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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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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Lake Erie Beaches20 public beaches from Conneaut to Toledo and the islands, with a map.
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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

Barkcamp State Park

Belmont · Belmont County
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
1,005acres
20trail miles
1955established

Visiting information you can trust

Content last reviewed
September 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source
ODNR park finder (search this park)
Location confidence
Verified property location
Barkcamp State Park, 65330 Barkcamp Park Rd, Belmont
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets
ReserveOhio — camping and cabin bookings
Hunting or permits
Permitted in designated areas with a valid Ohio license.

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.

The story of this land

Belmont County was among the earliest parts of Ohio settled, and it was violent ground. Before the Treaty of Greenville in 1795, the Ohio River was the accepted line — Native nations to the north, settlers to the south — and the trouble started when land-hungry settlers pushed across it. The Moundbuilders were here first, then the Wyandot, Delaware, and Shawnee.

Lewis Wetzel ranged through this country. He was a celebrated frontier Indian fighter and, by any honest reading, a man driven by hatred who instigated much of the bloodshed himself rather than merely responding to it. A large boulder near the park's Antique Barn still bears an inscription he carved. Not long after, the Society of Friends — Quakers, whose entire theology pointed the other direction — established the first church in the area. Both are part of the same county's history.

The park's name is more prosaic and more literal. Barkcamp Creek ran through here, and on its banks stood a logging camp where crews stripped the bark off logs before sending them to the mill. ODNR began buying the land in 1955 and developed it as a fishing and game reserve. The dam was completed in 1963, creating Belmont Lake and cutting the creek's outflow. The park marked sixty years of operation recently, and Ohio's park system was named the best in the country in 2025.

Things to do in the park

  • The Antique Barn and the Lewis Wetzel inscription boulder nearby
  • A historic Mail Pouch Tobacco barn, recently renovated
  • Storybook Trail — a half-mile with a children's story along the way
  • Mountain bike trails and 24+ miles of bridle trail, with a horse washing station and accessible mounting ramp
  • Beach, mini golf, and playgrounds
  • Kayak launch on Belmont Lake

Trails

Maps, reviews and recent trail reports for Barkcamp State Park.

Find trails on AllTrails →

Things to do nearby

  • St. Clairsville and the National Road (US 40) corridor
  • Wheeling, West Virginia, under 30 minutes east
  • Wayne National Forest units to the south
  • Barkcamp's own antique and historical displays

Hiking trails

Over 20 miles of trail, from the half-mile Storybook Trail to the 7.4-mile Blue Trail, plus the Pioneer Trail and Woodchuck Nature Trail. Separately, more than 24 miles of bridle trail — hikers occasionally share the tread with riders. Mountain bike trails as well.

Wildlife you might see

  • White-tailed deer across the mature woodlands and open meadows
  • Strong birding — the park is well regarded for it
  • Wild turkey and small game
  • Secluded meadow and woodland mix

Fishing

  • Belmont Lake (117 acres): bass, bluegill, crappie, catfish, saugeye and trout. A wheelchair-accessible fishing area is provided.

Hunting

Permitted in designated areas with a valid Ohio license.

Getting on the water

Belmont Lake is 117 acres and restricted to hand-powered boats and electric motors — quiet water for fishing and paddling. Note that swimming from your boat is not allowed; use the beach.

Launches & facilities

Launch ramp
One ramp provides access to Belmont Lake. Seasonal boat tie-ups available.
Kayak launch
Dedicated paddling access.
Accessible fishing area
Wheelchair-accessible shoreline fishing.

Good to know

  • Hand-powered and electric motors only — no gas engines on Belmont Lake.
  • Swimming from your boat is prohibited; swim at the designated beach.
  • The lake holds trout as well as the usual warmwater species, which is less common in this part of Ohio.

The Stone Lewis Wetzel Signed

Near the park's Antique Barn there is a large boulder, and the story is that it carries an inscription carved by Lewis Wetzel. Wetzel was one of the region's best-known frontiersmen, celebrated by settlers as an Indian fighter and remembered by others as a killer, and the ground here saw a lot of bloodshed before the Treaty of Greenville in 1795. The Ohio River was the accepted boundary then, and land-hungry settlers kept crossing it.

The county has a very different second story. Quakers arrived even before Belmont County was formally created in 1801, and because it bordered slaveholding Virginia and the busy river town of Wheeling, it became a hub for people working to end slavery. Benjamin Lundy, a Quaker in nearby St. Clairsville, became known as the 'Father of Abolitionism' and formed an anti-slavery society here in 1815. By one count there were 120 miles of Underground Railroad in the county.

Behind the legend

ODNR's account attributes the carved boulder to Wetzel and does not say how it is dated. Like most inscription stories, it lives on as local lore, and Wetzel's reputation depends on who is telling it. ODNR itself says he held a mortal hate for Native people. The abolition history is much better documented. Lundy's anti-slavery society, the Union Humane Society, dates from 1815, and he helped produce the abolitionist paper The Philanthropist at nearby Mount Pleasant.

Even the park's name has competing explanations. One says Barkcamp Creek ran past a logging camp where bark was stripped from logs before they went to the mill, and another says bark camps were used to gather bark for tanneries. The lake, Belmont Lake, was finished in 1963. Zane's Trace, the pioneer road that ran from Wheeling to Maysville, passed just north of the park.

If you go

Find the boulder near the Antique Barn and read what is carved on it, and enjoy the story that comes with it. Then go to nearby Mount Pleasant to learn about the Quakers and the Underground Railroad.

Campsites

Electric site
120 of 146 sites have electricity; some full hookup and ADA-compliant
$31–35/night
Equestrian site
27 designated equestrian sites with horse washing station
$31–35/night
Group tent camping
One reservable site for up to 66 people, 11 picnic tables
Varies

Cabins

Sherman cabin
Cozy cabins in the park
$55–80/night

On site

  • Newly constructed shower house
  • Dump station
  • Mini golf course and playground
  • Basketball courts
  • Horse washing station and accessible mounting ramp
  • 3 ADA-compliant sites
  • Pet camping on designated sites
Continue to ReserveOhio →
Field Notes Ohio isn't connected to ReserveOhio, so it can't hold a site or take payment. Tapping through opens it in a new tab — search "Barkcamp State Park" there to finish reserving.
Prefer the phone?740-484-4064

Restaurants nearby

Mehlman's Cafeteria
An Ohio Valley institution — cafeteria-style home cooking and famous pie. Closed Mon & Tue
Directions
West Texas Roadhouse
Local steakhouse, big portions, open daily
Directions
Barton Trap
Small local bar with cheap, good burgers
Directions

Gas stations nearby

Pilot Travel Center
24 hours off I-70, showers and EV fast chargers
Directions
Love's Travel Stop
24 hours with dedicated RV spots — power and water, no dump station
Directions

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