“Cascade Springs Nature Preserve is a 120-acre green area that has a wide network of trails, a tumbling waterfall, and trickling springs feeding the park's many streams. The trail is a 2.6-mile loop with an elevation gain of 160 feet. The hilly forest is a sanctuary for the city and home to wildlife, including deer, birds, and tortoises. The hike enters a side trail at 55 miles, turning in a boulder-studded forest to ascend and wind through switchbacks to the left of the main trail. The trail meets a moss-covered, historic stone-and-mortar springhouse over a trickling spring, turning right to hike a paved trail to the east. Visitors can find ruins of a pump station, a stone spring house covered with moss, an outdoor auditorium, Civil War trenches, a quarry, and ample wildlife. Cascade Springs Nature Preserve has a waterfall, streams, parking, and picnic tables. There are many loops to make the hike as long as you want. It's easy to forget you're in a concrete-covered city while exploring this beautiful nature preserve.”
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