Connect with nature at Garvin Brown Nature Preserve
Garvin Brown Preserve: Protected, forever, for everyone to enjoy
Garvin Brown Preserve is a 46-acre nature preserve that is owned, protected, and managed by River Fields and open to the public from dawn until dusk every day of the year. A former family farm now permanently protected from development by River Fields, the preserve is a small but extraordinarily biodiverse landscape lying along the Ohio River. It features riparian forest, fields of wildflowers and grasses, trails, and multiple types of fragile wetlands. It's listed as a birding hotspot by eBird, with a total of 206 species identified over the years, 125 already this year alone. See eBird.org for the full list - and venture to the preserve with binoculars and bird ID resources to see for yourself!
Directions, amenities, and accessibility: How to get there and what to expect
Garvin Brown is for enjoying nature - please note that we do not have any sports facilities in the preserve. To access the preserve, take River Road to Bass Road and continue on Bass Road until you reach the pickleball courts in Hays Kennedy Park on your right. Cross through the parking lot past the pond on your left to a gate, and you're already at the preserve's entrance -- enjoy! The nearest restrooms and drinking fountain are in Hays Kennedy Park, which is managed by Metro Parks. Dogs are welcome in the preserve on leash. Trails in Garvin Brown are flat and wide, but are a mix of grass and dirt and not paved. Please email kristin@riverfields.org if you have accessibility questions or are concerned about conditions or maintenance in the preserve.
Garvin Brown Preserve Master Plan: Be part of the new vision!
Garvin Brown is a publicly-accessible protected wonderland with so many incredible features for just 46 acres – wetlands, trails, woods, wildflower meadows and unfettered river views – but we think it can be even better, and we invite you to be part of its future!
We commissioned the landscape architects at Booker Design Collaborative to develop a conceptual master plan for the preserve with features like accessible viewing platforms for the wetlands, a seating pavilion, improved access to the river, and enhanced native perennial and tree plantings. Check out the conceptual master plan documents here! The estimated cost for the full plan is about $2.4 million, which we plan to raise from private donors through a capital campaign starting in 2026. Garvin Brown receives no city or county funding. Aside from modest federal funding awarded from the Natural Resources Conservation Service's EQIP program, its future relies entirely on River Fields supporters -- like you!
