O’Bannon Woods State Park: Face Your Fears

What are your biggest fears? Thunderstorms, spiders, public speaking, flying? The National Institute of Mental Health shared the top 10 biggest fears people have, and if you want to visit O’Bannon Woods State Park, you're going to need to be brave because you'll find quite a few of them here! So which sounds the scariest: snakes, heights, the dark, or small underground spaces? Maybe it’s all of the above. 

But don't worry, there are lots of non-scary things there too, like a fun water park, mountain biking trails, a horse campground, and oxen that power an old haypress. It’s an exciting, interactive park. From the tree-lined entrance to the steep hills that take you down to the Ohio River, this park blew me away!

IN the Podcast Episode

I learned as much as I could about O’Bannon Woods on my visit there. Several staff members gave me all the details on the CCC history, caving, trails, hay press, oxen, and the venomous snakes on display in the nature center. I also learned about hellbenders which is really cool! I had a little fun organizing the episode into all the “scary” things you could find at the park. But I also learned about the mountain biking trails and how the Friends group supports this diverse property. I loved hearing about Carter and Cash, the oxen who power the haypress.

Park Features

O’Bannon Woods State Park has so many activities, it would be easy to spend days here. With nearly 23,000 acres, it has all the essentials: picnic spots, shelters, a very kid-friendly nature center full of things to touch, fishing, and boating. As mentioned, there are miles of mountain biking trails which overlap with the hiking trails. They’re more rugged than I expected. The mile-long ADA trail was smooth, picturesque, and nicely shaded. However, other trails were more rooty and rocky, which many mountain bikers love! 

The most extreme trail is the Adventure Trail, a 25-mile long path through the park and into neighboring Harrison-Crawford State Forest. The Adventure Trail is great training for anyone hiking the Knobstone or Appalachian Trails. There are some shelters along it, but hikers will need to plan ahead with their water. Because this is cave country, most of the water is underground, so having the right supplies is paramount.

At the park, you’ll also find a horseman’s campground, a family aquatic center, 281 electric campsites, and a large group camp. The campground is always open with a Class A comfort station available all year. If you like winter camping, you’ll be taken care of. The park also has a rich history with the Civilian Conservation Corps. There’s a fire tower to climb, and the park was home to one of the few African-American units.

O’Bannon Woods also includes Wyandotte Caves where you can take various tours underground and learn about the world beneath your feet. If you’d rather stay above ground, behind the nature center is a pioneer homestead with a working hay press, two oxen who make the press run, and their two donkey friends. All of these amazing topics are explored in the podcast!

The Fear of Snakes

O’Bannon Woods’ nature center has something no other park does: one of each of Indiana’s venomous snakes. The park’s interpretive naturalist Jarrett Manick told me, “Throughout my whole career, I've been hugely fascinated with snakes.” His favorite is the hognose snake, but Jarrett knows he works with a species not everyone loves. There are over 30 types of snakes in Indiana, but only four pose any danger. Jarrett said, “Of those four, three of them are endangered species, and that means that they are rare to come across. Now, if you live in those certain counties that they do exist, coming across them is a little higher percentage and chance. But, for the most part…coming across a snake is pretty rare, and even more rare to come across a dangerous snake.” That should make you feel a little better!

The four venomous snakes in Indiana are the copperhead, cottonmouth, timber rattlesnake, and the Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake. Copperheads have only been found in Southern Indiana. Jarrett said the timber rattlesnake is only in about six south-central counties, specifically, “Brown County, Monroe are the last kind of stronghold counties for those snakes. Perry County, which is west of our park, does have a few of them that occur. It's pretty rare though, and that's why we call them endangered species.” The last two venomous snakes are even more rare. There’s only been one cottonmouth found in one county in the last several years. The Eastern Massasauga is state and federally endangered, so you’re unlikely to find that. If you did, it would be in the northern part of the state in a marshy wetland. 

Jarrett’s final reminder was that even though you may not like snakes, they do provide benefits to our ecosystem. You also don’t need to be afraid. He said, “The reason you hear about a bite, if one happens, is because they're so rare.” If you want to face your fear of snakes, seeing the contained snakes in the nature center is a good place to start. 

The Fear of the Dark: Wyandotte Caves

Another fear many people have is dark, small spaces. For Jim Cole, these are everyday realities when he leads tours into Wyandotte Caves. For over 15 years, Jim has been leading people through the dark caverns below. Tours are open on weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day. There’s a 30-minute tour through Little Wyandotte Cave and a 2-hour tour in Big Wyandotte Cave that takes you to Monument Mountain, an underground rock pile that towers overhead.

Jim was honest about what to expect when you're inside, especially if you're feeling apprehensive. He said, “It's not the most strenuous walk in the world, but it's a decent little hike. You know, there's all varying degrees of claustrophobia. Most people can handle it with no problem. The smallest places you're gonna go are like walking through a hallway, but it's like walking through a hallway for 15 minutes.” On the tours, there’s no crawling involved. You might see some cave crickets or salamanders, but nothing too scary. The temperature in the caves is in the low 50s year-round, so a sweatshirt or jacket is also helpful. Jim also recommended good walking shoes. 

While you can bring a headlamp or flashlight, the caves also have lights so you can see the notable rock formations. Jim said, “We try to have people experience total darkness… When you're in Wyandotte Cave, Big Wyandotte, back on the two hour route, and you shut the lights off, you're in true total darkness. And so we try to experience that, and the kids really enjoy it.” For anyone curious about what lies beneath, these cave tours are an exciting way to explore and learn about a different side of Indiana.

Planning Your Visit

You should definitely take a few days to visit O'Bannon Woods. I’d recommend going during a haypress demonstration or when you can go into Wyandotte Caves. In addition to all the activities at the park, there's plenty to do in the area with the town of Corydon nearby. It was our state's first capital, so there's history all through the community. Best of all, no matter what you're doing at O'Bannon, you'll find adventure, beauty, and some inner courage. Go make some of your own memories, and I hope to see you in the parks!