Hocking Hills – A Little Bit of Heaven in Ohio
Memories are funny things.
Sometimes you think back to your childhood, remember special places you visited with your loved ones, and wonder if those memories were real. Were those places as wonderful as you remembered? If you go back to see them, will your childhood memories live up to reality? And if they don’t, how would you feel?
These were some of the thoughts that have been on my mind lately.
Rhonda’s father (Gary) passed about a year ago and we were discussing the possibility of taking a trip to the Hocking Hills area of Ohio. I had never been there before, but Hocking Hills was a place special to Rhonda and her brother David, as their father took them camping in this area when they were children.
Rhonda and David remembered the place fondly, telling me stories about the campgrounds, hiking trails, and unique geological features that, along with the memories of their time with their father, made that area special to them all.
So it was decided – we’d all take a day trip to Hocking Hills and see as many of the areas that their father loved, as a remembrance of their time together.
And I’m always looking to expand my repertoire of hiking destinations!
Time to Hit the Road, On Gary Time!
We agreed to leave at 7 am in the morning, seeing as it takes almost 2 hours to get to Hocking Hills from Dayton, Ohio. At 6:55 am Rhonda got a call from her brother and I could hear over the speaker, “When I say we’ll leave at 7 o’clock, I mean 7 o’clock!”
Rhonda laughed as apparently, this was a Gary-ism. Her father used to insist when David and Rhonda were kids that you should be ready to leave 5 minutes before the agreed-upon time, with the unspoken threat that you would be left behind if you weren’t ready!
So we all piled into David’s car and headed out. Four of us were going on the trip, Rhonda and David, as well as myself and David’s girlfriend Sarah. It was going to be a fun day!
Stop 1 – Hocking Hills State Park & Old Man’s Cave
After about 2 hours the landscape changed from flat farmland to rolling hills, and then from rolling hills to steeper wooded terrain. Definitely not what you normally think of when describing the Ohio landscape!
As we pulled into Hocking Hills State Park to first visit Old Man’s Cave, I was shocked at the number and size of the parking lots. To be honest, I assumed that the park was going to be small and quaint. But apparently, this park, and the ones nearby, are a real tourist draw.
Despite having lived in Ohio for six years, I had no idea!
The Hocking Hills State Park Visitor Center was shiny and newly renovated.
We consulted the trail map, but David has the memory of an elephant and remembered where to go.
We followed the trails that descended quickly into a stream-carved gorge…
Which lead to The Devil’s Bathtub.
We continued onward to the Upper Falls…
And then back in the direction of Old Man’s Cave, first crossing the stream…
Past the Lower Falls…
Until Old Man’s Cave came into view.
Signage was present to describe the cave’s history. Apparently, it was the residence of a local old hermit, Richard Rowe.
From the trail approach to the cave, it doesn’t look like much. But the cave is big!
Having accomplished our mission, we decided to head back to the car, hydrate, and prepare for our next stop – Cedar Falls.
Stop 2 – Cedar Falls
David’s elephant-like memory still intact, we drove to the parking lot near Cedar Falls with a minimum of help from Google.
It was a fairly short walk down into the gorge…
Past a fawn who posed for a throng of hikers with cameras…
Until we reached Cedar Falls, which was curiously lacking in cedar trees.
Nearby signage describes the area making up the falls.
And the obligatory Cedar Falls money shot.
We still had plenty of time to visit more sites, so we headed back to the car and drove to Ash Cave which was only a few miles away.
Stop 3 – Ash Cave
From the large parking area, a short, well-manicured path led us to the massive Ash Cave. It was HUGE!
It was used by early native inhabitants for shelter, and in colonial times was used as a camp and township meeting place. Apparently, a church used it as a place to hold worship services for a time, because of its impressive acoustics. You could hear a pin drop inside.
At the far side of the cave, there was a lovely waterfall.
We made it back to the parking lot with good energy as the Ash Cave trail was not very long. We then plotted our next Hocking Hills conquest, Conkle’s Hollow Nature Preserve.
Stop 4 – Conkle’s Hollow Nature Preserve
Although about five miles away, David again seemed to remember the way to Conkle’s Hollow Nature Preserve without assistance.
Signage at the entrance told us what to expect. We selected the gorge trail.
PROTIP: ALWAYS select the gorge trail if one is present in the park you are visiting!
The trail was level and well-maintained. And it wasn’t long until we all realized how special this place was. It was like walking through a fantasy landscape.
We started near the entrance…
And progressed through a dense forest with very interesting geology.
We snaked our way along the edges of the gorge…
And the way became more narrow as we walked. The walls of the gorge were a couple of hundred feet tall in places!
Until finally the gorge opened up into a cathedral-like dead end.
Absolutely gorgeous park. We were really impressed!
We still had daylight to burn so we visited one last area of sentimental value, the Rock House!
Stop 5 – The Rock House
The last park stop of the day, the Rock House, is apparently the only true cave in the park system. Unlike the other caves that were really large overhangs, the Rock House is a series of room-like caverns that were utilized by Native Americans as a residence.
Local signage explains the history and geology of the area.
Although the trail to the Rock House was not long, it was a steep descent. We knew that the hike back up would be fun.
We eventually reached the bottom of the descent, with the Rock House being just around the corner.
At the entrance to the Rock House…
Leading to a series of rooms, complete with archways and windows.
A room with a view!
The Rock House was really pretty cool and was better than I expected. Who would have thought that Ohio would have such interesting geology?
Now I know better.
Last Stop – Dinner at the Old Canal Smoke House
The parks in the Hocking Hills did not disappoint. This park system competes well with some of the most spectacular state and national parks I have visited over the years and I am still amazed that these kinds of landscapes can be found in Ohio. Everyone within driving distance really needs to visit.
But after 6 miles of hiking, we were tired and ready to refuel! Since the town of Chillicothe was on the way home, we stopped at one of our favorite Ohio barbecue restaurants, the Old Canal Smoke House.
We gorged on an obscene amount of food (portion sizes are huge), getting brisket, ribs, chicken, mac & cheese, corn casserole, loaded potatoes, onion rings, wings, fried mushrooms, and cornbread. And Sarah had a salad too. Adorable.
Needless to say, we were in over our heads with the volume of food, but we were all 6 pounds heavier and happy when we left. Highly recommended.
We had a great day revisiting the sites that were so impactful to the memories of David and Rhonda. It was fun hiking with everyone and reminiscing about Gary and his exploits in this beautiful area. And most of all, the trip enhanced Rhonda and David’s memories of their father in Hocking Hills, instead of diminishing them. It was a great remembrance celebration of their father, and it almost felt like he was with us on our journey.
It was an honor to know him.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to drop a comment in the comments section below!
2 thoughts on “Hocking Hills – A Little Bit of Heaven in Ohio”
Great photos. We need to get out there and do some hiking.
You really should! If camping is a no-go, rent a cabin and spend a long weekend in Hocking Hills. There is so much more to see there if hiking is fun for you. We took the shortest paths in and out of places to fit everything into one day. We could have easily spent the entire day hiking all the trails at the Hocking Hills State Park for example.