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On a beautiful Fall afternoon the youth of our church took a trip to Nelson
Ledges State Park.
Although a small park,
Nelson-Kennedy Ledges provides a thrilling experience to visitors with its rugged cliffs and diverse plant life typical of
a more northern climate. The spectacular rock formations
at Nelson-Kennedy Ledges have become trademarks of the park. These rock formations are among the few outcrops in northern
Ohio still exposed to view. Most of the outcrops elsewhere have been covered with soil and rock left by receding glaciers.
The
remarkable sandstone cliff formations resulted from the forces of erosion--wind, water freezing and thawing--that wore away
at the softer rock layers. As these soft layers eroded, large blocks of rock called slump blocks fell away leaving more resistant
layers to form ledges above.
The jumbled rocks and shaded rock faces are home to a wide variety of wildflowers, trees
and ferns. The spring wildflower show includes spring beauties, hepatica and trillium and features the rare red trillium,
which grows in great numbers along the ledges.
The beech-maple forest harbors a few tree species that are more common
in cooler climates: yellow birch, Canadian hemlock and Canada yew are common here. Some of these trees cling to the rock faces, their roots pushing into every available crevice.
In the shelter of the roots and shaded by the leafy canopy above, ferns such as the Christmas and maidenhair fern grow in
abundance. Others such as the marginal shield fern, grape fern, wood fern and common polypody are more unusual for this part
of the state.
The leafy canopy is home to a variety of songbirds, while small mammals such as skunk, raccoon and fox
squirrels inhabit other areas of the park.
This area was of vital importance
to the Indian tribes. The Delaware, Shawnee, Miami, Seneca, Mohawk, and Cajuga tribes were among those said to have lived at Nelson Ledges.
The park lies near one of the highest points of the state and is close to the watershed divide between
the Ohio River and Lake Erie. Several major foot trails and canoe routes passed through this vicinity. This area
became an important trade center for both pioneers and Indians.
The Nelson-Kennedy region has always been a popular
vacation spot and eventually came under state protection. In 1940, the state purchased land at Nelson Ledges, and in 1948,
it bought 101 acres of the area known as Kennedy Ledges. The state of Ohio created Nelson-Kennedy
Ledges State Park in 1949 to preserve the area for future generations of Ohioans to enjoy.
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