The outing will take place in the newly established Parklands of Floyds Fork—a 4,000-acre addition to Louisville’s park system (www.theparklands.org). We’ll begin in rich calcareous forest where we’ll look for canopy songbirds. We’ll also focus on the 50 species of trees and shrubs that can be found in one of the largest forested blocks in Louisville. We’ll observe forest features that span a sequence from 400-year-old giant oaks, to successional changes of the past decade.
After a walk of 2.5 miles we’ll don life jackets and paddle a section of Floyds Fork of the Salt River in canoes. Floyds Fork is central to The Parklands’ and Future Fund Land Trust’s (www.savingfloydsfork.org) conservation efforts. We’ll paddle sycamore lined banks—perhaps observe a heron rookery—and observe limestone ledges to long flat pools. The flow is dependent upon rainfall. At times of low flow, participants may have to carry boats over the riffles. We’ll nevertheless, get out periodically to look at abundant fossils on the gravel bars, organisms in the water, and the legacy of human use of the stream. This session is organized by the ESA Natural History Section.
Registration Fee: $75
Equipment and Attire: For the hiking portion, participants should be prepared for walking on (mostly) and off trails with gentle to moderate inclines. For the paddling portion, PFDs, paddles, etc. will be provided. In addition to sneakers, participants should have sandals (Chacos, Tevas, or similar), water shoes (Keenes or similar), or other footwear with which they can enter and exit canoes. Participants should be dressed for the weather with sun hat, appropriate clothes, and rain jacket if rain is expected.
Itinerary: We will leave the Convention Center at 7:20 a.m. on Sunday, August 11 in busses, and be dropped off by 8:00 a.m. at The Parklands’ Silo Center (8701 Turkey Run Parkway) with a brief discussion of the region, the park, and the day’s agenda. We’ll hike into Turkey Run Forest – a 600 acre mixed deciduous forest on limestone substrate, to observe a number of excellent features and community types. We will walk approximately 2.5 miles with ~200 feet of elevation gain over 3 hours. Our hike will end at the Boulder Pond trailhead (8015 Turkey Run Parkway) where the bus will meet us at 11:00 a.m. and carry us ~1-mile to the Seaton Valley canoe launch (13708 Seatonville Road). Here, we’ll don PFDs, and get in canoes for a trip down Floyds Fork of the Salt River – a typical Kentucky stream. Depending on water levels, the bus will meet us at 2:00 p.m. either 3.5 miles downstream at the Fairmont Road canoe launch, or 5.5 miles at the Broad Run canoe launch (11100 Broad Run Parkway). We will let the driver know. Lunch will be taken between the hiking and paddling sections around 11:30 am.