Mengerson Reserve

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The reserve is an excellent example of a successional sequence of a northern Indiana forest.  All three stages of a returning old-growth woods can be seen.  From an open meadow, with clumps of hawthorn, crabapple and grey dogwood, the trail enters a woods of elm, shagbark hickory and sugar maple.  The hiker is rewarded, entering the third stage, to see a climax forest of sugar maple, beech, oak and shellbark hickory.  Through the years, the forest will slowly move toward Stellhorn Road and the entire reserve will be a maple-beech climax forest.

A 36-acre gift of Carl and Ursula Mengerson received in 1973.  It has 3/4 miles of trails.

35 acres have been dedicated through IDNR's Division of Nature Preserves.