Field NotesOhio
Upper Falls in the Old Man's Cave gorge, Hocking Hills, with visitors on the rocks

An independent field guide · 365 places

The field guide to outdoor Ohio

Parks and forests, ancient mounds, caves, waterfalls and back roads, with the story behind each place and where to eat and fuel up nearby.
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  • 117parks & forests
  • 64ancient mounds
  • 34waterfalls
  • 40historic sites
  • 33road trips

Old Man's Cave, Hocking Hills · Photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0

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State parks & forests117 places, with cabins, campsites and trails117 places Waterfalls34 falls, with trail notes34 falls Mounds & earthworks64 ancient sites, from Serpent Mound to Newark64 ancient sites Caves & caverns12 show caverns, recess caves and rock shelters12 caves Lake Erie beaches20 public beaches, Conneaut to Toledo20 beaches Historic sites40 places, from the frontier to the Civil War40 places Road trips33 drives, from the Lincoln Highway to the Morgan Heritage Trail33 drives Oddities19 giants, ghosts and folk-art stops19 roadside stops The Buckeye TrailA 1,444-mile loop, all 26 sections1,444 miles

New to the guide?

Six places to start

One from every corner of the state, each with its full story inside.

01Old Man's CaveHocking Hills · SoutheastA gorge of waterfalls and recess caves where a hermit is said to have lived, with the park's visitor center. 02Great Serpent MoundAdams County · SouthwestA gigantic earthen snake on a hilltop over Ohio Brush Creek, built by a people whose name is still argued over. 03Brandywine FallsCuyahoga Valley · NortheastThe tallest waterfall in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, reached by an easy boardwalk with an accessible upper overlook. 04Marblehead LighthouseMarblehead · Lake ErieThe oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the Great Lakes, lit since 1821, on nine acres of limestone shoreline. 05Zoar VillageTuscarawas County · EasternA well-preserved communal village founded by German separatists in 1817, on the Ohio & Erie Canal. 06Longaberger Basket BuildingNewark · CentralA seven-story office building shaped like a picnic basket, with handles that are heated in winter.

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Lake ErieWest Virginia36 places368 places813 places135 places523 places2321 places2124 places2416 places1613 places134 places418 places182 places217 places1710 places1014 places142 places27 places76 places613 places133 places34 places414 places143 places3Harrison Lake State Park2 places22 places22 places26 places64 places4

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Parks, forests & wildlife areas

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117 parks in 7 regions

Indian Point Park

Leroy Township · Lake County · Northeast Ohio
Twin earthen walls on a 100-foot ridge above the Grand River
National Register of Historic PlacesOhio Historical MarkerLake Metroparks
Directions →Official source →

A short, steep walk climbs to a knife-edge ridge where two parallel earthen walls still cut off the point between Paine Creek and the Grand River.

Setting
A knife-edge ridge 100 feet high between Paine Creek and the Grand River
Walls
Two parallel earthen walls with ditches cut across the ridge; cliffs guard the other sides
Finds
Pottery, tools, pipes and beads
Age
The state marker suggests the walls may go back to about 140 BCE, with Whittlesey people reoccupying the point around 1500
Also called
Indian Point Fort and the Lyman site
Marker
Ohio Historical Marker 27-43

The story

Indian Point is a narrow ridge about 100 feet high where Paine Creek meets the Grand River, east of Painesville. Across the neck of the ridge run two parallel earthen walls with ditches, and steep cliffs guard the other two sides. Pottery, tools, pipes and beads have been found here. Lake Metroparks credits the walls to the Whittlesey people, farmers who grew corn, beans and squash and lived in stockaded villages on high bluffs across northeast Ohio from about 900 to 1650.

The state historical marker suggests the walls may be older, perhaps about 140 BCE, and that Whittlesey people reoccupied the point around 1500. Whether it was a village, a refuge or a ceremonial place is uncertain. The Whittlesey are named for Charles Whittlesey, the 19th-century geologist who mapped many of their sites; their own name is unknown, because they were gone before Europeans arrived to record it.

Related sites

Visiting information you can trust

Content last reviewed
November 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source
Official page
Location confidence
Verified entrance or visitor center
Published coordinates
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets
Tickets or admission info

Prices, hours, closures, campsite availability and trail conditions shown elsewhere on this page are not live — always confirm with the official source before you go.

A People Without a Name

They farmed the river bottoms, built villages on the bluffs and walled off points like this one. Then, sometime in the 1600s, they were gone, and no European ever wrote down what they called themselves.

We know them by the name of the man who mapped their walls.

Behind the legend

The Whittlesey dates, way of life and naming come from Lake Metroparks and the state marker. The idea that the walls are older than the Whittlesey is the marker's suggestion and has not been confirmed by dating.

If you go

Park at the upper lot on Seeley Road, follow the trail out along the ridge to the walls and stay back from the cliff edges.

Visiting

Status
Open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Managed by
Lake Metroparks
Hours
6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Seeley Road is closed to cars between the lower and upper lots, so you walk the last stretch.
Admission
Free
Phone
440-639-7275
Please note
Steep cliffs and a steep road walk. Horses may be on the trails. Stay off the walls.
Official information →Directions

Parks nearby

Girdled Road Reservation (Lake Metroparks)
About 4 miles · A Lake Metroparks reservation on the Buckeye Trail.
Open
Headlands Beach State Park
About 7 miles · The longest natural sand beach in Ohio.
Open

Details last checked 2026-11-05. Confirm hours and prices before you go.

Know a place that belongs here, or spotted something out of date? Email hello@fieldnotesohio.com.