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.
Popular:
  • 117parks & forests
  • 64ancient mounds
  • 34waterfalls
  • 40historic sites
  • 33road trips

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

Explore by type

What are you in the mood for?

See every place →
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.

Plan a trip

Open the mapAll 365 places on one map. Filter by cabins, campsites, hunting, beaches and more.Explore the map → Browse by countyPick any of Ohio's 88 counties and see its parks, mounds, waterfalls and historic sites.Find your county → Build a tripSave places as you browse, then line them up into a weekend. Kept in your browser, nothing to sign up for.Start a trip →

Explore Ohio

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

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

Tap a symbol for a preview, or search for a place. Open the key to show or hide categories.

Parks, forests & wildlife areas

Find a park

117 parks in 7 regions

Vinton Furnace State Forest

McArthur · Vinton County · Southeast Ohio
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
12,089acres
—trail miles
1952established
Directions →Official source →

The story of this land

Vinton Furnace is named for a nineteenth-century iron furnace that once smelted ore in these hills. Like Zaleski to the east, this region was in the thick of Ohio's iron era, when charcoal furnaces and coal mines ate up forests, and the forest that came back is second-growth. The ruins of Vinton Furnace and some old Belgian coke ovens still stand inside the forest.

Forest research began here in 1952, when the Baker Wood Preserving Company set aside about 486 hectares as an experimental forest for the U.S. Forest Service's Central States Forest Experiment Station. A decade later the Mead Corporation bought the land and kept the arrangement going. It was designated an experimental forest in 1963 and the agreement was formalized in 1965. In 2010 the land was bought by the Ohio Division of Forestry, which now co-manages it with the Forest Service's Northern Research Station.

Since then it has been one of the most studied woodlots in the country, with a focus on bringing oak forests back to Ohio. It is also one of the most biologically diverse places in the state, home to the largest known population of bobcats in Ohio, plus timber rattlesnakes, cerulean warblers and several rare plants. Forest roads radiate from the headquarters and serve as hiking trails.

Things to do in the park

  • Hunt deer, turkey and squirrel from the Hunter's Camp
  • Hike the forest roads and the Watch Rock Trail
  • Look for bobcat and timber rattlesnake habitat (from a respectful distance)
  • Tour the Vinton Furnace ruins and the coke ovens
  • Visit the forest headquarters, training center and research plots

Trails

Maps, reviews and recent trail reports for Vinton Furnace State Forest.

Find trails on AllTrails →

Things to do nearby

  • Zaleski State Forest and Lake Hope State Park, about 15 minutes north
  • McArthur, the Vinton County seat, for supplies and food
  • Moonville Tunnel and the Moonville Rail Trail
  • Hocking Hills State Park, about 40 minutes northwest

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
Vinton Furnace State Forest, McArthur
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets
ReserveOhio — camping and cabin bookings
Hunting or permits
Vinton Furnace is a working public hunting forest under Ohio Division of Wildlife rules. Squirrel, deer, grouse and wild turkey are the main game. The only camping in the forest is the Hunter's Camp, which is only for legally licensed hunters during hunting seasons (see the site details). Wear blaze orange if you hike in season, since this is a research forest that is also open to hunters.

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.

Hiking trails

No dedicated trail system. Forest roads that radiate from headquarters double as hiking routes, and the Watch Rock Trail is a popular hike.

Wildlife you might see

  • Bobcats: the largest known population in Ohio
  • Timber rattlesnakes (watch where you step and sit)
  • Cerulean warblers and other oak-forest songbirds
  • Several rare plant species in the mixed-oak forest
  • White-tailed deer, wild turkey and squirrels for hunters

Birding

Vinton Furnace State Forest's unglaciated hill-country forest is classic Appalachian warbler habitat — listen for these species in the canopy and understory during the late-spring dawn chorus.

  • Broad-winged Hawk
  • Barred Owl
  • Ruffed Grouse (increasingly uncommon)
  • Pileated Woodpecker
  • Cerulean Warbler
  • Red-bellied Woodpecker
  • Worm-eating Warbler
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Kentucky Warbler
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Hooded Warbler
  • Eastern Wood-Pewee

Late April into May, for spring warbler migration and the dawn chorus, is the best time to visit. For a full, current checklist, search this park's name on eBird's Hotspot Explorer.

Fishing

  • No significant fishing. Lake Hope, Lake Alma and Lake Logan are within a short drive.

Hunting

Vinton Furnace is a working public hunting forest under Ohio Division of Wildlife rules. Squirrel, deer, grouse and wild turkey are the main game. The only camping in the forest is the Hunter's Camp, which is only for legally licensed hunters during hunting seasons (see the site details). Wear blaze orange if you hike in season, since this is a research forest that is also open to hunters.

The Forest That Runs Experiments

Not every state forest is just a place to walk. Vinton Furnace has been a research forest since 1952, when the Baker Wood Preserving Company set aside about 486 hectares as an experimental forest for the U.S. Forest Service. A decade later the Mead Corporation bought the land and kept the arrangement going, and in 2010 the Ohio Division of Forestry bought it. Scientists here have spent decades on one question: how to bring oak forests back to Ohio.

It is also, by the state's account, home to the largest known population of bobcats in Ohio. Timber rattlesnakes, cerulean warblers and several rare plants live here too, and forest roads that radiate from the headquarters double as hiking trails.

Behind the legend

The research history is well documented, with a small wrinkle: one account puts the experimental forest's designation at 1963 and the formal agreement at 1965. The furnace the forest is named for is the older story. It is one of the charcoal iron furnaces that fed on Ohio's forests, and the ruins of the furnace and some old Belgian coke ovens are described among the remains on the property.

The bobcat claim is repeated widely, and it is a statement about a population, not a promise that you will see one. Bobcats are secretive, and the rattlesnakes are the ones to watch for underfoot.

If you go

Come during the licensed hunters' camp season only if you are hunting. Otherwise hike the forest roads and the Watch Rock Trail on a spring day, and look at the furnace ruins.

Campsites

Ball Diamond Hunter's Camp
About 3 campsites with a latrine · licensed hunters only · self-registration form on site · first-come, first-served
Free

On site

  • Latrine at the hunters' camp
  • Forest headquarters and training center near McArthur
  • Forest roads open to hiking
Vinton Furnace camping details (ODNR) →
The Hunter's Camp is only for licensed hunters and is first-come, first-served, so there is nothing to book. It opens one day before squirrel season and closes about a day after the fall seasons end (ODNR pages give the end as deer archery season in one place and grouse season in another, so confirm with the forest). It opens again 14 days before spring wild turkey season and closes the day after the season ends. Fill out the self-registration form on site.
Prefer the phone?740-596-5781

This is not a general-public campground. Camping is permitted at the Ball Diamond Hunter's Camp only, and only for legally licensed hunters during the posted seasons. Other campers should try Zaleski State Forest, Lake Hope State Park or Tar Hollow State Park.

Restaurants nearby

Mama Renie's Pizza of McArthur
Pizza and pub food, open late
Directions
Main Eatery
Local classic for a Viking Veal sandwich and a milkshake; closed Sunday and Monday
Directions
Smoke-N-Beans
Coffee and breakfast sandwiches
Directions

Gas stations nearby

McArthur Express
Hometown station with a good deli and breakfast
Directions
Marathon Gas (Clark Pump-N-Shop)
More pumps and easy access in downtown McArthur
Directions

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

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