S. 20, South Bend.

In LaPorte County, a guided tour from 10 a.m. to noon CDT will go through Barker Woods Nature Preserve, an urban old-growth woods at 444 Barker Road, in Michigan City. Also at 10 a.m. CDT, you can choose between a hike in Ambler Flatwoods Nature Preserve, 8333 N. Meer Road, Michigan City, or a bike ride from the preserve along a new 20.8-mile county bike route on roads dubbed the Ambler Flatwoods Loop. second hike will begin at noon CDT.

Park in the preserve’s lot on Meer Road/County Road 600 West. (Take U.S. 20 west toward Michigan City. Just west of Interstate 94, take the first right onto County Road 600 West (Meer Road) and go about two miles to the preserve’s parking lot, 0.3 miles north of Tryon Road.)

Visit heinzetrust.org/events for details and locations, including a paddle and hikes in Porter and Lake counties. For questions, contact Bonnie Hawksworth at bhawksworth@heinzetrust.org or 219-242-8558.

Randy’s ride

The cycling club Road Dogs’ annual Randy Carrick Memorial Ride departs at 10 a.m. Sunday on 70% gravel roads and challenging hills, mostly in Cass County, from Congdon Park in Bristol. No road bikes will do. The suggested $30 donation will support Carrick's family. For questions, contact Dave Beaverson at 574-226-6415 or thebeavos3@aol.com.

Mountain bike clinic

The Northern Indiana Mountain Bike Association will lead two free introductory mountain bike clinics on Sunday, one at 2 p.m. for adults and teen-agers and one at 3:30 p.m. for kids, both at Love Creek County Park in Berrien Center.

You're asked to bring a fully functioning mountain bike that you can ride without training wheels. If you need to rent one of the park’s bikes, call ahead to 269-471-2617. You must call that number to register.

Follow Outdoor Adventures columnist Joseph Dits on Facebook at SBTOutdoorAdventures. Contact him at 574-235-6158 or jdits@sbtinfo.com.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Local parks, nature preserves host autumn hikes, bike rides and more