Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, Clermont, KY

A 14,000-acre nature preserve for the eco-friendly traveler

by Carrie Daut | July 10, 2011

Did you know that just 25 miles south of Louisville sits the largest privately-owned natural area in the state of Kentucky? With an experimental program to identify local plants with exemplary green roof performance? And the first building in the region to receive the LEED Platinum certificate for environmental design?

It’s all at Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, just a short drive from nearby Louisville.

At Bernheim, you’ll find over 35 miles of trails for hiking and biking, ranging from easy (Two Ponds Loop—a gentle 30-minute hike circling beautiful Lake Nevin) to difficult (the 7-hour Millennium Trail).

(Insider Summer Tip: The Millennium Trail will close when temperatures are in the 90s. Call beforehand.)

Enjoy fishing, picnicking or bird-watching over 250 species of birds. Stop by the arboretum’s Garden Pavilion with beds of award-winning perennials, or try your hand at one of Bernheim’s several geocaching challenges. For a unique bird’s-eye view, step out to the end of the canopy treewalk—a pier-like platform rising 75 feet above the forest floor.

And while you’re there, don’t forget to explore what makes Bernheim one of the leading “green” sites in the area. In 2007 the Visitor Center received a LEED Platinum certification, the highest-level recognition given for environmental design and the first one awarded to a building in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia or Tennessee. The Visitor Center was constructed using recycled materials (cypress wood from old bourbon rack house lumber, insulation from recycled newspapers, paving from recycled asphalt). The toilets run off reused roof water, and the structure was built to be easily taken apart—allowing materials to be used again.

(Insider Tip: Special tours about the Visitor Center’s environmental design are available for groups. Call for more info.)

Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest opened to the public in 1950. To get there from Louisville, take I-65 South to Exit 112. Then follow the signs for approximately one mile. The site is open daily from 7 a.m. to sunset.

For more information on trails, admission and upcoming programs and events, visit www.bernheim.org or call (502) 955-8512.

(Insider Tip: Weekday admission is free. Weekend and holiday admission is $5 per car. So save money and save the environment—carpool!)