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Fern Cliff
 

Why You Should Visit 

Fern Cliff Preserve

Fern Cliff Preserve
© The Nature Conservancy

This well-known and much treasured preserve has long been a popular Indiana refuge. Steep, forested, sandstone cliffs, lush wooded ravines, and a profusion of ferns and bryophytes characterize the preserve. It’s this unique vegetation that makes the preserve a botanists’ floral paradise. Of this area, Alton Lindsey in Natural Areas in Indiana and Their Preservation writes, "the vertical walls sheathed with ferns and liverworts produces an impression of tropical exotica unmatched by other Indiana scenes."

Location
Putnam County

Ecoregion
Interior Low Plateau

Size
157 Acres

Dedicated
State Nature Preserve, 1988 & 1996

Designated
National Natural Landmark, 1980

Owned & Managed By
The Nature Conservancy

Partners
Department of Nature Preserves, Indiana Heritage Trust and the Joe. C. Emerson Memorial Fund

How to Prepare for Your Visit
The preserve is open for hiking - a trail does exist on the preserve - , photography, and bird watching on its moderate to rugged terrain. Rock climbing and rappelling are not allowed. Please note that the preserve is gated to keep vehicles out. Simply walk around the gate. For more information please consult the Conservancy’s Preserves Visitation Guidelines.

Fern Cliff Preserve

Fern Cliff Preserve
© The Nature Conservancy

 

Directions
From Greencastle: From the southeast corner of the Courthouse, go south on Jackson one block to Walnut Street. Go west (right) on Walnut (which becomes County Rd. 125S) approximately four miles. Turn south on County Rd. 500W (which will become 525W, 550W, and 600W) approximately three miles to County Rd. 375S. Turn west (right) to the Fern Cliff entrance (approximately one mile).

From U.S. 40: Go north on County Rd. 625W through Pleasant Garden and Reelsville to County Rd. 650W (approximately one mile). Turn right on County Rd. 650W (becomes County Rd. 625W) and proceed (approximately two miles) to a dead end at County Rd. 500S. Turn east (right) on County Rd. 500S to County Rd. 600W (approximately 0.2 mile). Turn north (left) on County Rd. 600W. After approximately 1.4 miles County Rd. 600N will turn west and become County Rd. 375S. Proceed west on County Rd. 375S for approximately one mile to the Fern Cliff entrance.

What to See: Plants and Animals
Keep an eye out for rare bryophytes and ferns along with a variety of mosses and liverworts that help make the preserve so unique.

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
The Nature Conservancy staff, along with our devoted volunteer stewards, is working to stem the invasion of autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata), an exotic species threatening to crowd out native plant species.