Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary

"We stopped here after touring Woodford Reserve and found it to be quite deserted. The trails are pleasant and the bird blind was especially delightful. I may not have felt comfortable walking here by myself because there were so few people around (on a Sunday afternoon.)"

"We went hiking in Sept 2023 - we were covered with what I believe to be oak mites. I got over a hundred oak mite (or something similar) bites plus found one tick before it bit (other reviews mention huge numbers). Miserable experience and there should be signs posted warning of the risk. It's hard to block oak mites. The trails are in good condition and the scenery is pleasant. Would consider going again in late fall (after a frost) or early spring."

"I highly recommend that you DO NOT travel these trails unless there's been a hard frost or during very cold weather. My wife and I took our two dogs on the short quarter mile trail over Labor Day weekend and the trail was full of spiders/webs. Used a stick to knock them down only to come out the other side covered in hundreds of ticks so small that they looked like specs of dirt but were crawling!. We immediately left and returned back to the hotel that we'd checked out of and fortunately they let us back in to take showers. Our dogs were covered and it took us two days to make sure we'd gotten the ticks killed. Called our vet and we were told that this something new that they’d only seen once and they are VERY difficult to get rid of. CDC says that these ticks are carriers of Lymes and other nasty diseases. Fortunately our dogs are treated for fleas and ticks so the ticks will die after they bite. BUT it doesn’t mean that they won’t jump off on to the carpet or any area that the dogs lay and then can jump on us humans. It was the worst possible experience that we could have ever imagined."

"We took the red trail It's well maintained and very manageable for the beginner. This is a quiet woods walk, you hear the many birds and catch glimpses. There are a few openings to expansive fields and some panoramic views. The red trail makers are not clear at some turns because of the unmarked maintenance trails. So bring the trail map. Also my step app clocked this walk closer to 3 miles than one and half. You should not get lost."

"This is a nice place to come for a walk. There are very few visitors most days. Today there were only three cars when I arrived. I only saw two people on the trails. I hiked the Red Trail today, which is a nice 2 mile walk when combined with the yellow Trail. For a Wildlife Preserve though you see very little wildlife. I saw evidence of owls and heard a woodpecker and heard a few wild birds, but that was it. There is no entrance fee though they suggest a donation of $4. Also the Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary is now run by Life Adventure Center of Woodford County. Basically this is a good place to come if you want to get away from it all for a little while and just have some solitude in nature. EDIT: Definitely more wildlife now, as Whitetail Deer have come back. I see a few every time I'm out there!"