Spring Mill is a state park east of Mitchell that is known primarily for a "historic village" along Mill Creek which has many educational programs and is a favoured destination for area school field trips. The village was built in the 1930's by the CCC, and the creek was re-channelled and straightened at the same time. The village aside, the state park has some nice woods, excellent caves, and small areas of prairie restoration that support some uncommon plants.

A large sinkhole at Spring Mill, 6/13/04.

Mary Damm with Frasera carolinensis at the edge of a prairie restoration area, 6/13/04.

Two student of IU's Summer Flowering Plants course in Donaldson's Woods, 7/21/04. Donaldson's Woods is often touted as one of Indiana's last remaining pristine forests because the area has never been logged. However, while the big trees linger on everything else about the forest has changed as a result of fire suppression. All of the undergrowth you see here is the result of human modification. The forest would have originally been an open oak savannah, with the younger woody plants visible, like pawpaw (Asimina triloba) and sugar maple (Acer saccharum) excluded by fire.

The stream near the entrance to Twin Caves, 7/21/04.

A window letting light into one of the smaller caves of Spring Mill, 7/21/04.