Hocking Hills State Park
RV Guide

After you park the Airstream at your campground, you and your family can enjoy an array of park tours and guided hikes. A number of private or park-affiliated vendors sponsor a variety of different activities. Airplane and horseback park tours are quite popular amongst visitors, and the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway also runs through the park. Vintage locomotives run along the old Chesapeake & Ohio (C & O) track. Finally, there is a good reason Hocking Hills is known as the Canopy Tour Capital of the Midwest. An outdoor zipline facilitates a traditional canopy tour, NightFlight, and a (gulp) SuperZip tour.

The Ohio/West Virginia border area, including Hocking Hills State Park, is a good place for skywatching. Elevations are high and light pollution is minimal due to the park's secluded location. The John Glenn Observatory is one of the park’s newer attractions, so facilities are top-notch. During the day, visitors may study the position of the sun. At night, most of the Solar System’s planets are clearly visible with telescopes, and distant stars look much closer.

Built in 1943, Hocking Hills’ fire tower is part of the National Historic Lookout Register. This 80-foot tower stands at an elevation of about 1,000 feet. It’s been recently restored, and climbers may very, very carefully ascend the steps six people at a time. The fire tower is a nice attraction when the winds are calm, and it provides a sweeping bird's eye view over the canopy of trees. The tower is especially charming in the autumn months when the fall foliage is at its peak, so don't forget to pack your camera in the motorhome.

The second-largest recess cave in the Eastern United States is just south of Old Man’s Cave inside of Hocking Hills State Park. The cave also has a ten-story waterfall that makes the fairly easy trail worth the hike. The trail winds through the woods and rocks to the cave. It’s rather muddy in places due to underground springs, but there are boardwalks over the especially wet parts. The trail is well-marked and measures around one-mile round trip.

In a park full of caves, Rock House is the only true cave. Native Americans learned that they could build fires to heat the rocks and therefore bake food. Later cave dwellers carved out troughs to catch springwater. As a result, Rock House has sheltered a number of shady characters over the years and the spot has a rich history. To accommodate tourists, in the 1830s, an Army colonel built a 16-room hotel on this site. You won't be able to ditch the Class A for a room in this hotel, however. Today, all that remains of the hotel is a picnic shelter.

An RV vacation to Hocking Hills State Park would not be complete without a trip to Cedar Falls. In terms of volume, Cedar Falls is the largest waterfall in the Hocking County area. Early settlers believed that the hemlock trees were cedar trees, hence the misnomer. Believe it or not, many visitors rave about the staircase to the falls as much as the falls themselves. Designer Akio Hizume, who is also a mathematician, carefully laid out the staircase to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible. The irregular steps mimic the Fibonacci sequence, the one-dimensional Penrose lattice, and some other mathematical formulas we do not really understand.

Hocking Hills State Park is basically a collection of underground caves. Ash Cave is the largest and arguably most impressive one. This horseshoe-shaped cave is remarkable indeed. It’s about 700 feet long and 100 feet deep in some places. Features include a waterfall and blooming wildflowers in season.

The signs of an ancient Indian civilization are everywhere. In addition to the fire ash, recovered artifacts include weapons, tools, and pottery. This cave was a major stopping point along the main Indian trail in the area, which is now State Highway 56. There are several hiking trails in the vicinity. One of them is very challenging, one is wheelchair-accessible, and the rest are in between. Other nearby facilities include a parking lot large enough for rigs, restrooms, and a picnic area.

One of the most remote areas of the park may also be one of the most picturesque ones. Due to eons of erosion, the valley is deep, the cliffs are steep, and the cave passageways are quite narrow. One of them bears the politically-incorrect name, Fat Woman’s Squeeze. Don’t miss Lookout Point on the east part of the Rim Trail. There are two trails in the area. One is quite treacherous in spots (after all, you are hiking among cliffs) and the other one is rather moderate. Other facilities include a parking area, restrooms, an overnight cabin, and a rest shelter.

Perhaps the deepest gorge in Ohio is especially pretty during summer and early fall. The lush tree canopy blots out the sun entirely in many places. Most of these trees are wild hemlocks, but there are also a few hardwood and birch trees. Despite the lack of light, wildflowers thrive here. Due to the foreboding cliffs, the hiking trails in the area are quite difficult. Oh, be sure and ask a park ranger about the legend of Conkle’s treasure. Perhaps you will be the lucky one to uncover it...

Comic book fans may recognize Old Man’s Cave as the setting for many stories in the Bone series. This cave is probably the most popular park attraction, so leave the Sprinter back at camp and lace your hiking boots up tight. The trail that connects it to Ash Cave and Cedar Falls is part of the North Country Scenic Trail, as well as America’s Discovery Trail. The cave got its name because people used to live here. One of them — Richard Rowe — took his family here in 1796. He is also buried here. There are five gorge sections in this cave: Upper Falls, Upper Gorge, Middle Falls, Lower Falls, and Lower Gorge. The entire cave area covers about a half square mile.