We aren’t necessarily attempting to visit all the national or state parks, but it is kind of fund to track those we have visited and see how much there is still to explore. Of course this list neglects many of the state and national forests, historic sites, recreation areas, and other wonderful public lands.
⛺️- camped in the park
🥾- hiked in the park
No need to let a weekend work event cramp our camping style! East Fork is right outside the metro Cincinnati area and has more than 400 sites.
Though the calendar says October, the heat was peak of summer – nearly 90º. So we prioritized a shady site. Unfortunately, one of the few shady sites left, 136, was also very awkward. There wasn’t much sitting space around the parking pad – the fire ring and picnic table were both nearly on the road. Continue reading “East Fork Lake State Park”
Tar Hollow is a place I remember visiting back in our tenting days. We liked the hiking but were surprised by the lack of flush toilets, given the presence of showers. Sadly, the pit toilets were sufficiently unpleasant to deter us from returning. Now that we travel with our own bathroom facilities, we decided it was time to give Tar Hollow a second chance. Continue reading “Tar Hollow State Park”
Our previous trips to Hocking Hills have been some of our favorite weekends. We love the hiking and camping in sites 152-163. We had never before camped in the full hook-up side, so we were very excited to spend a couple nights in a beautiful place with full water and sewer. I can’t remember a time we have been so disappointed in a place we had previously enjoyed.
Some of the issues with these sites included: Continue reading “Hocking Hills: A Tale of Two Campgrounds”
I will never forget our first time at Maumee Bay State Park, four years ago. I booked a weekend as a Christmas present so we could participate in the Biggest Week in American Birding. We were new birders, and had little idea of what to expect other than the high praise heaped by more experienced birders. As we exited off the highway and wound through industrial Toledo, my skepticism increased. The miles remaining on my navigation app continued to decrease but we still drove past and through mills and factories. No way was this going to the wild, nature weekend I had hoped. Yet we enjoyed the weekend enough to return ever year. In fact, it has become one of our favorite parks in the state. Continue reading “Maumee Bay State Park”
