Hocking Hills State Park Visitor Information and Map
It’s never just a walk in the woods. Something happens with that click of the car door and in the steady walk away from instant transportation. The trail appears and the realignment begins. Footsteps along an unpaved, uncarpeted, unpredictable surface with all of your windows open to the elements. No climate control beyond zipping and unzipping your own jacket. No sound system adjustments but within your choice to converse or simply walk.
Ash Cave in the Hocking Hills is named for the remnant ashes left by ancients who once sheltered within the enormous recess. A short paved trail under towering hemlocks provides easy access to the indented sandstone cliff.
A waterfall either trickles or pours from high overhead, and sound is transformed in the huge hollowed space. The occasional crack of thawing ice, the whir of rock pigeons flying overhead, the plink of water droplets embedding into melting snow, voices of present day visitors and the echoes of human history…
The trail continues up and around the rim of the cave and back to the parking lot or further on to Cedar Falls as a link in the 1444 mile Buckeye Trail.
We hiked on through mud and glorious sunshine but finally turned back in favor of a better drained trail through Old Man’s Cave. A surprising fifty degree afternoon had thawed much of the ice and snow, saturating the ground.
We didn’t mind the mud but opted for the trail that allowed us a faster pace and a longer afternoon…
Hocking Hills State Park Visitor Information and Map
Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio
Caves, gorges and waterfalls along 26 miles of hiking and riding trails.
Canoeing, climbing/rappelling, camping and fishing. Overnight camping and cabin/lodge accommodations.
“Yes” for pets (on leash).
Address: 19852 State Route 664 S
Logan, Ohio 43138
Park Office: 740-385-6842
Camping/Cottage Rental Office: 866-644-6727
Directions: Travel 45 miles southeast of Columbus on US-33. Bear right on OH-664. Visitor Center on left.
Park Website
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Anyone that’s only seen Ohio through the windshield while on the freeways know the state as a plain and very boring place to be. As an over the road truck driver for many years I learned the southeastern Ohio has some very beautiful scenery.
You take very nice photos and the description is top shelf. I’ll put Hocking Hills State Park on my list of places to see the next time I go through Ohio. I’m no longer an OTR truck driver but I still love to travel.
Just reading Brain D’s comment and comparing your photos, I wouldn’t have thought Ohio had boring landscape. As a true discoverer you find those hidden gems. It looks cold even with the spring thaw. Nice post and good writing and a good read.
Brian: ~Sounds like you found some of Ohio’s best. There are stretches of I-71 and I-70 where there’s nothing but “are we there yet?!” Hocking Hills SP is truly a treasure -wonderful in every season.
Your photo site has a terrific lay-out, BTW…
Cate: Thanks Cate! As challenging as the cold can be at times, it does transform the landscape in dramatic and often stunning ways.
Your trip sounds amazing!! Love the photo of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur…
A good view of Ohio, Heather.
Looks like a great way/place to spend the afternoon. I think I would enjoy the quietness and solitude. I’d skip the mud.
Prefer the snow much more. Thanks for sharing another nice secret.
The boys and I camped at Hocking Hills a few years ago.
It’s sad that as close as it is and as pretty as it is we’ve not been back. We really need to go again.
Thanks Jean-Luc!
Intrepid: We seem to pretty much want whatever is just ahead! After weeks of snow and ice, mud is a wonderful thing (but of course, the firm packed dirt of summer will be even better…until we crave a carpet of fall leaves…).
Delmer: You do! It’s a much easier drive now that Lancaster has a by-pass. Hannah and I aim to check out the new zip line Canopy tour down there in the next few months.
It is a fairy forest!