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

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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

Shawnee State Park

West Portsmouth · Scioto County
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
1,095acres
8trail miles
1922established

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
Shawnee State Park, 4404 OH-125, West Portsmouth
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets
ReserveOhio — camping and cabin bookings
Hunting or permits
Not inside the state park, but the surrounding 63,747-acre Shawnee State Forest is Ohio's largest and is heavily used for deer, turkey, squirrel, and grouse. About 8,000 acres is designated wilderness with no roads or logging. Valid Ohio license required.

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

These were Shawnee hunting grounds, and the name carries a meaning worth knowing: historians translate Shawnee as roughly 'those who have silver,' for the tribe's considerable trade in the metal. Lower Town, a major Shawnee village, stood near where the Scioto meets the Ohio — a river the Shawnee called Spaylaywitheppi. The Scioto was the road into the heart of their country, and across the water in Kentucky lay the sacred hunting grounds. Standing on a ridge here at dusk, watching haze settle into the valleys, it isn't hard to understand why this country mattered.

Then it was stripped. Through the mid-1800s and into the early 1900s the hills were quarried for building stone — hauled by rail to the Ohio River, barged downstream, and built into Cincinnati — and logged over until there was little left. In 1922 the state bought 5,000 acres of cut-over ground and opened it as the Theodore Roosevelt State Game Preserve, an early attempt at letting a ruined landscape come back.

The Civilian Conservation Corps finished the job in the 1930s. Seven CCC camps operated across the forest, four of them segregated African American camps, and their crews built most of the roads and dug five small lakes originally meant to supply the camps themselves. Those lakes are still what people swim and fish in. The park and forest were formally separated out in 1949 when ODNR was created, and the lodge opened in January 1973. What grew back is second-growth forest so thick and humid it throws the same blue haze the Great Smokies are named for, which is how a corner of southern Ohio came to be called the Little Smokies.

Things to do in the park

  • Two swimming beaches, at Turkey Creek Lake and Roosevelt Lake
  • Shawnee Lodge with 50 guest rooms, 25 cabins, restaurant, and indoor/outdoor pools
  • Nature center at Turkey Creek
  • Boating on both lakes; separate marina on the Ohio River
  • Backpacking into the state forest — one of the most remote trail systems in Ohio

Trails

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

Find trails on AllTrails →

Things to do nearby

  • Portsmouth floodwall murals, a 2,000-foot painted history of the Ohio valley
  • Otway covered bridge
  • Serpent Mound, about an hour west — the largest effigy mound in the world
  • Ohio River scenic byway along US 52

Hiking trails

About 8 miles of park trails — Knighton Nature Trail (2.9 mi), Lampblack (1.5 mi), Lake Trail (0.8 mi), Lodge Beach (0.5 mi), Turkey Creek Nature Center loop (0.5 mi) — plus roughly 60 miles of backpacking and bridle trail in the surrounding Shawnee State Forest, including a well-known 40+ mile backpack loop.

Wildlife you might see

  • White-tailed deer and wild turkey
  • Bobcats and black bears — this is among Ohio's most likely bear country
  • Beavers, visible from a bench on the Lake Trail above Slate Hollow
  • Copperheads and timber rattlesnakes (watch your step on rocky trail)
  • Exceptional spring wildflower and songbird diversity

Fishing

  • Turkey Creek Lake and Roosevelt Lake: largemouth bass, catfish, bluegill, crappie, and stocked trout
  • An annual trout derby is held at Turkey Creek Lake on the fourth Saturday in April
  • A separate park marina sits on the Ohio River on US 52 just west of Friendship

Hunting

Not inside the state park, but the surrounding 63,747-acre Shawnee State Forest is Ohio's largest and is heavily used for deer, turkey, squirrel, and grouse. About 8,000 acres is designated wilderness with no roads or logging. Valid Ohio license required.

Getting on the water

Two small CCC-built lakes inside the park, plus a state park marina on the Ohio River itself a few miles south. The lakes are quiet, small-craft water; the river is a different animal entirely.

Launches & facilities

Turkey Creek Lake
Boat launch, beach, and the nature center. Site of the April trout derby.
Roosevelt Lake
Second lake with its own beach — generally the quieter of the two.
Shawnee State Park Marina
On the Ohio River on US 52 just west of Friendship, separate from the main park.

Good to know

  • Bring a kayak or canoe for the lakes — they're small and motor limits keep them calm.
  • The Ohio River marina is a serious-boat launch; don't confuse it with the lake ramps when planning.
  • Campers can pay a day-use fee to swim at the lodge pool, which is worth knowing in August.

The Little Smokies

The blue haze is real. The second-growth forest here is so thick and humid that it throws the same kind of blue haze the Great Smoky Mountains are named for, and that is how a corner of southern Ohio came to be called the Little Smokies. It is a recovered landscape. Through the mid-1800s and into the early 1900s the hills were quarried for building stone, hauled by rail to the Ohio River, barged downstream and built into Cincinnati. They were logged over until little was left.

In 1922 the state bought 5,000 acres of cut-over ground and opened it as the Theodore Roosevelt State Game Preserve, an early attempt to let a ruined landscape come back.

Behind the legend

The Civilian Conservation Corps finished the job in the 1930s. Seven CCC camps worked across the forest, four of them segregated African American camps, and the crews built most of the roads and dug five small lakes that were meant to supply the camps. Those lakes are still what people swim and fish in. The park and forest were formally separated in 1949, and the lodge opened in January 1973.

For the deeper Shawnee story, including Lower Town and the meaning of the name, see the Shawnee State Forest entry.

If you go

Stand on a ridge at dusk and watch the haze settle into the valleys. Swim or fish in one of the CCC lakes.

Mounds & earthworks near Shawnee State Park

Ancient earthworks within easy reach of this park. Tap one for its history, legends and visiting details.

Tremper Mound

West Portsmouth · Scioto County · Southern Ohio
Once mapped as an animal effigy alongside Serpent Mound, it turned out to be the footprint of a burned ceremonial building.
National Register of Historic Places
About 11 miles from this park · 100 BCE to 500 CE

Portsmouth Earthworks

Portsmouth · Scioto County · Southern Ohio
A vast ceremonial center at the meeting of two rivers, mostly lost to the city that grew on top of it.
National Register of Historic Places
About 20 miles from this park · About 100 BCE to 500 CE

Great Serpent Mound

Peebles · Adams County · Southern Ohio
A gigantic earthen snake on a hilltop over Ohio Brush Creek, built by a people whose name is still argued over.
Can visitNational Historic Landmark
About 27 miles from this park · About 300 BCE or about 1070 CE

Road trips through Shawnee State Park

Scenic byways and heritage drives that pass this park or run close to it.

Ohio River Scenic Byway

Ohio's southern border
A lodge and campground near Portsmouth.
Scenic byway452 miles
3 to 5 days · East Liverpool to Cincinnati area

Scioto Heritage Trail

Southern Ohio (Scioto County)
A lodge and campground on the Little Smokies.
Scenic byway99 miles
Half a day · Portsmouth to Shawnee State Forest

The Buckeye Trail at Shawnee State Park

Ohio's 1,444-mile blue-blazed loop passes through or beside this park. Tap a section for its route, camping, water and resupply.

13 Shawnee Section

56 miles · Adams, Scioto
Campground near the Roosevelt Lake beach
Remote3 parks

Campsites

Electric site
30/50 amp, wooded campground
$31–35/night
Non-electric site
Quieter loops
$21–25/night

Cabins

Lodge cabin
25 cabins managed by Shawnee Lodge, near Turkey Creek Lake
$135–185/night

On site

  • Showers and flush toilets
  • Lodge restaurant and pools (day-use fee for campers)
  • Nature center
  • Two beaches
  • Note: the park golf course closed in 2019
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 "Shawnee State Park" there to finish reserving.
Prefer the phone?740-858-6652

Restaurants nearby

Scioto Ribber
Legendary local steak and BBQ house — worth the drive into Portsmouth
Directions
Patties & Pints
Burgers and 40+ beers in downtown Portsmouth
Directions
The Smokehouse at Shawnee Lodge
In the lodge — convenient, though reviews are mixed
Directions

Gas stations nearby

Sunoco
Stocks camping essentials and propane exchange, on the way in
Directions
Marathon
24 hours in Portsmouth
Directions

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