It was a beautiful but cold day when I decided to hike Charlestown State Park. I was staying with family down in the area. It was the last day of 2025. I just had to get one last hike in before the year was over.
The park opened in 1996 and now consists of 5,100 acres.
It’s located in Clark County and is one mile east of The town of Charlestown on Highway 62.
The south end of the park sits on the banks of the Ohio River.
The birth of this river, one the primary features of Charlestown State Park, began in the Ice Age when glaciers and periodic natural damming began to form the river.
Historically, the river was shallow enough to walk across in the hot summer months, but in the late 1800s construction started on a series of man-made dams that made the river what it is today.
Currently, the river is 981 miles long.
The land where the park sits is steeped in history.
Back in 1886, the Louisville and Jeffersonville Ferry Company purchased 118 acres of property along the Ohio River. The company built a picnic area on the property and named it “Fern Grove.”
An entrepreneur by the name of David B.G. Rose purchased the property and renamed it “Rose Island.”
The peninsula of land was not a true island, but had the appearance of one due to the way Fourteen Mile creek, which runs through the property, cut back on itself.
The amusement park and resort became a major attraction in the area and welcomed 150,000 visitors a year.
Later, in 1937, there was a devastating flood that affected the entire Ohio River Valley region and it wiped out the Rose Island park.
The remnants of this place can still be seen in today in the Charlestown State Park. Trails 3 and 7 both lead the hiker right down the middle of Rose Island and to the banks of the Ohio River. The trail is a total of 2.1 miles long and is considered moderate in ease of hiking.
I arrived at the park and found my trailhead quite easily, (a map from the gatehouse). The surface of the trail began as asphalt but quickly turned into dirt. I was beginning to feel at home in the wooded landscape.
I soon came to an old steel bridge that was built by the Vincennes bridge company in 1912.
It’s called the “Old Portersville Bridge” because it use to cross the White River at Portersville. The bridge was closed at its former site in 1999. In 2008, it was dismantled for restoration and was relocated at Charlestown State Park.
It was opened at its new location in 2011, and now crosses over the Fourteen Mile creek. If you are a historian, you will surely enjoy researching this bridge.
It was a nice walk for me as I crossed the old bridge which now connected the park to Rose Island.
When I got to the other side, I was greeted by a big sign that let me know that I had arrived on Rose Island.
Next came a walk through the ruins of the old resort.
Even though the flood had wiped out the original park, some of the old stones and iron works were still in place.
There was an old swimming pool, old fountains covered in moss, and sites where cottages once sat. Interpretive signs were scattered along the trail that gave descriptions of some of the places I passed. History and hiking. Two of my favorite things.
It was soon time to turn around and make my way back to the parking lot.
If you haven’t been here, it’s a good place to put on your bucket list.
A quote for your week: “I do love these ancient ruins. We never tread upon them but we set our foot upon some reverent history.” – John Webster – English Dramatist – 1580-1632
Until the next trail,Susan
Susan Anderson is a resident of Owen County who enjoys hiking and backpacking and writes a weekly column about her experiences. Readers can reach her via email at saanders@hotmail.com or on Instagram @farsideoftheedge.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Last day of the year hike at Charlestown State Park
Reporting by Susan Anderson, for the Herald-Times, The Herald-Times / The Herald-Times
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