Fairy houses missing from Springfield nature trail

Fairy houses designed for a new educational nature trail in Springfield are missing, only a few weeks after they were installed.

“It’s a shame,” said Chris Moore while taking his son for a walk on the trail Friday. “A lot of people can take advantage of something like this and for just a few people to ruin it for everyone, it is very disappointing. Hopefully, people won’t let that discourage them from coming here. There is a lot of good to be seen here and a lot of fun to be had.”

Five fairy houses or fairy gardens were put on a new trail that is part of the National Trail Parks and Recreation District’s Buck Creek Park project located behind Carleton Davidson Stadium.

The fairy houses are a growing trend on trails and parks, National Trail Director Leann Castillo said. Her staff made them on a rainy day.

“We only spent a few hours on these and we used existing materials and recycled items,” Castillo said. “It wasn’t even something we spent money on. It was just the fact we were doing something nice for the community to have these fairy gardens pop up throughout the park.”

Castillo and her staff put the fairy houses up at the end of July and found them missing Friday morning.

“It was just a neat experience for kids to see when they are here with their parents,” she said. “They were able to see something and wonder if there really is a fairy here or what created it. We tried to do something fun.”

The parks district is using a $16,000 grant to develop the six acres of land behind Carleton Davidson Stadium into a the new Buck Creek Park.

Wittenberg University students helped finish some of the trails this summer, but the rest of the park is expected to be done next spring.

It will include a natural playground, educational amphitheater, a whitewater area and Ohio native plant paths.

Moore said he is excited for the opportunity for children in the city to experience what it is like to play and experience the woods so close to downtown.

“It’s nice to be able to come right to the center of downtown and take advantage of some of the wooded areas,” Moore said.

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