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How to get there - Yahoo Map (Driving Directions) Please note, there are four separate projects held at this location. Students will only need to
register for and attend one project.
Work Day Description: Participants will join Indy Parks and Recreation Land Stewardship staff in a reforestation effort at the park. Four projects are being held at this site in order to install over three hundred trees and shrubs this spring. Funding for the project came from the Guide Corporation settlement for the White River Fish Kill of 1999-2000. Meeting Location: Please park along the south side of Crystal Ridge Road located within the Crystal Lake Neighborhood, south of East 96th Street. The parking area will be marked with orange cones. Review all three of the linked How to Get there driving directions and maps at the top of this page for specific location information. Indy Parks and CEES staff will be at the parking location site to help navigate you where to park and take you to the starting location for the project within the park. Participants must wear clothes appropriate for outdoor field work. Long pants and closed toe shoes are required. Lunch, water, gloves, and equipment will be provided. Excerpt of Stewardship Plan of Town Run South Trail Park Provided by Indy Parks and Recreation Introduction Town Run South Trail Park is located in northern Washington Township of Marion County and is operated by the Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation-Division of Greenways (see Maps). Town Run South was acquired through the use of a conservation and recreational easement agreed to by Mr. Oliver Daugherty (the owner of the property) and Indy Parks. The purpose of the easement was to protect the natural, scenic, open space, educational, habitat, biodiversity, and recreational values of the property. The easement collectively calls these values “conservation values.” Existing uses outlined in the easement include nature observation, non-motorized biking, walking, and fishing. Town Run South, along with Town Run North, are the only two parks in the Indy Park system that allow mountain biking. The easement agreement between Mr. Daugherty and Indy Parks mandates that Indy Parks must do some specific natural area restoration to increase the ecological function of the protected property. This restoration includes controlling non-native plant species, managing the natural floodplain forest, and planting native prairie and savanna species in the disturbed areas of the property. This plan attempts to outline the restoration process for Town Run South. This plan will be unique for two reasons. First, this will be the first attempt by Indy Parks to restore an area that was previously mined. Second, this plan will address the challenge of multi-use trails. No other trails, other than greenways, in the Indy Park system permit non-motorized cycling on trails. Brief Description of Property Town Run South is approximately 69 acres in size and lies within an oxbow of the White River. The park is bordered to the north by Interstate 465. Part of the western edge is also bordered by Carmel Creek. The only access to the park is from East 96th St and is only possible by foot or bicycle travel via the Town Run North Trail where it goes under Interstate 465. Town Run South, like all of Marion County, is located in the Tipton Till Plain Section of the Central Till Plain Natural Region of Indiana. This is the largest natural region of Indiana. Before European settlement, about 99 percent of Marion County was covered with closed canopy forest (Barr 1999). This forest was composed of flatwoods, mesic forest, upland forest and ephemeral swamps (Hedge 1997). The rest of the county was composed of wetland plant communities included fens, bogs, sedge meadows, wet prairies, swamps and marshes (Hedge 1997). After settlement, most of these forest and plant communities were cleared and converted for agricultural use or developed for other purposes. Fragments of the original forest were allowed to grow back for timber harvesting or because the soils were unsuitable for farming or other development. These fragments make up most of the remaining hardwood forests of Marion County. By looking at aerial photographs from 1941 and present, it is obvious that this area has been altered significantly. Much of this park was mined for sand and gravel in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Areas along rivers are often mined for sand and gravel. Portions of this mined area were reclaimed with cut and fill or were allowed to fill with water. These different areas of the park have been broken down into four management areas. Area A is approximately 18 acres in size and was mined in the 1960’s and 1970’s for sand and gravel. It was later filled in with cut and fill from nearby gravel pits. Exotic grasses dominate the area and a few exotic and native woody species have established themselves around the edge. Area B is approximately 5 acres in size and was never mined. It is currently a degraded woods and contains large populations of several invasive-exotic plant species. This area does have a few large specimens of native trees including red maple, bur oak, and sycamore and has some intact patches of native understory vegetation that are free from exotic vegetation. Area C makes up most of the remaining 20 acres of Town Run South that is not underwater. Most of this area was mined and later reclaimed. Vegetation in this area consists of exotic grasses, thickets of successional woody species and young stands of native trees. Much of these thickets are comprised of invasive-exotic species, namely Amur honeysuckle. A portion of this area also borders about .5 miles of White River. Area D is about 26 acres in size and is a portion of gravel pit that has filled with water. This area makes up the southern tip of the park. White River has breached this pit and flows through it. Town Run Park Maps and Photos
Educational Note: University Library
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