Luna and I slipped into Granville just after sunrise. The cold air would have been biting at my cheeks. However, I had a ski mask. 3-5 inches of snow dusting everything around us. The ridge-and-valley trail, rated moderate on All Trails was short enough to feel manageable even under slick, icy underfoot. This trail wound us into a hush only a heavy winter snow brings. We stepped carefully, Lunas dog boots crunching against snow and hidden ice. Yet, the forest around us hushed, still, listening.
The old tennis courts near the trailhead are gone now. Where once we walked around the edges of morning tennis matches, now sat silence, empty ground, and memory. That absence felt right, emptied for the woods to reclaim.
Ice underfoot made each step deliberate, thoughtful. That crisp quiet … that grey-blue dawn light pooling between tree trunks … felt sacred. We moved slow, careful, but alive nonetheless. The valley hollows, frozen underbrush, skeletal trees leaning like old bones over snow, all whispered winter’s poetry.
What this trail gives, and what snow shows
The loop of Robert’s Ridge and Valley Trail sits close, compact, modest in distance, but in winter it feels larger. Snow shifts perspective, makes what’s familiar uncanny. In warmer months this trail echoes with birdsong, rustling leaves, soft earth underfoot. It also boasts tons of wildflowers! Snow hush replaced that, turning the woods into a slow, listening world. The winter transform pushes you into presence. Now every breath, every crunch, every cautious step feels sharper. It becomes meditation with boots instead of a casual walk.
Luna and I kept quiet much of the way. The world was stripped down, clean. Cold air in our lungs, slow steady pace. Felt like winter was whispering a poem we can’t quite write yet.
Other nearby woods and quiet places worth your next wander
If you like to explore, here are a few other Granville-area spots that hold magic. No pretension, just land and history and timing.
Denison University Biological Reserve
350-acre reserve on the north end of Granville, open to the public dawn to dusk. Offers a well-marked trail system through varied habitats… woodland, wetlands, springs. This place is perfect for longer walks or quiet afternoons. It is a local favorite when I want more than a quick. This is a deeper walk, richer in flora, maybe a bird or deer sighting if you’re quiet, and loads of fungi!
Fanchion Lewis Park (aka Ty Tawel Farm woods and pond)
43-acre pocket of woods with a pond, forest trails, easy loops. This is a favorite of ours as well ,and is good for quick resets or a short afternoon wander. Think simple, friendly trails, nothing demanding. A great choice for when you want calm without commitment.
A note under your boots, ancient shapes in the hills
If you wander east in town you’ll find Alligator Effigy Mound, a prehistoric earthen sculpture carved by early Indigenous people long ago.
This area of central and south central Ohio is historically rich with Native American artifacts. I have frequently visited the Earthworks in Health, Ohio as I lived on the same block for a year. I’ve visited Cross mound near Lancaster, Ohio. As well as the Serpent mound in Peebles, Ohio. A mound in Cedarville, Ohio. Infirmary Mound in Granville, Glenford Preserve in Somerset and others. When visiting these ancient sacred places please be respectful and kind.
