Harrison-Crawford State Forest

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Outside the Forest Office

The Harrison-Crawford State Forest is a large tract of protected forests in south central Indiana along the borders of Harrison and Crawford County.

1 Creation of the Forestry
2 The Forest
3 Gallery
4 External Links

[edit] Creation of the Forestry

The Forestry was created from merging the Harrison County Forestry with the Crawford County Forestry in 1998. The Harrison County Forestry was established in 1932 when the state purchased 26,000 acres in western Harrison County. The forestry surrounds the O'Bannon Woods State Park and the Wyandotte Caves.

[edit] The Forest

The forest has large public access areas including A and C class camping sites. There are over 50 miles of hiking trails ranging from beginner to advanced trails. There is a public stables that connect with 80 miles of looped horse trails that cross over most of the park. A nature center and historic homestead are in the center of the forest and provides a sample of the wildlife in the forest and what life was like in the forest 200 years ago. There are two public access pools, picnic areas, and fishing. The state forest also permits hunting to anyone with a hunting license. The forest is rich in wild game including white tail deer, wild turkey, squirrel, and pheasant.

The Ohio River runs along the southern edge of the forest and there are many scenic views of the river. The Blue River bisects the forest running from the north into the Ohio River on the south side of the forest.

A 100 feet high fire tower over looks the park and was used in the early days to watch for wild fires. In past days the forest was home to Cold Friday Church and Cemetery, and the Happy Hollow Community, both areas having been abandoned years ago.

Indiana State Road 62 runs through the center of the state forest with state road 462 branching off to connect to the public access areas of the Forest.

O'Bannon Woods State Park is in the center of the forest and see many visitors each year. Wyandotte Caves is also within the boundaries of the forest.

Solidago shortii, or Short Golden Rod, which is considered to be among the rarest plants on earth, grow within the forestry. The only other location the plant is known to grow is in theBlue Licks Battlefield State Park.