Slump Cave Millionaire

Ooh la la!!! These are the first words that come to my mind when I think about the hike that we took to Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve on Sunday, August 5. This hike is in the top 5 hikes of this whole adventure. It is located in Yellow Springs just outside of Dayton. Joe, Lorrie, Ryan and I were amazed by all of the beautiful scenery along the way. We hiked 3.2 miles in two hours and the temperature was a very humid 82 degrees.

After parking the car and setting off on the trail we were immediately confronted by a series of overlooks of the Little Miami River. The sound of the rushing water and the views of the forest and rock formations were breathtaking. After hiking less than a mile, we hit trails end and were confused about our map and our location. Our only alternative was to walk back the way we came, which wasn't such a bad deal since the views were so beautiful. As we approached the trail head where we started the hike, we realized that the parking lot where we parked the car was different than the parking lot designated in the book. Trail confusion resolved!

As we proceeded in the proper direction, the trail changed from just being soil to rocky. It headed downhill toward the river and we continued to be serenaded by the sound of running water. When we got to the lowest point, several trails converged in one place and there was a bridge that led over the river and to a trail at a different park. This was a big turning point in the hike. We were enjoying the scenery thus far, but we had no idea what was yet to come.

The trail now headed along the water, zigzagging in different directions. There were a couple of overlooks near the water where you could step out and see some pretty views of the river. We stopped and enjoyed the views. The most amazing accents along the trail were the big boulders and rocky cliff formations. The rocks were HUGE and you could tell there was a lot of movement in them a long time ago. There were giant boulders that looked like they were randomly thrown down into the water by a fairytale giant. Layers and layers of dolomite (thank you trail sign) accented the trail.  Fortunately we had our geology expert, Ryan, with us. He explained that when layers of rock fall in the way these rocks were, geologists would say, "That rock has nice cleavage."

There were some nice up and down grades along this part of the trail and the rockiness of the path continued. The next cool spotlight of this hike was the slump-block cave. Here's how Tammy York describes this natural wonder, "A slump-block cave is formed when water dissolves softer rock and instead of a block of rock falling away from the cliff, the block falls towards the cliff and creates a cave."  This was definitely one of the coolest sights along the trail.

The steep cliffs contrasted by the river and beautiful green forest are what made this such a beautiful hiking location. We talked about returning in the spring because there is supposed to be a great display of blooming flowers. We hiked up a steep set of stairs to finish the trail and celebrated the completion of another hike with some authentic Chinese food in the artsy little town of Yellow Springs.

41 hikes down and 19 to go!!!! Will be blogging about another hike soon that involved a special guest hiker.