Woodlands Restoration

The woodlands of Cherokee and Seneca Parks have great value, both to park users and to the environment well beyond their borders. They improve water and air quality, cool the city and provide habitat for the animal and birds that call it home. They are an essential component of Louisville’s Olmsted Park System, but it’s time to sound the alarm. We are in danger of losing our woodlands!

The forests in Cherokee and Seneca have changed significantly over time. Devastated by the 1974 tornado, impacted by construction of I-64 and surrounding development, and suffering from the stress of increased use, the parks’ wooded areas have been in a steady decline for over 30 years. Unmanaged growth of invasive plants is destroying large canopy trees at an alarming rate. Erosion is washing away the soil as it races from roads and neighborhoods towards Beargrass Creek. Old drainage systems are collapsing, resulting in sinkholes and unhealthy waterways. The lack of well-designed trails is confusing to park users and unsanctioned or “rogue” trails are appearing, compounding erosion woes and providing more footholds for invasive plants. Click these links to learn more about invasive plants and why using native plants in your yard can benefit the parks.

The Conservancy is developing a plan, for the first time, to address the critical state of the woodlands and waterways within the borders of Cherokee and Seneca Parks. It is our mission to document the serious deterioration and to provide a comprehensive strategy that will restore these cherished areas. Woodlands Restoration will undertake intensive, hands-on work with a corps of trained personnel. Educating park users and neighbors about ways they can help will be vital to the success of this multi-year effort. Although there are many challenges, these parks are not beyond repair. Together, we can restore the woodlands so that future generations may enjoy them.

Trail Users to Experience Changes at Cherokee Park

The first of several multiuse trails developed for hikers, runners and mountain bikers in Louisville’s Cherokee Park just open at the end of September. Located near Hogan’s Fountain, this is the park’s first trail designed specifically to prevent additional erosion to the park’s sensitive ecosystem while withstanding regular use.

At the same time, several trails developed for hikers and runners only are being scattered throughout the same area. All the trails will feature signage that indicates whether they are multiuse trails or have been developed solely for people on foot. Multiuse trails will incorporate features that make them more sustainable to use by bikes. The new trail system will eventually offer a complete loop for mountain bikers, who were previously restricted to trails on the northeast side of Beargrass Creek. Thanks to many volunteers, Metro Parks and KyMBA for their help in working on the trails, without them it would not have been possible.
The complete loop is scheduled to be completed by Fall 2009.
Cherokee Park Trails.

Wildflower Woods Interpretive Trail

Did you know that the Witch Hazel shrub name was derived from “water witches” who used the forked branches to locate water beneath the ground? Or that the Sessile Trillium wildflower leaves and petals grow in groups of three? You can learn more about native plant species in the park because of a generous grant from Cotton & Allen. Wildflower Woods is an area of Cherokee Park restored by the efforts of volunteers with a newly opened trail, complete with trail signs that teach walkers about Kentucky's diversity of native wildflowers and trees. Come enjoy a stroll in Wildflower Woods of Cherokee Park!