Follow the BUTTERFLIES

Flutter along the brand-new butterfly trail through the Hills to learn about and wonder at these gorgeous insects.

By Jamie Rhein

A people-sized pair of outstretched monarch butterfly wings stand at one end of the Monarch Waystation at the Hocking Hills Regional Welcome Center. Deep purple ironweed, coneflowers and bright yellow cup plants are joined with milkweed, the monarch’s must-have host plant. This visitor photo op is the first stop on the Hocking Hills Butterfly Trail There are 13 others, each showcasing the region’s native flowers and butterfly bounty. In the winter, the gardens are worth a visit when they become havens for pupae and caterpillars.

Travel all 14 stops on the trail from Logan to Rockbridge for a lesson in pollinators, host plants and what caterpillars eat. “The education component of the Butterfly Trail highlights the native habitat that makes Hocking Hills, Hocking Hills,” says Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist Andrea Jones. Many of the stops are little-known destination gems that also serve as butterfly magnets. Each has a different theme and a pair of giant butterfly wings that match a butterfly species found there. “We wanted to highlight different butterflies that can be seen at each location,” says Jones.

The Bowen House, a former private home and now an art center in Logan, is host to the clouded sulphur, a delicate butterfly with a yellow hue. Rockbridge State Nature Preserve beckons the hackberry emperor and at Bishop Educational Gardens, the spicebush swallowtail, a black beauty with blue and white highlights, is a star. The expanse of prairie and fields at Capital University’s Primmer Outdoor Learning Center attracts the great spangled fritillary. Although there is a small fee to enter the main grounds of Butterfly Ridge, the trail’s last stop, the wings of the eastern comma, are accessible to everyone.

Jones and members of Logan in Bloom developed the trail as a unique way to encourage others to beautify their communities and explore the region. In 2022, Logan in Bloom was recognized for its efforts by being honored with America in Bloom’s Bee Happy award for best pollinator habitat. Plus, standing between the wings of a butterfly for a photo opportunity is a crowd pleaser.

1 Hocking Hills Welcome Center

2 Capital University Primmer Outdoor Learning Center

3 Mingo Park

4 Hocking Valley Community Hospital

5 Worthington Park

6 The Bowen House

7 Hocking County Historical and Genealogical Society and Museum

8 Hocking Soil & Water Conservation District

9 Logan High School

10 Chieftain Elementary

11 Rockbridge State Nature Preserve

12 Appalachia Ohio Alliance Conservation Demonstration Site

13 Bishop Educational Gardens

14 Butterfly Ridge Butterfly Conservation Center