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.
Try:
The Buckeye TrailA 1,444-mile blue-blazed loop around Ohio, with all 26 sections.
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Mounds & Earthworks43 ancient sites, including the Great Serpent Mound and the Newark Earthworks.
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Historic Sites39 places, from Fort Steuben and Zoar to Camp Chase and the Rankin House, from the frontier to the Civil War.
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Road Trips33 drives, from the Lincoln Highway to the Morgan Heritage Trail.
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Lake Erie Beaches20 public beaches from Conneaut to Toledo and the islands, with a map.
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Oddities & Roadside Attractions19 giants, ghosts and folk-art stops, plus a Mothman just over the line.
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Caves & Caverns12 show caverns, recess caves and rock shelters, with a map.
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Waterfalls34 falls from the Cuyahoga Valley to the Hocking Hills, with trail notes and a map.
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Explore Ohio

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

Lake ErieWest Virginia27 places277 places77 places73 places35 places519 places1913 places1319 places1916 places168 places810 places1010 places109 places98 places820 places204 places43 places3Barkcamp State Park4 places47 places77 places76 places69 places917 places173 places3Harrison Lake State Park2 places2Forked Run State Park3 places32 places26 places610 places103 places32 places2

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117 parks in 7 regions

Moonville Tunnel

Zaleski · Vinton County
Ghost story

Visiting information you can trust

Check before driving — this site is seasonal, approximate, privately run, or otherwise uncertain. Confirm hours and access with the official source above.
Content last reviewed
September 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source
Official page
Location confidence
Approximate — boundary or exact point not confirmed
Approximate location, use the address
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.

An abandoned railroad tunnel in Zaleski State Forest, said to be haunted by a lantern-carrying ghost.

Built
About 1856 for the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad
Legend
A ghostly lantern is said to float through the tunnel on stormy nights
Trail
Part of the 10-mile Moonville Rail Trail, which also passes the King Hollow Tunnel
Listed
National Register of Historic Places, 2021
Town
Moonville, a mining town of about 100 people, empty by 1947

The story

Moonville began in 1856 when landowner Samuel Coe let the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad cross his property, and it grew into a small mining community of about 100 miners and their families around the tunnel. The town faded when the mines closed, and the last family left in 1947. A stone tunnel, a cemetery and a few foundations remain, and the old railroad grade is now the Moonville Rail Trail.

The tunnel is the subject of ghost stories. In one, a brakeman who fell asleep was killed by a train, and his ghost carries a lantern through the tunnel trying to catch it. In another, an engineer killed in a collision in the 1880s is said to float down from the stones with a lantern. There are also stories of a woman in white. The tunnel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

Sources differ on which death began the legend.

Visiting

Status
Open; hike in
Hours
Open daily; hike in via the Moonville Rail Trail from the parking lot on Hope-Moonville Road, and check conditions with the Vinton County visitor bureau or ODNR.
Cost
Free.
Phone
See Vinton County Visitors Bureau
Please note
The trail is gravel and dirt with stream crossings; bring flashlights and stay off the walls.
Address
Hope-Moonville Rd, Zaleski, OH 45698
More information →DirectionsShow on the map

The pin on the map is approximate; use the address for directions.

Hours, prices and even the attractions themselves can change. Confirm before a long drive.

Parks nearby

Lake Hope State Park
About 5 miles · A lake park with furnace ruins.
Open
Zaleski State Forest
Inside this park · The tunnel is in the state forest.
Open

Details last checked 2026-09-22. Confirm hours and prices before you go.