Tucked between the waters and woodlands of Hoover Reservoir to the east and the Ohio to Erie Trail to the west, Char-Mar Ridge Park offers impressive scenic views and ample opportunity for wildlife observation and recreation.
Preservation Parks purchased the initial 113 acres of future parkland from Joe Pingue, Jr. in 2000. The park later became known as Char-Mar Ridge Park in honor of Pingue’s business partner’s grandmother, Charlotte, and his mother, Maria, giving us the name “Char-Mar.” In 2002, an additional 15 acres was purchased from Martha Williams and Donna Kavanaugh, further expanding the park’s acreage to 128 acres. Five years later, the parking lot was constructed, and Char-Mar Ridge Park was officially opened to the public featuring the 1.7 mile Glacier Ridge Trail.
In the following years, a restroom was added, and park staff constructed a wildlife viewing blind overlooking the pond in the center of the park where visitors can enjoy viewing turtles, mink, muskrat, waterfowl, and herons. A bird feeding station near the blind attracts woodpeckers, nuthatches, and bluebirds year-round. As such, it’s not unusual to catch a flash of bright blue while hiking the nearby trails in any season. Interpretive signage along the trail describes geological and natural history features, while a natural play area provides a place for kids to enjoy playing in the creek and using their imagination and creativity to build forts with natural materials.
Char-Mar also offers multiple ways to enjoy trails. Visitors can explore the park by hiking the gravel loop trail that crosses creeks, climbs hills, and meanders through mature woodlands. Along the trail are Free Local Exercise (FLEX) stations with information showing visitors how to exercise without equipment. Also, the paved Ohio to Erie Trail (OTET) along the park’s western boundary offers opportunities for cycling and can be easily accessed along Lewis Center Road or through a short connector trail in the park. Once on the OTET, cyclists can ride all the way south to the Ohio River in Cincinnati or north to Lake Erie in Cleveland.
More recently, Preservation Parks purchased 21.5 acres of land south of Lewis Center Road from Lucia-Tiberi-Karshner in 2020, further expanding the park to 150 acres. And in 2021, the gravel parking lot was expanded to 64 parking spaces and paved with funding from the Metropark Paving Fund administered through the Ohio Department of Transportation.
Char-Mar Ridge Park connects people to nature and provides space to slow down after a busy day. We invite you to explore all the opportunities and benefits your Preservation Parks have to offer.
