The trail through Laura Hare Preserve at Blossom Hollow, a protected area in southwestern Johnson County created by the Central Indiana Land Trust. The organization will host an open house Friday in Franklin to bring attention to its work.
DAILY JOURNAL FILE PHOTOTucked into the rolling hills of southern Johnson County, a trove of natural treasures waits to be discovered.
Visitors to the Laura Hare Preserve at Blossom Hollow can find mature white and red oaks surrounded by ferns and wildflowers. The observant might spot a few of the rare species that consider the preserve their home — an Eastern box turtle, worm eating warbler or a hooded warbler.
The unbroken wilderness abutting Lamb Lake is an important habitat and ecosystem. But many don’t even know it’s there.
To help raise awareness of the preserve, other protected spaces in Johnson County and the work the Central Indiana Land Trust does, local organizers are inviting the community to a special open house. The event is planned for 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at the historic Cottage at the Artcraft, 49 E. Madison St., Franklin.
Attendees can learn more about the work the Central Indiana Land Trust has done, while engaging in conversations about why the organization’s work is so important.
Leah Faye Baker, a local wildlife artist, will be painting during the event and displaying some pieces of her work. Everyone who attends will receive Central Indiana Land Trust swag, and can enter to win door prizes.
“We have some great nature preserves in Johnson County, and folks continue to discover the preserves we have,” said Cliff Chapman, president and CEO of the land trust. “As people have been hiking them and discovering these sites, we’ve been growing our membership. This was a chance for us to come down and just meet people.”
The Central Indiana Land Trust is an organization that preserves significant natural spots around the region. Since 1990, the group has protected more than 6,500 acres.
“We’re a group of people who love nature. We have a passion for it,” Chapman said. “It’s not that we just love wildflowers or love birds and butterflies, but we’re a group of people who want to do something about it. We’re science-based, we have a plan and we follow it.”
In Johnson County, their efforts have been focused on an ecologically important region known as the Hills of Gold — so named for the flecks of gold glaciers left in the area during the ice age.
Through donations and land purchases, the land trust has slowly acquired multiple properties in the Hills of Gold. The Laura Hare Preserve at Blossom Hollow is a publicly accessible 149-acre property wrapping around Lamb Lake in southern Johnson County. The area’s hilly, unbroken block of hardwood forest is a key habitat for migratory birds and forest interior nesting birds.
A second property, Betley Woods at Glacier’s End, is an adjacent piece of land currently closed to the public. Located just north of the Brown County border, it sits where a line of glaciers stopped moving southward thousands of years ago. The resulting mix of both glaciated and unglaciated land provides a rich habitat for incredibly diverse flora and fauna.
In 2022, the land trust added 109 acres known as Callon Hollow, a diverse forest landscape home to a number of rare or threatened birds, reptiles, plants and insects.
Work is ongoing to install trails at Betley Woods, made possible with the help of Next Level Trails from the state, as well as additional funding from the Johnson County Community Foundation. Organizers expect the project to be finished in 2024.
“Our goal here is to have one of the best hiking experiences in the state of Indiana,” Chapman said. “We want the people of Johnson County to be really, really proud of this.”
With the projects planned in Johnson County, local volunteers with the Central Indiana Land Trust felt it would be a perfect time to welcome the community in for a discussion. Karen Wade, a Johnson County resident who sits on the land trust’s board, helped get the event planned and organized.
“Our membership in Johnson County has just been growing and growing, and we thought we’d just have an open house,” Chapman said.
The informal event is planned to fall in between two showings of “Singing in the Rain” at the Historic Artcraft Theatre. Chapman and other land trust board members will be answering questions and sharing more information about the organization.
“We just wanted to have a social gathering, a little bit of a meet-and-greet to talk about the preserves we have,” Chapman said.
IF YOU GO
Central Indiana Land Trust Meet-and-Greet
What: An informal gathering giving people an opportunity to learn more about the Central Indiana Land Trust and the work they’ve done throughout the state, including in Johnson County.
When: 4-7 p.m. Friday
Where: Historic Cottage at the Artcraft, 49 E. Madison St., Franklin
Cost: Free
Information: conservingindiana.org/event/meet-and-greet-at-the-historic-cottage-at-the-artcraft
