Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio - Another Item for the Bucket List!

Despite having traveled through Ohio countless times, our family has never actually vacationed there.  Our overnight stays in the state have always been pleasant but, except for a future visit to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, it hasn’t really been on my radar.  That all changed when I learned about Hocking Hills State Park from Denisa and Mark over at Wandering His Wonders (one of my favorite blogs listed at the right), and I'll tell you why.

Denisa and Mark visited Hocking Hills back in September of 2016, and Denisa's description of the Park, the hiking adventures they enjoyed there and the gorgeous photos they took were easily enough to convince me that this was a destination that needed to be added to my Bucket List.  Their excellent posts, “Hocking Hills State Park - Our New Favorite State Park” and "Hocking Hills State Park - Our Favorite Park II" do this State Park more justice than I ever could, so you may want to hop on over to check them out (link HERE) and (link HERE).  But first, since I know just how intriguing all of their adventures are, I want you to promise that you'll eventually come back!

Hocking Hills State Park is located near Logan, Ohio, about an hour southeast of Columbus.  According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the Park contains over 2,300 acres that encompass towering cliffs, waterfalls and deep hemlock-shaded gorges.  There are caves, also, and the scenery is just drop dead gorgeous.  There are numerous hiking trails and two mountain bike trails.  There are even over 30 miles of bridle trails in the adjacent Hocking State Forest for those with their own horses.  Picnicking, archery, hunting and fishing (including ice fishing during the winter months) are available in the Park.

As for camping, according to the Park website, the campground has 47 full hookup sites, 109 electric sites and 13 non-electric sites, all with a paved pad that can accommodate up to a 50’ unit.  Heated showers, flush toilets, laundry facilities, a campground store, a swimming pool for registered campers, playgrounds, a volleyball court, a horseshoe pit and a dump station are available.  In addition, the Park has 40 family housekeeping cabins that sleep up to 6 people.  The cabins are gas-heated and air-conditioned with two bedrooms, a living room, a dining area, a complete kitchen including a microwave, a bathroom with a shower, a gas-burning fireplace and a screened porch.  Three camper cabins equipped with just cots, bench beds, a cooler, a stove and a camp light are also available.  Camping reservations can be made through ReserveAmerica.

While I was drafting this post, the October issue of Trailer Life arrived in our mailbox.  Coincidentally, it included an article about the John Glenn Astronomy Park (JGAP) - a new dark-sky venue that opened in Hocking Hills State Park in June of this year.  At the JGAP, you'll find astronomy programs, stargazing opportunities and a new observatory with a huge reflecting telescope.  Also on site and offered for public use are telescopes designed specifically for astrophotography - capturing images of the night sky.  I found an excellent article on the new JGAP - "John Glenn Astronomy Park adds wow factor to Hocking Hills nights" - on the Cleveland.com web site (link HERE).

Intrigued?  You can find even more information about Hocking Hills State Park on the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of State Parks and Watercraft website (link HERE).  Yes, definitely a Bucket List item – a wild place this beautiful is just begging for a visit!