Greater than 50 state parks provide facilities
Outdoor lovers who’re airing out their tents or gassing up their RVs for some spring tenting will discover all kinds of websites, facilities and sights — pure and in any other case — at Ohio’s nice state parks.
Greater than 50 Ohio State Parks provide tenting, with campgrounds positioned from the seashores of Lake Erie to the banks of the Ohio River, and from the plains and prairies of the west to the Appalachian foothills within the east.
So campers, no matter their explicit pursuits, can make sure to discover simply the type of campgrounds and expertise they like.
Listed here are only a few park campgrounds from across the state that provide attention-grabbing or uncommon tenting experiences.
South Bass Island State Park
Positioned only a mile from the touristy hubbub of Put-In-Bay, this campground is on the quieter facet of South Bass Island and provides an awesome place for a peaceable getaway after a day of island enjoyable.
About half the campsites are for tents solely, with lots of these websites perched on the sting of a bluff with magnificent views of Lake Erie.
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Conveniently positioned close by are tub homes with flush bogs and showers.
Different campsites can be found with electrical energy or full RV hookups, and the park provides an RV dump station. Though the island is reachable solely by boat, Miller Ferries, (www.millerferry.com), can haul any dimension car on the quick journey from the mainland.
The park additionally has a small seaside and a ship ramp, the place Put-In-Bay Watercraft Leases (pibjetski.com) rents kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, private watercraft and powerboats.
The park additionally options 4 “cabents,” a form of cabin/tent hybrid that sleeps six, plus one cabin that sleeps eight and has a full kitchen.
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Shawnee State Park
This 1,095-acre park close to the Ohio River lies throughout the 63,000-acre Shawnee State Forest, making it a perfect tenting vacation spot for hikers and nature lovers.
The park provides two campgrounds: The densely wooded Turkey Creek Campground with greater than 100 electrical and non-electric campsites; and the Ohio River Campground and Marina, with 12 electrical websites positioned on the river simply off US 52.
The Turkey Creek Campground, as soon as the Theodore Roosevelt Sport Protect, is positioned on Roosevelt Lake, which has a small seaside.
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The campground has heated bathe homes with flush bogs and laundry amenities and an RV dump station. Two camper cabins that sleep six are additionally accessible for rental.
Campers also can go to the Turkey Creek Nature Heart and use the campground’s basketball and volleyball courts and miniature golf course.
A trailhead on the campground results in a wide range of trails, some straightforward loops, some longer, extra rugged hikes into the state forest.
Critical hikers and backcountry campers can entry the Shawnee Backpack Path, which incorporates elements of the Buckeye Path and North Nation Path. Backcountry tenting is obtainable at seven websites, with consuming water and latrines, alongside the 40-mile essential loop.
Hocking Hills State Park
A favourite vacation spot for nature-loving day trippers, this stunning park in Hocking County additionally provides a campsite with 150 electrical and non-electric websites and three small tenting cabins.
For true peace and pure magnificence, the park additionally provides a number of “hike-in” campsites, inaccessible by highway. Campers should pack their very own gear about one-half mile to the websites, which have a water spigot, pit latrines, fireplace rings and picnic tables — and a complete lotta quiet.
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And, whereas hardly qualifying as tenting, the park additionally has 40 rental two-bedroom cabins with fireplaces, heating and air-conditioning and fully-equipped kitchens.
The campground provides heated showers, flush bogs, laundry amenities and an RV dump station. Campers can use the location’s playgrounds, volleyball courtroom and horseshoe pit and fish at adjoining Rose Lake.
And the campground provides campers direct entry to trails resulting in Outdated Man’s Cave, Ash Cave, Cedar Falls and the opposite well-liked pure options that make the park well-known. However savvy campers can get up early and have the paths to themselves earlier than many of the day-trippers have even pulled the Sante Fe or Explorer out of the storage.
Caesar Creek State Park
Campers at this massive state park campsite close to Waynesville will discover loads of enjoyable actions to fill their keep.
Caesar Creek provides practically 300 campsites, most with electrical energy and a few with full RV hookups.
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The two,830-acre Caesar Creek Lake is open to boats of all horsepower and has a marina and 5 launch ramps across the lake. The lake additionally includes a 1,300-foot public seaside.
Among the many many actions on the park is mountain biking. Bikers will discover two trails: a 3.5-mile straightforward loop and a tough 15-mile loop for intermediate and professional riders.
The park additionally has a number of giant tracts put aside for public searching in season.
The Caesar Creek Nature Heart provides shows concerning the cultural and pure historical past of the realm. And the park’s personal Pioneer Village options 15 relocated and restored log buildings together with a Quaker meetinghouse, a pioneer schoolhouse, a blacksmith store and household cabins. The grounds at Pioneer Village are open to self-guided excursions, and the village hosts a number of particular occasions all year long.
Caesar Creek can also be recognized for its fossils. Guests can discover the emergency spillway on the Caesar Creek Lake Dam and see, within the uncovered limestone and shale bedrock, the fossils of 1000’s of creatures that lived within the historical sea that after lined the realm.
Fossil accumulating for non-commercial functions is allowed with a free allow accessible on the Corps of Engineers customer middle on the dam.
Find out how to make reservations
Reservations, which may be made as much as six months upfront, are required for tenting in any respect Ohio State Park campsites. The park system at present doesn’t provide “walk-in” campsites or self-registration on the parks.
To discover all of the park campsites or to make reservations, go to www.ohiodnr.gov/go-and-do/plan-a-visit/campgrounds.
Steve Stephens is a contract journey author and photographer. E mail him at sjstephensjr@gmail.com.
