Summit Metro Parks We're Your Back Yard

Springfield Bog

Metro Park

Photo: Springfield Bog, summer blooms

Park Areas

Prairie Trail

Address 1400 Portage Line Rd.
Springfield Twp., OH 44312

Hours Daily: 6 a.m. - 11 p.m.

Trail Icon Trail Name Miles Class Rating Description
Prairie Trail Prairie Trail 1.6 C 1 This easy trail leads visitors through a now thriving prairie. During the summer and fall, a variety of wild sunflowers, asters and grasses make for a kaleidoscope of color. There are two observation platforms: one to look over Young’s Bog and the other to look out on the manmade “baby bog.” Listen for the recently released bobwhite quail.

Classes: A = Multipurpose  |  B = Accessible*  |  C = Basic  |  D = Primitive**  |  E = Bridle

Ratings: 1 = Easy  |  2 = Moderate  |  3 = Difficult

* Flat, easy trail or section with asphalt or crushed limestone surface.

See our  Spree For All page for more information about accessible trails.

** Rugged and challenging with uneven surfaces and steep, narrow routes

Park Map

Springfield Bog Map

History & Wildlife

Springfield Bog Metro Park opened January 5, 2011. Over the last few years, visitors have seen quite a change as more than 40 varieties of prairie plants have transformed the former farmland into a thriving prairie, creating valuable habitat for grassland bird species.

So why a prairie? The Continental Divide, which runs through part of the park, separates which way water flows: water to the north flows towards Lake Erie, while water to the south flows to the Ohio River. Ohio’s early land surveys showed prairies near bogs along the Continental Divide. Since the park has remnant bogs and the Divide within its boundaries, it made sense to recreate the prairie habitat.

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The bog remnants were named for the Young family that settled here in 1877. These wetlands once produced huckleberries that drew enthusiastic pickers all the way from Canton, Akron and points north via the Akron-Canton Interurban Railway. Commercial picking stopped sometime in the 1950s.

Photo Gallery

Activities
  • Take a hike or enjoy the view
Amenities
  • Pet-friendly
  • Picnic Tables
  • Restroom