Field Notes Ohio

Ohio's parks, forests and wildlife areas with camping, the ancient mounds beside them, and the Buckeye Trail that links them. Stories, trails, wildlife, and where to eat and fuel up nearby. Book campsites on ReserveOhio.

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Explore Ohio

One map for every park, mound, historic site, beach, cave, waterfall and oddity in the app.

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117 parks in 7 regions

Caesar Creek Section

Greene, Warren, Clinton · Southwest Ohio

Buckeye Trail Association

55miles

17 of 26clockwise

3counties

Lakeshore paths, forests and trails, with the college town of Yellow Springs and Glen Helen.

Leaves the Little Miami Scenic Trail into Caesar Creek State Park for more than 20 miles of lakeshore footpath, then goes through Yellow Springs and Glen Helen to Pearl's Fen.

Highlights

Caesar Creek State Park and its beach
Yellow Springs and Glen Helen Nature Preserve
Great Council State Park in Oldtown
Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve nearby

Parks on this section

Glen Helen Nature Preserve

The trail passes through the preserve and Orators Mound

Open

Clifton Gorge – John L. Rich State Nature Preserve

Glacial gorge preserve near Yellow Springs

Open

Caesar Creek State Park

More than 20 miles of lakeshore trail

Open

John Bryan State Park

Clifton Gorge and Glen Helen are next to the route at Yellow Springs

Open

Mounds and earthworks

Orators Mound (Glen Helen)

The mound where Webster and Clay both spoke

Open

Historic sites near this section

Great Council State Park (Old Chillicothe)

The site of a Shawnee capital, now a state park built with the Shawnee nations

Open

Section map and alerts

Show this section on the map Distances between stops in this section

The Buckeye Trail Association sells a detailed map for this section and posts current trail alerts.

Official Caesar Creek Section page →This section on AllTrails →

Camping

Caesar Creek State Park has camping
John Bryan State Park has a campground near Yellow Springs

Campsites are run by different agencies and owners, and the rules and fees change, so confirm before you go.

Lodging near the trail

Three Ten Bed and Breakfast

Bed and breakfast, Yellow Springs

Walkable to downtown Yellow Springs, a Buckeye Trail Town beside Glen Helen.

Directions Call 937-546-0184

These are places to sleep near the route, not places that advertise to hikers. Confirm that they welcome hikers, and ask about shuttles.

Water

Water at the park and in Yellow Springs, Xenia and Spring Valley.

Take the stops with you

Save the camps, resupply, lodging, trail towns and parks for this section as waypoints.

Google Maps: stops 1 to 10 Google Maps: stops 10 to 15

The file holds 15 waypoints and a stop-by-stop route line. Locations are approximate, often a town center, so use the stop notes to find the exact spot. Your maps app chooses the roads between stops, usually the fastest, so follow the byway signs where they differ. The GPX arrives in a zip file; unzip it and open the .gpx in a GPS or hiking app. The CSV imports into Google My Maps.

Resupply

Good: Spring Valley, Xenia and Yellow Springs are all Buckeye Trail Towns.

Food and fuel

Spring Valley Trail Town

A peaceful small town with trails and wildlife.

Stone House Tavern (Waynesville)

Burgers, wings and a big patio in Waynesville, on the Little Miami trail about eight miles south; open daily