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- Our Properties
- Bachner Nature Preserve
- Granville Sand Barrens and Roy Whistler Wildlife Area
- Black Rock Barrens Heischman-McAdams Reserve
- Black Rock Nature Preserve
- Boehning Nature Reserve
- Cranberry Marsh Wildlife Area- Conservation Easement
- Fisher Oak Savanna Nature Preserve
- Gladys & Al Wright Rock Creek Nature Reserve
- Hewitt Estate
- Holley Savanna
- Indian Creek Basin
- Justice Farms
- Kohnkes’ Little Pine Valley
- Mary I Gerard Nature Preserve
- Moyer Gould Woods
- Pecan Basin Cates/Clawson Reserve
- Shawnee Bottoms Bodine Tract
- Shepherd Swamp
- Wabash Bottoms Janssen Tract
- Walnut Fork Wildlife Refuge
- Weaver Family Nature Reserve
- Weiler-Leopold Nature Reserve
- The Ranch
- Mulvey Pond
- Martin Estate
- Hoffman Easement
- Wise Island
- Wright Wildlife Corridor
- Rock River Farm
- Watkins
- Calvert & Porter National Natural Landmark
- Potawatomi Trail
- Frogs’ Glory
Shawnee Bottoms Bodine Tract
This 220-acre tract of land with 1.5 miles of frontage on the Wabash River is located in Fountain County at 1202 W. Covered Bridge Road, just north of the town of Fountain. The property has about 60 acres of woods with a good selection of native wildflowers, a 6-acre pond (Scott Pond) which is attracting local bald eagles, a 1-2 acre spring-fed seep, plus a long segment of the old Wabash and Erie Canal. And there are four short foot trails for visitors to enjoy! (See information box by property sign for a flyer describing these trails.)
THANKS to the contributions of the Roy Whistler Foundation, the Alfred J. and Dorothy N. McAllister Foundation, and the EPA mitigation project for an industrial pollution violation, NICHES now owns this property!
The old Wabash & Erie canal went across the property(photo on right). When it was abandoned in the late 1800′s, the towpath was converted to RR tracks by the Covington branch of the Wabash Railroad. This particular line took holiday-makers to the area that is now Portland Arch Nature Preserve. The RR line was abandoned in the early 1930′s. NICHES will incorporate the old towpath in its trail system for the reserve.
How to Get There
Shawnee Bottoms can be accessed using Covered Bridge Road, which runs west just north of the small town of Rob Roy in Fountain County. From the SR 28 and US41 intersection in Attica, take US 41 south 3.4 miles and turn right onto Covered Bridge Road (this road is immediately south of Shawnee bowling). Go through the covered bridge to the stop sign and go right to stay on Covered Bridge Road. From there, proceed about 4-1/2 miles west to the Shawnee Bottoms parking area which is accessed from a short driveway at a turn in the road. The entrance is on your right. The parking lot is a nice viewing point, overlooking the Wabash River bottomlands.
Alternately, from the South: From the intersection of US 41 and Fountain Co Rd 650 N, turn west towards the town of Fountain and Portland Arch. Follow the road into Fountain. At 4.9 miles, turn right (north) onto Adam Street. (NOTE: go past the left turn to Portland Arch to the next street which is Adam). Go 1.3 miles to the reserve entrance on your left.
NEARBY ATTRACTIONS:
•DNR-Division of Nature Preserves Portland Arch, a dedicated State nature preserve.
