Ohio State
Parks-Ohio Hunting, Fishing and Adventures in the Wild
Vinton County. It's nature at its finest. It's hiking miles
of remote, forested trails and discovering new challenges around every
corner of the toughest mountain bike trail you've ever seen. . .or felt.
It's catching your first glimpse of a black bear or seeing a buck from the
window of your car and so close you'll swear you could have reached out and
touched it.
This is Vinton County. Remote and wild, we'll be the first
to tell you if you haven't been here, you're missing lots of great outdoors.
Whether you're stopping in off the beaten path or looking for a new one to
walk, we have a whole bunch of parks and forests, lakes and wildlife areas
for you to discover.
So whether it's exploring nature through hiking trails,
mountain biking, hunting, riding an all-terrain vehicle or
countless other adventures in the outdoors that you're looking for, Vinton
County is simply the first place you'll want to stop.
Rugged and intriguing, Lake Hope State Park adds a
little bit of fun into learning about history the hands-on
way. Once a small iron furnace community, Lake Hope
State Park and the surrounding Zaleski State Forest are
dotted with interesting remnants of the past. An old
cemetery, an iron furnace and hints of a ghost town still
linger along the trails thick with trees and wildlife.
But
it doesn't stop there,
Lake Hope boasts a 23-mile
singletrack bike trail that was chosen as Ohio's top
mountain bike trail by readers of "Mountain Bike Magazine".
There are 17 miles of beautiful hiking trails, a 10 mile
backpacking trail and also a 21 mile backpacking trail.
A nature center offers
visitors a special treat in learning about the area and the
environment around the park.
Fun things to do at Lake Hope State Park
include:
Stop in at the Lake Hope State Park Nature Center
and ask the naturalist about box turtles or turkey vultures or the
best places to hike at the park.
Take your bike out for a spin (and a few major
bumps) on the mountain bike course.
Discover a little bit of history-hike the nearby
backpack trail and find the old Hope Furnace Cemetery.
Explore the Hope Furnace and give the kids a good
scare with the legend of the ghost
of a watchman who stumbled into the fiery furnace and
burned to death over a hundred and forty years ago. He is said to be
seen with an orange lantern strolling across the top of the furnace
on rainy evenings. Ohio State Parks close at dark.
Lake Alma State Park was
originally constructed as a private amusement park in 1903 complete
with a dance pavilion, outdoor theater,
a merry-go-round and other park rides.
Although little
remains of the former recreational area, Lake Alma State Park now
offers visitors camping, boating, fishing, a playground and a beach
area. There are also 3 1/2 miles of hiking trails and a
1-mile paved walkway/bicycle path begins at the park entrance and
ends at the park exit.
Fun things to do at Lake Alma
State Park Include:
Take the dog for a hike along
the 1 mile paved walkway around the park. Pets need to be on a
leash.
Hike up the hill and explore
the area for remnants of the old amusement park.
Relax at a picnic table and
watch your kids play the afternoon away on the modern playground
facilities.
Zaleski
State Forest is Ohio's second largest forest covering 28,000 acres. From
the iron ore industry to coal mining to farming, the land has sustained
a huge amount of use even before becoming a thriving productive forest
and recreational area.
Now, there are
two backpack trails-a
main trail that is 23.5 miles and a 10-mile day loop trail. There are
approximately 50 miles of designated bridle trails at Zaleski State
Forest and a Horse Camp with 16 sites available on a first come first
serve basis.
Also on the Zaleski State Forest land is
the renovated 1930's Hope School House, a one room school house serving
as an interpretive center to teach cultural history of the area to
children. Nearly hidden by deep forests, the legendary Moonville Tunnel
creeps up at visitors along the old Cincinnati and Marietta Railroad
-legend states that a brakeman for the railway was killed in 1859 at the
site and he can be seen carrying a lantern near the tunnel in the early
evening hours.
Fun things to do at Zaleski State Forest include:
Break in a pair of boots on the 10 mile backpack
trail.
Find the remains of the 1870's ghost town of Ingham
Station along the old Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad track running
through the forest.
Give yourself a good scare watching for the ghost
walking around the top of Hope Furnace-the ghost is an iron furnace
worker who is still allegedly showing up for work to stoke the fires
he fell into!
Flint outcrops, the remnants of the
19th century ghost town of Richland and one of the four All-Purpose
Vehicle (APV) areas operated by the Division of Forestry bring visitors
to this Ohio State Forest. Once a flourishing iron boom town, little
remains of the settlement that housed as many as 100 employees and their
families. However, occasional ore pits near the ridges of the forest,
the Richland Iron Furnace (on private property) and bits and pieces of
stone foundations of the homes of the workers can be found throughout
Richland State Forest.
Fun things to do at Richland State Forest include:
Explore the forest floor for remnants of the town of
Richland.
See the sights of the forest from the seat of an
all-terrain vehicle.
A
mixture of both woodland wildlife areas, reverting old fields and a
man-made lake make Wellston Wildlife Area a diverse outdoor area to
visit. There is an assortment of recreation activities available
including fishing-the lake is stocked with Northern Pike, walleye,
largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish, boating on the 325 acre
lake, hunting and bird watching.
Fun things to do at Wellston Wildlife Area include:
Grab a pair of binoculars and search out a few
migrant waterfowl, songbirds or even a Great Blue Heron or two.
Fry up some mouth-watering fish for supper
tonight! If fishing is your thing, try your pole, line and a big ol'
nightcrawler in the deeper waters around the dam for a catch of
walleye.
Take an evening walk and see if you can hear the
warning slap of beaver tails when you get too close to a beaver dam.
Remote
hiking trails, hunting areas and the remnants of the Vinton Iron Furnace
make this privately owned wildlife area a unique place to visit. Nearly
hidden in the overgrowth of the woodland, Belgium Coke Ovens used to
make coke (raw material essential in iron making) from coal are quite
possibly the only remaining left in the world.
Fun things to do at Mead
Wildlife Sanctuary:
Explore the forest for
remnants of the iron furnace.
Supervisor's Office and
Athens Ranger District
13700 U.S. Highway 33
Nelsonville, OH 45764
(740)753-0101
With over 300 miles of
hiking, biking, off-road vehicle and horseback riding trails, Wayne
National Forest spans several southeastern Ohio counties including
Vinton County. From
canoeing to
hunting,
horseback riding
to
mountain biking
Wayne National Forest offers a wide range of recreational opportunities
for its visitors.
A Forest Trail Permit is required to operate off-road vehicles, or to
ride horses or mountain bikes on the Wayne National Forest.
Fun things to do at Wayne National Forest include:
Take someone fishing! The Ohio Division of
Wildlife restocked Lake Vesuvius with largemouth bass and bluegill
fingerlings in late March 2004. There will be plenty of
catch-and-release opportunities for the next couple years so try
your hand at catching a bass.
19852 St. Rt.
664 South
Logan, Ohio 43138 Park Office (740) 385-6842
Mammoth rock
formations, recess caves and over 25 miles of hiking trails make
Hocking Hills State Park one of Ohio's best known natural areas. There
are six major sections of the park including Ash Cave, Old Man's Cave
and Cedar Falls and many of the trails feature breathtaking waterfalls.
16396 Tar
Hollow Road
Laurelville, Ohio 43135 (740) 887-4818
A 22-mile
network of hiking trails is located in the northern half of the forest.
Seventeen miles of paved forest roads and 14 miles of gravel forest
roads provide a great opportunity for a scenic drive and allow good
access to all areas of the forest.
Vinton County. We're
just off the beaten path from wherever you're coming from or from wherever
you're going. For every taste, we have an adventure waiting for you-lodging,
dining, shopping and the great outdoors of Vinton County.
Unique lodging, covered bridges and miles of parks
and forests make Vinton County an extra special place to visit. Once a huge part
of the iron producing industry, the only remaining reflections of this past are
a handful of iron furnace remnants, an allegedly haunted train tunnel and a few
ghost towns nearly hidden beneath the tall grass. Instead of urban sprawl of the
mid-1800's, the region has transformed itself over the last 150 years into a
wonderland of outdoor recreation. There are over 70 miles of public trails for
hiking, horseback riding and backpacking. There are beaches, gift shops, small
towns and covered bridges. It's a place just off the beaten path of both time
and highway. It's Vinton County, Ohio.
in Vinton County, Ohio
little bit of fun into learning about history the hands-on
way. Once a small iron furnace community, Lake Hope
State Park and the surrounding Zaleski State Forest are
dotted with interesting remnants of the past. An old
cemetery, an iron furnace and hints of a ghost town still
linger along the trails thick with trees and wildlife. 
in Vinton County
Zaleski
State Forest is Ohio's second largest forest covering 28,000 acres. From
the iron ore industry to coal mining to farming, the land has sustained
a huge amount of use even before becoming a thriving productive forest
and recreational area.
in Vinton County
A
mixture of both woodland wildlife areas, reverting old fields and a
man-made lake make Wellston Wildlife Area a diverse outdoor area to
visit. There is an assortment of recreation activities available
including fishing-the lake is stocked with Northern Pike, walleye,
largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish, boating on the 325 acre
lake, hunting and bird watching.
Remote
hiking trails, hunting areas and the remnants of the Vinton Iron Furnace
make this privately owned wildlife area a unique place to visit. Nearly
hidden in the overgrowth of the woodland, Belgium Coke Ovens used to
make coke (raw material essential in iron making) from coal are quite
possibly the only remaining left in the world.
in Vinton County
not far from Vinton County
