Within the 902 acres of Girdled Road Reservation visitors can experience the beauty of many different types of habitats-dense forests, fields, and wetlands.

Audubon Ohio has designated this park as an Important Bird Area particularly for woodland nesting species. Habitat includes several ponds, large tracts of mature woodlands, two large creeks which are part of the scenic Grand River watershed, and old fields.

Take I-90 to OH-44 south. Turn left (east) onto Girdled Road for about 2.5 miles. Turn right (south) onto OH-608 for about 2 miles. Turn left (east) onto Radcliffe Road for .3 mile. The entrance is located on the left side of the road.

Open all year during daylight hours.
Two entrances with ample parking.

Girdled Road Reservation is a stop on the Lake Erie Birding Trail.

Summer
Over 100 species of nesting birds including Green Herons, Cedar Waxwings, thrushes, vireos, juncos, meadowlarks, Bobolinks, Wood Ducks, Scarlet Tanagers, woodpeckers, Winter Wren, several species of warblers, Purple Finch, and Henslow’s Sparrow.

Girdled Road Reservation was purchased by Lake Metroparks in 1965. It is named for the first road that the early European settlers built from the Pennsylvania line to the new city of Cleveland in the early 1800s. A small path was cut first. Settlers knew that a larger road was needed, so they “girdled” the trees along the path. (Girdling a tree means cutting through the bark around the entire tree. This cuts off the flow of nutrients so the tree dies. Once a tree dies, it is much easier to remove it and thus widen the road.) Today the remaining section of Girdled Road is the northern boundary of this park.

Historically accessed from Radcliffe Road in the south and Girdled Road in the north, and now via Concord Hambden Road (OH-608) at Skok Meadow, is one of the park district’s most biologically diverse properties. Covered by a mosaic of woodland, meadow, and wetland, the park is home to a wide variety of plants and animals. In 2010, 64 resident bird species, 38 butterflies, 18 mammals, 39 dragonflies and damselflies, 19 reptiles and amphibians, and countless plant species were documented in the park. Among these are a number of rare or endangered species including yellow-bellied sapsuckers, cerulean warblers, bobolinks, and a shrub called hobblebush.

Girdled Road Reservation Trails
Hiking trails at Girdled Road Reservation include:
Big Creek Valley Trail – 0.43 miles – easy – natural
Chickadee Trail –0 .68 miles – difficult – compacted gravel
Creek Crossing Trail – 0.42 miles – difficult – compacted gravel
Green Darner Trail – 0.33 miles – easy – compacted gravel
Oak Leaf Loop Trail – 4.09 miles – difficult – compacted gravel
Skok Meadow Loop Trail – 1.09 miles – easy – compacted gravel
South Meadow Tral – 0.49 miles – easy – compacted gravel and asphalt
Surveyors Woods Loop Trail – 1.22 miles – easy – compacted gravel
Valley View Overlook Trail – 0.07 miles – easy – compacted gravel

Descriptions and maps of 4 hikes on trails at Girdled Road Reservation are on the AllTrails website.