West Side Wanderings: Portland Arch & Shawnee Bottoms

A Wabash floodplain at breakfast time, the ghost of a canal, and a stone arch carved by Bear Creek.

Play this quest in Shenanigo

A morning in the Fountain County hills near the town of Fountain. Shawnee Bottoms (NICHES Land Trust) is a big Wabash floodplain with Scott's Pond, seeps and bottomland forest; part of its trail follows the old Wabash & Erie Canal towpath. A roadside marker tells the canal's story. Then Portland Arch Nature Preserve: Bear Creek cut a natural sandstone arch here, and the whole place is a National Natural Landmark.

Best in the morning: birds are busiest in the bottoms, and you beat the crowds to the arch. Allow 3 to 4 hours.

Shawnee Bottoms: Free. Open dawn to dusk, December through October; NICHES closes its preserves for all of November for a deer-control hunt. Leashed dogs are welcome. The bottoms flood, so skip them after heavy rain. Portland Arch is a DNR nature preserve: leashed dogs are allowed, but hunting, fires, cutting, rock climbing, picnicking and camping are banned. Sign in at the registration box. The North Trail to the arch has been closed for boardwalk work (it was due to reopen October 1). If it is still closed, walk the South Trail and skip the arch step. Take nothing from either place. For lunch, the picnic shelter at Williamsport Falls is about 6 miles away.

The arch sits below a 100-foot bluff where people have died falling. Stay on the trails, don't climb on the arch or the rock walls, and keep kids close.

Play safe: stay on public sidewalks and grounds, respect private property, and never read your phone while driving.

Quest details

Play it free on your phone. Go in daylight, stay on public ground and follow local rules.