 Whiterock Conservancy (photo by Lance Brisbois)
Explore over 40+ miles of hiking, mountain biking, equestrian, and UTV trails; set up camp in our RV or tent camping areas; or enjoy the comforts of home in one of our vacation rentals. A Whiterock Conservancy trail pass is required for all visitors mountain biking and horseback riding on the trails. A trail pass is not required for walking or hiking, however a suggested donation of $2 is appreciated. The annual pass is good for the calendar year and the daily pass is good for the day of purchase. Trail fees help cover the cost of maintenance, as well as preserve the landscape. Self-serve kiosks are located with payment envelopes throughout Whiterock Conservancy and can be found at the campgrounds, trailheads, Bur Oak Visitor's Center, and the Historic Garst Farmstead. (text source: Whiterock Conservancy)  Source: Whiterock Conservancy Springbrook State Park
Springbrook State Park is a quiet retreat in Guthrie County, encompassing 930 acres of rolling hills and mature timber. Many of the park’s structures were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s, creating a nostalgic setting for park visitors. A multifamily cabin called the Sherburne House is perfect for large families or groups, and the lake is a popular destination for swimming and kayaking. Hike or bike 12 miles of trails at Springbrook, offering leisurely routes through timber and prairie areas or more challenging paths for the seasoned hiker or biker. Trails also lead to small ponds, the Middle Raccoon River, and the park’s 17-acre lake. Snowmobiling is allowed on four miles of designated trails in the winter. (text source: Iowa DNR) Sheeder Prairie State Preserve
This preserve lies within the Southern Iowa Drift Plain, a landform region of gently rolling terrain. Over 200 plant species are found in this preserve, including thirty grasses. The prairie hilltops and slopes contain big bluestem, little bluestem, porcupine grass, and prairie dropseed along with leadplant, rosinweed, prairie willow, and redroot. Prairie phlox, golden alexanders, flowering spurge, rattlesnake master, purple coneflower, and gray-headed coneflower are also common. The wooded ravines are dominated by box elder, wild plum, and black willow. In the spring, prairie false dandelion, bird’s-foot violet, prairie violet, lousewort, and hoary puccoon are among the first plants to begin blooming. By May, ground plum, indigo bush, blue-eyed grass, prairie ragwort, tall green milkweed, prairie larkspur, and yellow stargrass join the display. Prairie loosestrife, butterfly weed, purple prairie clover, compass plant, ironweed, wild bergamot, rough blazing star, and prairie blazing star can be found in June and July. Nodding ladies’-tresses, white sage, silky aster, sky-blue aster, showy goldenrod, Canada goldenrod, smooth goldenrod, and downy gentian bloom during the fall months. A total of sixty-nine species of birds can be found here, with twenty-five nesting on a regular basis. Nearly three-fourths of the nesting species are woodland species. Two grassland species, the bobolink and grasshopper sparrow, nest sporadically. Several preferring the woodland edge habitat found here include gray catbird, eastern kingbird, brown thrasher, rosebreasted grosbeak, red-headed woodpecker, downy woodpecker, blackcapped chickadee, Baltimore oriole, northern cardinal, house wren, and American goldfinch. The Conservation Education Center, located at Springbrook State Park north of Guthrie Center, sponsors workshops and interpretive events that often include field trips to Sheeder Prairie. (text source: Iowa DNR state preserves guide)  Nations Bridge Park
Nations Bridge Park offers a variety of recreational opportunities to the public and is a favorite spot for many. The park has a total of 81 acres that can be used for camping, picnicking, kayaking, hiking, bird watching fishing, disc golf, and horse shoes. Wildlife is abundant at Nations Bridge Park. Deer, turkeys, squirrels, rabbits, quail, raccoons, coyotes, and a variety of songbirds can be seen at the park. Nature trails can be found throughout the park and a self-guided nature trail is located on the east side of the park, County Highway P28. (text source: Guthrie County Conservation)  Sutcliffe Woodland
Sutcliffe Woodland is a beautiful, 55-acre oak-hickory area designated as a wildlife refuge. It offers a 31-post, self-guided interpretive nature trail, as well as picnicking, hiking, and pond fishing. (text source: Guthrie County Conservation)  Raccoon River Valley Trail
The trail winds its way through the Middle and North Raccoon River corridors with areas of prairie and canopies of timber that remind us of what Iowa was like in the 1870's. Common uses for the multi-recreational trail are hiking, biking, walking, in-line skating, jogging, bird watching , or cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling in the winter. Trailheads in Guthrie County:
(text source: Guthrie County Conservation) The following Guthrie County Conservation properties are open to hiking but have no maintained trails: Hiking the Byways is a regular series by Golden Hills RC&D that features publicly accessible lands open to hiking on the three scenic byways in western Iowa that Golden Hills RC&D coordinates: Glacial Trail Scenic Byway, Loess Hills National Scenic Byway, and Western Skies Scenic Byway. Each Friday a blog post covers hiking areas in one county on one of the aforementioned byways. For questions about hiking on the byways, contact Seth Brooks (seth.brooks@goldenhillsrcd.org).
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