Hiking the Falls of the Ohio River - Photo Essay

  "The rumbling sound of the waters as they tumble over the rock-paved rapids is at all times soothing to the ear" - John James Audubon in reference to the Falls of the Ohio

Under a hazy sky I climbed down the rocks below the Interpretive Center at the Falls of the Ohio, in Clarksville, Indiana.

Located north of Louisville, KY, on the Ohio River, the Falls is an Indiana state park. 

387 million years ago, this area was covered by a shallow sea.  The fossils which you can see embedded in the sediment are from sea life that existed during that time.

If you have children with an interest in natural history, it's an ideal place to spend time.

  As teenagers, my friends and I climbed and explored the rocks and the woods that line the river, never considering that one day it would be a state park.  

After hiking part of the fossil bed, I returned to the interpretive center.

  A statue commemorates the beginning of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

 I made my way down the road to the Alpine Dam & spillway. 

       
Climbing back up to my Jeep I spotted a bloom I believed to be Jiimsonweed, a member of the nightshade family.  Although it's beauty beckons, all parts of the plant are poisonous. 

  For more information about the Falls of the Ohio go to www.fallsoftheohio.org.