Riddle State Nature Preserve

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Large red oak (Quercus rubra) in Riddle State Nature Preserve.

Riddle State Nature Preserve is located in central Athens County, Ohio, on the fringe of the city of Athens, Ohio. It comprises 106 acres (about 43 hectares), of which about 85 acres (34 hectares) is an old-growth forest. The old-growth forest is also known as Hawk Woods.

The preserve is owned and managed by the City of Athens. It was dedicated as a state nature preserve, in part because the Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves donated $50,000 to the purchase price. The property was purchased for $550,000, most of which value was in the old-growth timber. The preserve is part of the city's east-side Strouds Ridge Preserve project, which to date includes about 325 acres (about 132 hectares) total.

As with many other areas in southeast Ohio, the preserve suffers from white-tail deer overpopulation. A deer exclosure was built to demonstrate the effects of grazing pressure from the deer.

Mossy decaying logs in the preserve.

There are no trails in the old-growth forest area, but the Athens Trail passes through the preserve on the ridge top. The preserve adjoins and links Sells Park, an Athens City park, and other Athens City preserve lands, and in turn links to Strouds Run State Park.