Aullwood Audubon: Where The Giants Meet The Birds
One of the best things about Dayton, Ohio is the accessibility to nature and one of our favorite places to visit to enjoy it and learn at the same time is Aullwood Audubon.
As part of the National Audubon Society, Aullwood focuses on teaching people about the environment, sustainable farming, and how to protect and appreciate the world around us. It’s not just a place to visit—it’s a hands-on experience that sparks curiosity and inspires a love for the outdoors, so of course it’s right up our alley.
There are some fantastic things to do in Dayton, Ohio. If you’re in the Dayton area and looking for a fantastic thing to do with kids, check out this place with indoor educational fun, family-friendly trails, and so much whimsy mixed in, it’s actually kind of magical.
Aullwood Audubon is huge and fun, super educational, and a great place to spend time with family and kids:
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Basic Info
- Address: 1000 Aullwood Road, Dayton, Ohio
- Hours: Tuesday – Saturday: 9:00am ~ 5:00pm; Sunday: 1:00pm ~ 5:00pm
- Admission: Adults: $12.00; Children 4-12: $8.00; Seniors over 65: $10.00; Children 3 and under: Free
- Where To Pay: You pay the admission fee in the Aullwood Nature Center. Stop there first.
What To See & How To Enjoy Aullwood
Aullwood Audubon isn’t just one building or one field or forest, but a large swath of land with various places to go and explore. That means, you’ll probably want to go again and again like we do. Here’s what to find when you visit.
Aullwood Nature Center
When you first arrive to the area, you’ll head to the Aullwood Nature Center to pay the admission fee so this where you should start your educational exploration. There are two themed discovery rooms and six thematic classrooms that have various interactive displays within the building.
Get your kids to touch, move, and interact with the puzzle pieces, animals, and information that surrounds them.
There are live turtles, snakes, and other creatures here and there. Keep your eyes peeled to spot them. In between them, or a ton of other animal hides and insects and plants that have been collected and curated making a spectacular collection to learn from.
Stop into the Bird Watching Room to observe the numerous birds that are feeding at the various birdfeeders outside. Take your time here and see which birds you can spot using the binoculars. Each room has various activities set up from puzzles to stamps, dioramas, and displays.
You could spend the entire day in the Aullwood Audubon area. But, you could also enter with a mission to supplement something you’re studying at home. I definitely recommend visiting multiple times. Something different catches our eye every time we go.
The Whimsical Trail
After leaving the Aullwood Nature Center, there is a trail just behind the building. Get a map inside, It’s not a long trail so it’s perfect for light-trekking with small kids. To make it even more fun and interactive, they’ve set up various little fairy houses, but wait there’s more.
Each fairy house is decorated differently each season and inside you can pick up a piece of paper with various clues. Get your kids to read the clues and match up which fair tale matches each clue. If they get them all, back inside, they can get a small gift at the desk.
Aullwood Farm
After the Nature Center and whimsical trail, hop back in the car and head further up the road to the Aullwood Farm. Feel free to step into the barn and other farm buildings to see the livestock and heritage breeds they have on site.
After parking, head into the Discover Center, an educational facility for agricultural and nature programs. There are more classrooms and nature programs to learn before heading back to the farm yard.
Aullwood belongs to an organization dedicated to preserving these breeds called The Livestock Conservancy. Some examples include the Belted Galloway cow, Tunis sheep, Silver Fox rabbits, Royal Palm turkeys, Guinea Hogs, and a wide variety of heritage breed chickens.
There are a lot of animals to check out, fields, woodlands, wetlands, and more in the surrounding area. Check out the Aullwood Bank Barn, built in the German heritage style of the 1800s. As you walk around, you can find Spring Houses too, a place where cool spring waters helped to keep milk, cheese, eggs, and perishable goods. A great education for kids.
Find the Greenview Garden Club’s Herb Garden between the turkey pen and ‘coffee tree’ pasture. There are both native and non-native herbs that have been tended for more than three decades.
Note that you cannot feed these animals. But you can neigh to the horses, cluck to the chickens, snort to the pigs, and whatever the turkeys do… and the turkeys will absolutely answer your call.
The Troll That Hatched An Egg
The first time I came upon the giant trolls by the artist Thomas Dambo, I was in Pocheon, Korea and they were so whimsical and fun, I immediately added other locations that the Giants live to my map. When Thomas Dambo visited my hometown, I was ecstatic. What a wonderful addition to an already amazing place.
When you pay the admission fee to Aullwood, make sure you pick up a map so you know where to find these larger than life whimsical creations.
The story surrounding the three trolls here is titled “The Troll that hatched an Egg”.
Once upon a time, not too long ago, a family of three trolls live in a forest. Bo was the father, Bodil was the mother, and little Bibbi was their curious daughter. Every summer, a little red Cardinal would visit them and sing songs about the great outdoors. Songs about mountains made of big square stones. Songs of rivers of red and white light and about endless black plains with white stripes and metal birds bigger and thicker than the wildest trees.
Even though the trolls were the most enormous creatures in the forest, they couldn’t see above the majestic trees, so little Bibbi loved these stories. Her parents could feel her excitement but warned her, “It’s safe here in the forest. Stay here. Beneath the leaves, amongst the trees, is where you belong.”
The story continues. Find it at the nature center and read it together before you start your walk in the nearby woods to find them. There are a couple to see near the Nature Center and a couple more to see near the farm. Be prepared for a little walk in the woods. It’s nothing too strenuous.
Map of Aullwood
Aullwood Audubon is one of our favorite places to explore in Dayton, Ohio. If you have kids, I highly recommend taking an adventure and enjoying every corner of this park and educational center.
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