Five-Star Trails: Louisville and Southern Indiana. Valerie Askren

      Overview

      Cherokee Park—part of one of only four city-park systems in the United States created by Frederick Law Olmsted—is a jewel in the rough. Designed by Olmsted and his firm in 1891, it’s among Louisville’s 18 parks and 6 interconnecting parkways attributed to the father of American landscape architecture. Cherokee Park is undergoing a lengthy revitalization process to reclaim its former glory as a sanctuary for outdoor recreation. The Cherokee Park Loop takes hikers along Beargrass Creek and through much of the heart of this 409-acre park.

      Route Details

      Frederick Law Olmsted, who also designed Central Park in New York City, the Biltmore Estate outside of Asheville, North Carolina, and the grounds of the U.S. Capitol, believed that city parks were an essential element of healthy urban communities. His design philosophy encompassed three elements: recreative use (such as walking or relaxing), gregarious use (picnicking and other social activities), and exertive use (including ball fields and courts).

      The main artery for travel in Cherokee Park is the 2.4-mile Scenic Loop, a one-way paved road divided evenly between vehicular and pedestrian use. On almost any day of the week, and on most evenings as well, the pedestrian lane is filled with walkers, joggers, cyclists, and parents pushing strollers. The Scenic Loop combines manicured plantings with a pastoral backdrop of natural forests and tumbling creeks. Multiple stone bridges and two large fountains provide the hardscape that completes the look.

      Originally Cherokee Park was surrounded by beautiful homes to the north and south and Seneca Park (another Olmsted park) to the west. Today the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary lies to the east, I-64 crosses the northern tip of Cherokee Park, and a golf course lies to the west. Consequently, Cherokee Park has suffered from the growing pains of overuse due to increased urban density. In addition, a 1974 tornado—part of that year’s devastating multistate “super outbreak”—destroyed many of the large, mature trees that dominated the landscape. The loss of canopy has resulted in less-desirable and more-invasive plant species taking root in the park.

      Admittedly, Cherokee Park can be quite crowded, and solitude is hard to find. Litter is a constant eyesore, and Beargrass Creek (which runs through the middle of the park) is polluted with urban runoff. Nevertheless, the “bones” of Cherokee Park remain sound, and Louisvillians continue to be drawn to its natural beauty. The last several years have seen a tremendous push to revitalize all the Olmsted parks. Several nonprofits and foundations are working together with the city to bring the Louisville park system back its glory days.

      The 4.2-mile Cherokee Park Loop gives hikers a broad overview of the space’s beauty and diversity. Highlights include a hike along Beargrass Creek, the Nettelroth Memorial Bird Sanctuary, Hogan’s Fountain, and numerous limestone cliffs. An incredible maze of trails includes paved, multiuse, mixed-use, and just-plain-rogue paths that can confuse the first-time or casual hiker. The trail described here, in contrast, prepares you for repeat visits by sharpening your sense of bearing and navigational skills.

      At the far end of the parking lot described in the Directions, the trail begins behind the kiosk. Follow the dirt path along Beargrass Creek (creek-right as the current flows downstream). Here the creek flows over small rocks, creating a soothing, musical sound before falling into a deeper pool that surrounds “Big Rock,” at the base of a limestone cliff. A tattered hanging rope provides evidence of summer swims for those daring to brave the water quality. Debris piles near the shoreline demonstrate how high water levels can rise after heavy spring rains.

      The trail brings you to the corner of Beargrass and Alta Vista Roads, and a set of large millstones hand-hewn from conglomerate rock. Each stone is more than 5 feet around and 12 inches thick—much too heavy for pranksters to carry off.

      A little more than 0.2 mile from the parking lot, the trail joins the road. Keep left and walk in the pedestrian lane facing the traffic. This is a good place to spot mallard ducks near the old stone retaining wall. The birds feed off the insects and young plants along the creek bottom, their rear tail feathers standing vertical off the surface of the water as their heads dive deep below.

      At 0.34 mile, carefully cross the road at the sign for the multiuse trail. Bernard and Rosa Bernheim, who with Bernard’s brother, Isaac Wolfe Bernheim, helped establish Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest (see Hikes 14 and Скачать книгу