It’s been a minute since I’ve been able to do a day trip! But holy crap did it feel good to get back out and explore a couple new-to-me places!

With COVID cases continuing to rise, I wanted to stick to visiting someplace outdoors. Buuuut Ohio tends to look rather monochrome brown in winter with our naked trees and mud unless we have some snow, so I was hopeful for somewhere a bit more visually appealing.

Enter the Dawes Arboretum.

About the Arboretum

The Dawes Arboretum was founded in 1929 by Beman and Bertie Dawes and inspired by their love of trees and nature. What started in 1917 as the purchase of a 140-acre farm and 50 planted sugar maple trees, has grown into nearly 2,000 acres and more than 30,000 individual plants. Today, the arboretum provides educational programs and events, and an impressive variety of botanical species and exhibits.

I was pleasantly surprised to see how much work they do regarding science and conservation! There are Eastern bluebird boxes all over the meadow in Arboretum East, as well as a section dedicated to the growth and study of American Chestnut Trees, which were nearly wiped out with the Chestnut blight of the 1990s.

The cypress swamp of the arboretum. It’s dry now since it’s winter, but in spring it’ll be nice and swampy.

Visiting Dawes Arboretum

Normally I like to do some basic planning before a day trip. I don’t know what my deal was, but I hardly planned for this one. I took some water, wore hiking boots for all the walking and being prepared for some mud, charged my camera batteries, and took off. The downside was that I wasn’t prepared for all the hiking I’d be doing… But then I was pleasantly surprised with all the different habitats, walking paths, and variety of activities and sights!

There’s a 4-mile auto tour that takes visitors around most of the habitats, which is a good way to introduce yourself to the arboretum as well as to experience the landscape if you can’t walk far. There are pull-offs along the way to get out and explore closer.

There are numerous benches, a shelter with picnic tables, and various other spots that are perfect for a picnic lunch. You could easily spend the day here, checking out the wind sculptures, hiking, letting the kids run amok, and learning some species identification with the various plants on display. There’s also a meditation house in the Japanese Garden, and a cemetery that holds veterans from the Revolutionary War! You may want to double check with staff that this is permitted, but this would be a fantastic place for gravestone rubbing.

Pro-tip: Seeing as there’s no ID tag on every single species, it can be helpful to have a phone app to help with identification. I’m a big fan of Seek by iNaturalist! It operates pretty quickly, and it’s free.

The meditation house in the Japanese garden section of the arboretum. It’s a beautiful section, designed by Dr. Makoto Nakamura of Kyoto University in Japan.

For the Walkers and Hikers

There are a number of trails around the property! Twelve trails, actually.

The longest is the 3-mile mud and grass trail in Arboretum East that leads to the Gorge Overlook. (That’s the one I wasn’t prepared for… But it’s a good hike!) Unbeknownst to me during my visit, you’ll need to let staff at the entrance know that you’ll be visiting Arboretum East so they can keep track of traffic as it’s a restoration area. I also recommend waterproof shoes as there’s a creek crossing at one point. Just a little guy, but enough to get your feet wet.

The 2.75-mile Lake Trail encompasses the main section of the arboretum and gives a good overview, much like the driving tour. After my excursion to Arboretum East, driving most of the auto tour, and exploring a couple other sections on foot, I didn’t get a chance to walk the Lake Trail, but I certainly would next time! It runs a very similar path to the driving tour, but it gets you a bit more intimate with the landscape and plants.

Sadly, the Bur Oak Trail leading to the Dawn-redwoods was closed when I visited. I mean c’mon – Redwoods in Ohio?! Y’all know I wanted to see that! Hopefully it’ll be open again in the spring.

Like Arboretum East, there’s an annex, if you will, that contains the Red Barn Reserve and Dutch Fork Wetlands, with nearly 3 miles of trails between those sections.

Overall Thoughts on Dawes Arboretum

I was seriously impressed! I mean, I quickly learned there was a cypress swamp on the grounds, and that there’s a salamander migration in that area every March. So immediately I was pretty smitten with the place!

Also, thanks to my poor planning, I had no idea there were so many hiking opportunities! I definitely want to get back to check out the Dawn-redwoods, and also to explore the Dutch Fork Wetlands. I friggin’ love a good wetlands habitat. And, of course, I need to return in March to look for salamanders by the cypress swamp.

This is one of those rare gems that’s good for kids, adults, and those with limited mobility. Not to mention it’s outdoor therapy and good in all four seasons. It’s a place you could return to a few different times and not see everything, and the landscape and blooming plants change constantly with the different seasons.

A portion of the cemetery in the arboretum. So random… But such a unique feature! You can see one of the headstones has metal reinforcements after falling over and the stone breaking.

Arboretum Membership and Fees

Until 2019, the Dawes Arboretum was free of charge; but sometime that year they started charging admission.

The entry fee is $10 for adults, $5 for kids 5-15, and free for kids under 5. There are also several membership levels available. An annual membership for an individual plus a guest is $40, and an annual family membership (for up to 6 people) is $60. There are additional levels with other perks starting at $100 and up, and a membership allows you to do catch-and-release fishing in Dawes Lake.

Are the fees worth it?

The Arboretum got a bit of flack last year when they started charging admission and families were disgruntled about having to pay so much to visit.

Personally, I’m all for it. I definitely feel like I got $10 worth of entertainment for my day. And if I were going to be around more next year, I’d certainly consider getting a membership. I’d only have to visit two to four times (depending if I took a guest) to get my money’s worth. I didn’t get to see everything this trip, so I could visit later on to check out the other areas and see the habitats in different seasons.

Depending on the ages of the kids, a family may only have to visit once for the family membership to pay for itself. An average family of three or four would likely only have to visit two or three times.

Not to mention the arboretum is partnering with other organizations to do conservation science, habitat restoration, and natural resource management. So the work done in the arboretum extends far beyond its 2,000 acres. That alone to me is well worth the admission.

My Caprese flatbread pizza with the Christmas decorations at the winery.

Vinberige Vineyards

Alright y’all, let’s be real. This whole day trip was inspired by a picture of flatbread pizza that I saw on Vinberige’s Instagram page. True story. I saw a drool-worthy picture, was even more intrigued when I saw it was at a winery, and I looked for something to do nearby that fit the bill of being outdoors.

And it was so worth it!!

Vinberige Vineyards is an easy 13-minute drive from The Dawes Arboretum, so it’s a perfect place to visit after all that walking around.

Farmhouse turned Winery

Originally built in the 1800s, the farmhouse was completely renovated to turn it into a winery. The outbuildings were converted to house the wine-making magic, as well as a wedding venue. There’s a large grassy lawn adjacent to the home, perfect for some outdoor live music and social distancing during the summer and fall. And there’s an outdoor patio area – a lower level by the main door and an upper level that offers a pretty great view of the grounds and live music.

Not even kidding y’all when I say this place is gorgeous! It’s certainly one of the most charming wineries I’ve ever been to, and right now it’s all decked out for Christmas in an old-fashioned way that makes you want to roast chestnuts over an open fire. (Good thing Dawes is working on that chestnut tree project!)

Wine and Food

I ordered the dry flight, which included Reverence Red (Petite Sirah and Zinf blend), Old Henry (Chambourcin and Frontenac grapes), Cayuga, and Traminette, as well as a glass of the Catawba. The Old Henry and Catawba were probably my favorites, though I liked all of them.

And of course I got a flatbread pizza – the Caprese. They offer several boards and flatbreads which are easily sharable so friends can try several menu items… If you’re feeling generous, that is.

To top all that off, Jen, one of the owners, is an absolute delight to chat with! If you visit Dawes, I definitely recommend stopping here as part of your trip! Even if you aren’t a wine drinker, the food and venue are fantastic, and they have craft beer and non-alcoholic drinks available as well.

This is absolutely one of the most charming wineries I’ve ever visited!

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