This nature center is TOP NOTCH. I havent been able to go inside, as I moved here during the pandemic, but the trail is extremely well taken care of. The placards telling you what animals live here and the names of the plants is so stinking cool. I hope every family has an opportunity to come walk the trails. Also - Because of the width of the trails and the woodchip ground cover, I imagine most of the trails would be very accessible to the elderly looking for a nice spot to exercise, and those who use wheelchairs and walkers to get around.

Love coming to this place to relax and watch the sunset! Best wind down in town.

Great spot for a family picnic and nature trails! The self-guided storybook walk was magical for my 3 yr old nephew!

Staff is amazing and always run top quality programs and events.

Literally the best place. Lovely people who work there that genuinely care about their community and helping the people in it.

Well kept very nice saw all kinds of wild life today 2 deer

Nice place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Go take a slow walk out to one of the ponds and leave your damn phone in your car unless you are only using it to take pics.

Such a great way to spend the day with the family! Just make sure you bring your bug spray!

Beautiful nature walk and so much information. The animals inside were so nice to look at I had a great time

They do so much good here its a beautiful place too! Always something happening here.

Clean and easy walk enjoyable.

Its beautiful, well kept and they hold many fun events for people of all ages. My kids love it!

Great little nature center that has a large bird watching area inside the building. There is also a little library with a separate bird watching area. There is a picnic area for eating lunch and several short nature hikes.

Great Hike and Scenery. Will definitely go again.

An excellent spot with a great Visitors Centre. I stumbled across this when I was on my way to somewhere else and ended up visiting the Centre three times! It may not be very big but the trails are easy to follow and the restored prairie is beautiful. I saw woodpeckers, deer, a Belted kingfisher and other birds on my walks plus there were several different species of birds on the feeders in the butterfly garden and the ones you can view from inside the Visitors Centre. I particularly loved the American goldfinch and the Ruby-throated hummingbirds! Very impressed with the whole set-up.

Good place to burn energy and go for a jog and to look at the reptiles and the wooden chair was great too and friendly staff will recommend!

Great place to get out with your dog. Nice trails and well maintained.

I love this place as well as my granddaughters. They love to feed the turtles and fish at the pond. Cant go wrong with nature. We are so very fortunate to have this place to visit and we dont have to pay!! Its beautiful. Always a calming and peaceful place to visit.

Its a great place for a jog or a family day out.

Nice place to spend the day, beautiful trails with picnic areas, fun information building with activities and a relaxing bird/nature viewing room. We had a great time.

Dancer the reindeer was fun. Candle making was a hit! Great fun evening!

Stop by here for sure for beautiful birdsong behind a one way glass wall inside the visitors center. Or you could take a look at their peaceful paths and trails. ⚘

Beautiful trails. Easy access

Easy, flat, soft trails for leisurely hike. My grandson loved the Zipline!

We love going here. Quite peaceful and love just walking around.

In my previous review, I inadvertently tagged the Nature Center thinking I was tagging the pizza spot I went to earlier in the day. Oops!I try to stop by the nature centure every time Im visiting Charleston - the grounds are very well maintained, the staff is incredibly friendly and I really enjoy walking the trails, reading about the flora and fauna and the steps that the Nature Center took to restore and preserve the areas natural environment.

My littles have short attention spans, so this is PERFECT for a quick, inexpensive outing.

Loved the hands on activities for the kiddos. Very age appropriate for toddler to elementary

When with my Godfamily and my boyfriend. We had a grate time a few hours early passed us by. We even brought our fur babys with us.

Great little nature area run by devoted caring people. Has a wonderful play area for children and activities available for nominal cost. Short hiking trails connect to a small pond, a wetland, and prairie plantings.

Fantastic center, they have many programs (mainly child-oriented) to get people involved with nature. The trails are also nice to walk on.

Excellent place to get outside and enjoy some outdoor space they have kids activities as well

Great place to visit,do school projects,exercise,take photos!! Very clean

One of my favorite places in town.

Peaceful place to just walk around and enjoy the woods and wildlife

Very beautiful and relaxing! Love to come here to feed the fish and turtles in the pond!

Beautiful place to go. Can occasionally see wildlife. You also have Pokemon Go stops at the preserve.

Great place for children to learn about nature and animals.

I drive by this place everyday. They have trails you can walk and see nature. I changed my rating to 5 stars cause they have classes on nature and they responded to my rating.

A nice, beautiful place for a nature walk.

Great place! Great wildlife preserve!

This is a great place to spend some time with the family and my daughter loves feeding the turtles n geese.

This is a great nature center with a well-informed and engaging staff and though at first glance is a small patch of woods and prairie it is very well-managed with a surprisingly diverse variety of birds!

A lovely little nature center with a variety of habitats. Nice variety of trees and other plants. Lots of birds. I went on a walk with a group of experienced borders & they spotted around 50 different species in short order.

Great place to park and access the Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail.

Best place to be I love it so much...so relaxing and peaceful. Definitely recommend

Fantastic little nature preserve for the community of Mattoon. If youve never visited...go! Sit inside and watch wildlife or take a hike, stand beside the water, talk to the ducks, educate yourself, purchase some raw local honey when it is available and more!

Douglas Hart is a beautiful place. Its great for hiking, running, relaxation, plus many special events for families, kids, & scouts. Very good photo opportunities too.

Wonderful surprises around every turn. Listen, look up, look down...use the viewing station for more surprises...a hidden gem!

Large nature center and mile - long hiking trail, with prarie, wetland, and forest biomes.

Always something fun to do outside. Wish the building was available more but understand why it isnt at this time.

My kids loved feeding the fish! Little Zipline was a blast!

Wonderful mother in her riotous glory.

Small park with some nice trails. Several trees are marked to help identification. There is also a visitor center, but we were there after they closed.

Very clean, extremely helpful and nice. Very knowledgeable.

Great place to walk, run or jog. Great for families and pets. A quiet woodsy place that makes for a great place to read, pray or meditate. A great location to relax and unload stress.

The Douglas Hart Nature is full of helpful, caring people, with fun and exciting summer camps! The trails are perfect for anyone who wants to get to know nature better, and even to explore! So if you enjoy going on hikes and like being out in nature, then you will love DHNC!

The nature center was very well kept and the paths were easy to navigate. The indoor area was great with the turtles and other animals and very informational. Had a great time and will go back again.

Douglas-Hart Nature Center is a delightful place to bring your child for an afternoon adventure. Perhaps a jaunt down the nature trail would suit your fancy? Maybe you would prefer to watch birds, chipmunks and other wild-life through a picture window? Whether performing impromptu plays with the puppets in the discovery room, taking a class (offered on a variety of topics), or simply enjoying the visual displays and library about area flora and fauna, the Douglas-Hart Nature Center is a valuable resource not to be missed!

Beautiful place to go enjoy for scenery

Wonderful facility.

Student please stop destroying the natural beauty of nature to study things we already know, get a job.

Really nice little nature center that provides a good break in the corn field monotony of the area. Some decent trails provide an easy walk through a small woods and a grassland area. They also recently tied into the local bike trail!

Kids loved it. We gave turtles food. Lots of fun.

This place has expanded so much over the years!

Love it here....its nice to get the kids out of the house and enjoy nature.

Great place to go if you want to get a little piece of nature. The staff are great with children.

Dont take it kiss that unless you want to pack at them

Beautiful place to take a walk. The Nature Center is nice and their summer camps are fantastic.

Beautiful both when everything is in bloom and when the snow is covering it.

So peacful and beautiful. Plus an amazing event list geared toward all ages of nature lovers.

Great place to walk.

Fun little trails

Love

Easy fun for all ages

Beautiful. Knowledgeable and friendly staff.

A nice place to walk and learn. Quiet place away from normal distractions.

Great place to go for a walk. Clean well cared for trails.

SOOOOOO pretty when it snows!!! Great place to take snow pics!!!

Nice little place to get away from it all lots of trails defiantly worth a look.

This is one of my favorite places to visit for po photos in Coles County.

Bus driver for Kansas school. Bring FFA each year to help plant wild plants so this beautiful place can thrive.

Love all the things for the kids to do.

They are always hosting events for the public. Its always a great place to take the family

Fun place. Enjoyed by many ages

Wonderful place to unwind

My family loves to come here. One of the best local wildlife retreats ever! Thanks.

My Grandchildren love it here

Very cool nature preserve. Not very big but with a pond and wetland

Great roster of activities for the kids and a nice relaxing environment. Add the parent waiting for the kiddos to finish, I enjoyed waiting in their library white watching out the large picture windows

The summer camps are great and affordable to keep kids busy in the summer!

Wonderful place. Stopped on a road adventure from Atlanta -> Wisconsin. Kids had a great time and learned a lot!

Beautiful place, so many different wildlife locations packed into 1 area. Great for family.

Very peaceful, but not big enough to really get into the woods

Great place with good programs to learn about nature in Illinois for you and your kids.

Even the parking lot is stunningly beautiful, thick with prairie plantings. We saw a hummingbird nectaring before we could get out of the car.

Great nature walks. Lots of activities for our grand children as well

Love this place. Reasonably priced or Free activities for kids.

I love it

Took my niece and her friend to the Halloween spooky trail and hay ride....soooo ooohhh fun!! Great spooks...bonfire...treats...will be there next year too!♡ Thankyou so much for the time....