A Trail in Ohio's Little Smokies Just Got a Name Worth Knowing

Some good news out of southern Ohio: the Ohio Department of Natural Resources celebrated the official opening of the newly named Dr. E. Lucy Braun Lookout Trail at Shawnee State Park on Sunday, honoring a pioneering Ohio botanist and ecologist whose research helped shape the understanding of the state's forests, as the Scioto Post reported in late September. A good trail got better, and it now carries the name of the scientist who loved these hills more than just about anyone.

What happened

On the third Sunday of September, visitors, community members and nature enthusiasts gathered at the shelter house on Mackletree Road for a dedication ceremony before taking part in a guided walk along the newly improved 2-mile loop trail. This isn't a brand-new cut through the woods — it's a historic one, upgraded and given a proper name. The original Lookout Trail is a historic trail built in 1938 by the CCC, traversing a diverse forest with a beautiful view of Roosevelt Lake and the original Theodore Roosevelt Game Preserve founded in 1922. The refreshed route tells that story out loud: the trail features interpretive signs highlighting the life and scientific work of Dr. E. Lucy Braun, as well as the history of Civilian Conservation Corps Company 1545, the CCC company that worked in the area during the 1930s, helping develop the region for public recreation.

The woman behind the name

If you haven't heard of Lucy Braun, the signs along the loop will fix that. Braun was known for her groundbreaking studies of deciduous forests and plant communities, and she frequently brought students to Shawnee State Forest to study the area's biodiversity. She wasn't just studying these woods — she was fighting for them. Through her tours and publications, Braun raised awareness in scientific circles about the great biodiversity found in the hills of western Scioto and eastern Adams counties, and it was Braun who first championed a site within Shawnee Forest for protection and designation as a National Natural Landmark. At the ceremony, park naturalist Jenny Richards put it simply: "Dr. Braun helped reveal the story written in these forests."

Why this corner of Ohio matters

Shawnee is one of those places that surprises people who think they know Ohio. Shawnee State Park is a 1,095-acre area located within the 68,000-acre Shawnee State Forest — a region known as Ohio's "Little Smokies" — featuring scenic hiking trails, lakes and access to the Ohio River. Sixty-eight thousand acres of ridge and hollow in the state's southern hills, an hour and a half of winding roads from just about anywhere. It's the kind of landscape that made a world-class scientist keep coming back for decades, and it's a couple hours' drive for most of the state. If you're the type who keeps a little Ohio pride in your closet, this is the country that earns it.

Go walk it

Two miles is a friendly distance — long enough to feel like you went somewhere, short enough for an afternoon with kids or a dog. Start at the shelter house on Mackletree Road, read the signs as you climb, and take the lookout slow. Fall is coming to the Little Smokies, which is arguably the best argument anyone has ever made for a Saturday drive south. Wear boots, bring water, and if you want to look the part, the Ohio State Pride Tee layers just fine under a flannel in October woods.

It's a small thing, a renamed trail. But it's also a state deciding that the people who taught us to see a forest deserve to be remembered inside one. That's the good kind of news.

Common questions

Where is the Dr. E. Lucy Braun Lookout Trail?

It's at Shawnee State Park near Portsmouth in southern Ohio. The dedication gathered at the shelter house on Mackletree Road, the jumping-off point for the 2-mile loop.

Is it a new trail or a renamed one?

Both, sort of. It's a newly improved 2-mile loop built on the historic Lookout Trail, originally built in 1938 by the CCC, with a view of Roosevelt Lake, now renamed and outfitted with interpretive signs about Dr. Braun and CCC Company 1545.

What else is there to do at Shawnee?

The region features scenic hiking trails, lakes and access to the Ohio River, and visitors can participate in boating, fishing and swimming — plenty to fill a weekend in the Little Smokies.

Reported by Scioto Post. Details as published at the time of writing.