This is an absolutely stunning nature preserve! It sets a whole new standard for the phrase "hidden…read moregem." It can only be accessed by state permit, and, to that end, the address is unpublished. To obtain a permit, complete the form offered by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources on their website (http://naturepreserves.ohiodnr.gov/Portals/0/Forms/dnap/permits/ApplicationAccessPermit.pdf) It's well worth the effort. There are four caves on the property, all located in a relatively small area that makes for a beautiful hike. We visited recently, when a blanket of snow and ice was in the region, so we didn't get to see everything - we chose to be a bit cautious about going on the sheerest areas that were ice covered. It just means we can't wait to go back again! Regardless, the stunning ice displays were well worth the winter visit. The calm and quiet was relaxing. Highly recommended!

An Ohio treasure, Hocking Hills has been one of my favorite parks for my entire life…read more Accessible to all ages, with a plethora of trails both long and short. Plenty of bridges and paved areas. You can really make your Hocking Hills experience as intense as you'd like. With features such as Old Man's Cave and a creek with several water falls, you do not want to miss this park. My personal favorite season to visit is autumn, watching the trees shed their colorful leaves. Gorgeous views, great photo ops, and fun for the whole family. Not to mention free parking.

Hocking Hills is one of the best state parks in the Midwest. Whether you are looking for…read morechallenging trails to hike, a campground, or just a scenic spot for a picnic lunch, this state park is the perfect place. The trails are well maintained and range from easy to challenging. The trails are dog friendly, but please pick up after your puppy. My friend and I stayed at a nearby campground for a week and hiked every day with our two dogs. We arrived early in the morning and hiked different trails. Some of the trails are loops and some are out-and-back. A few of them involve steep climbs, rock stairs, or scrambling up rocks, so consult the free park map for details. The visitor center is very nice, and naturalists are available to answer questions and provide recommendations. Restrooms are clean and well maintained. The campground at Hocking Hills tends to fill up quickly, with reservations being made up to six months in advance. If the campgrounds are full, there are several private campgrounds in the area that are very nice. We actually camped at Campbell's Cove and drove the short distance to Hocking Hills State Park every morning.

All of the trail info I previously described still holds true, and the rockbridge is still fun to…read moresee. What's been greatly improved since our previous visit is the parking and trailhead! There's a nice, paved decently sized parking lot available now. The trailhead is clearly marked with a boot brush, a fun butterfly art piece, and multiple tall, colorful informational signs about history, geology, and trail maps. These are excellent additions to this space and great to see.

What a beautiful hike with some really cool rock formations, waterfalls and some steep hills to get…read morethe blood pumping!

The Ash Cave Waterfall is a large natural rock overhang in the Hocking Hills region of Ohio. It is…read moreone of the premier Park destinations in the state, and the home of historic native populations in North America for millennia. A remnant of ancient pre-glacial North America, some of the flora species located here are unique to the continent. Other caves are also located nearby, and coupled with a visit to Ash Cave can make a truly unique and memorable visit to Southeast Ohio. Ash Cave is easily accessible from a large nearby parking lot and the trail is handicapped friendly. It is sometimes the location for special events, such as an annual concert by the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. This is a magnificent event and well worth attending, but tickets go fast so if you're interested really be on the lookout for them, so don't delay when they become available.

Great park, love the views! Not sure about the waterfall though, my son said there were magical…read morecreatures lurking behind...Gosh darn, i really wanted to see a loch ness monster. I'd love to return, but maybe they should add a wifi server first. Jimmy had a temper tantrum when "brick blast" wouldn't load. Thank y'all!

Of all the Metro Parks I've visited, Clear Creek is my favorite. Rugged with a feeling of being as…read moreclose to real wilderness that a Metro Park can currently offer.

Get out and go hiking. Only 1 trail dog friendly I do believe. Definitely some nice inclines and…read morerangers driving around. Happy hiking!!!

Yesterday we drove over to Lake Logan State Park and checked out the park and marina there…read more Its free to enjoy!! There is a public boat ramp and fishing with license. There are picnic tables along with a swimming beach. Today was so lovely and the views were very nice.

Lake Logan is just south of town. It's on the other side of Route 33 and down a twisting road. The…read morelake itself looks nice with clean water. It just doesn't have much going on here. There is a small older looking marina. If you're going to or coming from Hocking Hills you likely will go right past it. It's a pretty good size lake. There's a couple areas for parking. One is along Route 664 at the dam. There's a small hill to climb to get to the beach, which isn't too dirty looking. Farther up is another entrance. This is where to find the boat launching ramp. It's next to the marina. The marina sells boating supplies and snacks. It's not fantastic but it's good for this area. It doesn't get too many tourists here. Several restaurants are located between the lake and highway.

This was such a peaceful way to start the day. We chose this path because it's kid-friendly (and…read morewheelchair accessible). We arrived by 9am and there were only a few other cars in the lot. This location also offers bathrooms (no guarantees on toilet paper though ). The half mile trail was filled with shade and beautiful views from start to finish. They also offer an upper trail thats more challenging and apparently not ideal with little kids due to the rim. Highly recommend this spot while in Hocking Hills!

Conkle's Hollow State Nature Preserve is definitely an incredible gem of the Hocking Hills area…read morethat I highly recommend everyone check out! Last time I was at Hocking Hills, this completely wasn't on my radar and after exploring a lot of the main Hocking Hills sights and sounds, I can safely tell you that Conkle's Hollow was unlike anything I saw at Hocking Hills! There are two paths you can take once you cross over the bridge from the parking lot and into the preserve just a little bit, one is just cutting through the entire middle of the gorge, so you'll have high walls all around you as you advance. This is the path we opted for and it ended up being really doable! A large portion of the path was paved, which really adds to its accessibility, but there will be a point where the path becomes unpaved (I think mostly past the second bridge you'll cross) which makes the last quarter of the hike less accessible. There are plenty of sights to marvel at before this last quarter of the hike, but I won't lie to you...the last quarter of the hike when you reach the innermost part of the gorge really made the hike what it was. You get to see a ton of smaller waterfalls as you go, but that back part of the gorge is where the main waterfalls are and when we went in the winter, they were frozen over for that extra cool look and we were able to get really close to them! The other path you can take at the start of the trail is to go up a flight of stairs and hike the perimeter of the gorge from above! We didn't do this so I do not know how the views are from here, but I can only imagine they are also incredible! This trail is a loop of about 2.5 miles I believe, whereas the one down below in the gorge is about a total of a mile out and back, so it just depends on the amount of time you have! I don't think you'll regret anything when you come to Conkle's Hollow, there were so many stunning views and things to see, even in the dead of winter! So I can only imagine how incredible it looks throughout the other seasons as well!

Absolutely love to go hiking at Cedar Falls in Hocking Hills State Park. It was my son in-law first…read moretime here and he fully loved it. We went yesterday April 25, 2021, the group included my hubby, daughter, son in-law and myself. We also hiked Ash Cave Waterfall as well. It was absolutely gorgeous day and plenty of others out hiking enjoying weather as well. Always free to enjoy and definitely recommend you go hiking here if given the chance.

one of the main must see's in Hocking Hills. One of the nicest waterfalls in Ohio. the parking lot…read morecan get crowded. I can't tell you that entering at the exit is a much shorter and easier walk. there are stairs ... like most places in Hocking hills. naturally on weekends it's more crowded. I'm old and out of shape so the hiking at hocking hills is challenging and some of the steps are difficult for short legs. my are sore the day after .. not used to that many stairs. but this weekend was gorgeous time to hike .. not muddy , humid and no bugs.

We found this secret camp spot not too far from Hocking Hills State Park right along the river…read more Shane set us up over the phone with a campsite and kayaking for the next day even though it was preseason! The campsites had a small bundle of wood for a campfire and they were really well spaced out so you don't feel that you are right on top of the next site. The hot showers and restrooms were well maintained and really nice after falling in on our kayak excursion:) Thanks Shane

Spent the weekend here in the cabin. It was a great time. They set out kayaks for us and we could…read morego at anytime. The cabin had everything we needed including towels and WiFi. The hot tub was perfect. The staff were amazing. The only negative thing I could even say was the bed springs were very squeaky lol

This is a nice trail loop in Hocking Hills. There are a couple ways to do the loop so you can…read moreeasily spend over an hour here before moving on to another area.

I've spent time exploring the Hocking Hills area for over a decade now and for whatever reason, I…read moredon't remember ever visiting Cantwell Cliffs... at least until a few weeks ago. I rented a cabin in the area and specifically wanted to go somewhere I had never been before. Cantwell Cliffs is about 17 miles from Old Man's Cave so I have to assume that's why I never made the extended trip. However, this go round time was not an issue and therefore I started my day of hiking there. It had snowed the entire evening before and didn't clear up until about 11AM that morning. Once it was done for the day I decided to head out. By the looks of it, only one person had beat me there. Due to the fresh snow the foot trail was hard to follow and deep, but thankfully all the trails here are marked really well. Along with the welcome signage and map at the beginning, it's easy to follow the colored marks among the trees. I will say that coming when there is a foot of snow on the ground isn't for the inexperienced. The staircases were slick with ice and snow, harder to climb but I was happy to be getting a work out in. It was absolutely breathtaking and so peaceful. I can't believe it took me so long to visit. I can't wait to go back when it's lush with green and flowing waterfalls. If you're in the area and want to get away from the crowds, definitely add Cantwell Cliffs to your itinerary.