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

New Straitsville Section

Morgan, Athens, Hocking, Perry · Southeast Ohio

Buckeye Trail Association

61miles

9 of 26clockwise

4counties

Forests, mining history and villages through Burr Oak State Park and Wayne National Forest.

Follows the edge of Burr Oak Lake, then heads into the Wayne National Forest and old coal country toward Perry County.

Highlights

Burr Oak State Park and its lodge
Wayne National Forest, Athens Unit
Imhoff Preserve with the Buckeye Trail Association's shelter
Shawnee, gateway to the forest

Parks on this section

Wallace H. O'Dowd Wildlife Area

State wildlife area the trail passes through

Open

Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve

Seven miles of trail including the Buckeye Trail

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Burr Oak State Park

The trail hugs the lakeshore, with camping at Boat Docks 2 and 3

Open

Wayne National Forest: Athens Unit

Wayne National Forest, Athens Unit

Open

Historic sites near this section

New Straitsville Mine Fire

A coal-strike fire that has burned underground since 1884

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 New Straitsville Section page →This section on AllTrails →

Camping

Burr Oak State Park Dock 3 Campground (Point 6) and Dock 2 (Point 11), fee camping right on the trail
Burr Oak Cove Campground, reached by about a mile of trail from Point 13
Burr Oak lodge and cabins near Point 10
100 Acre Shelter (Point 27): Adirondack-style shelter at the BTA's Imhoff Preserve; purify water from Dan's Run
Dispersed campsites near Points 4, 23 and 26 (see the BTA map)

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

Dispersed and free camping

Wayne National Forest, Athens Unit. Dispersed camping is allowed across much of the national forest, free, with no permit for standard camping. Camp at least 200 feet from water, roads and trails, use existing fire rings, stay no more than 14 days in a 28-day period, and pack out everything. The boundary here is approximate; confirm on a national forest map.

Wildcat Hollow Hiking Trail (Free dispersed camping along the trail): Wayne National Forest, Athens Unit. Free camping is allowed anywhere along the 5-mile and 15-mile loops, which overlap the Buckeye Trail. Small fires are allowed except in high fire danger.

Ohio state forests and state parks do not allow open dispersed camping, and the trail association says camping on private or state land needs the owner's permission. Rules change, so check with the land manager.

Lodging near the trail

The Lodge at Hocking College

Hotel, Nelsonville · about 10 miles from the drawn trail

College-run lodge near Wayne National Forest and the New Straitsville Section.

Directions Call 740-753-3531

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

Water

A water cache in a cooler sits between Points 20 and 21; otherwise filter or purify.

Take the stops with you

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

Google Maps: stops 1 to 8

The file holds 8 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

Snacks at the Burr Oak lodge (near Point 10), the marina (Point 12) and Dock 2 (Point 11). Shawnee is the Buckeye Trail Town.

Food and fuel

Shawnee (Perry County) Trail Town

The gateway to the Wayne National Forest, with a mining past and the Buckeye Trail Association's mailing address.

Black Diamond Tavern

In an 1877 building that was once a saloon and a bank; closed Monday and Tuesday