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

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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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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

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Parks, forests & wildlife areas

Find a park

117 parks in 7 regions
Autumn woodland on the back roads of the Cuyahoga Valley

Road Trips

33 drives across Ohio
Heritage drives and scenic byways you can do from the car

Cuyahoga Valley National Park · Photo: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0

Some of Ohio's best places are best seen on the road. These are the long drives that tell a story, like the route of Morgan's Raid or the first coast-to-coast highway, and the state's scenic byways, with stops that link to the parks, mounds and historic sites in this app. Each one says how long it is, how many days to give it, and where you can camp along the way.

33 routes

John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail

Southern and eastern Ohio
A 557-mile driving tour of the Confederate cavalry raid that terrified southern and eastern Ohio in July 1863.
Heritage drive557 miles
Harrison, Hamilton County to Near West Point, Columbiana County

Lincoln Highway Historic Byway

Northern and western Ohio
Ohio's 241 miles of the first coast-to-coast automobile road, following the 1928 alignment along old US 30.
Heritage drive241 miles
East Liverpool to Indiana line near Van Wert

Historic National Road (US 40)

Eastern, central and western Ohio
America's first federally funded highway, 225 miles across Ohio with stone S-bridges, a Y-bridge and the National Road museum.
Heritage drive225 miles
St. Clairsville to Indiana line west of Springfield

Ohio & Erie Canalway Scenic Byway

Northeast Ohio
A 110-mile byway along the old Ohio & Erie Canal, past the Cuyahoga Valley, Zoar and the Tuscarawas valley.
Scenic byway110 miles
Dover to Cleveland

Amish Country Byway

East-central Ohio (Holmes County and neighbors)
A 164-mile loop of state highways linking the Amish communities of Holmes County.
Scenic byway164 miles
Holmes County to Holmes County

Lake Erie Coastal Ohio Trail

Ohio's north coast
A 293-mile drive along Ohio's Lake Erie shore, with lighthouses, beaches and island ferries.
Scenic byway293 miles
Conneaut to Michigan border near Toledo

Ohio River Scenic Byway

Ohio's southern border
A 452-mile drive along US 50, US 52 and State Route 7 beside the river that made Ohio a free state.
Scenic byway452 miles
East Liverpool to Cincinnati area

Maumee Valley Scenic Byway

Northwest Ohio
A 59-mile drive down the Maumee River from Defiance to Toledo, past forts and battlefields.
Scenic byway59 miles
Defiance to Maumee, at Fort Miamis

Hocking Hills Scenic Byway

Southeast Ohio
A 26-mile drive along State Route 374 through the gorges and caves of the Hocking Hills.
Scenic byway26.4 miles
Hocking Hills State Park to Rockbridge

Covered Bridge Scenic Byway

Southeast Ohio
A 35-mile drive on State Route 26 from Marietta to Woodsfield through the Wayne National Forest.
Scenic byway35 miles
Marietta to Woodsfield

Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches

West-central Ohio (Mercer and Auglaize counties)
A 38-mile drive through the largest concentration of Catholic churches in the state, past Fort Recovery and Grand Lake.
Scenic byway38.4 miles
McCartyville to SR 29 west of Wabash

Johnny Appleseed Historic Byway

North-central Ohio
A 30-mile byway on SR 39 and SR 603 that links properties John Chapman, Johnny Appleseed, once owned.
Scenic byway30 miles
Mansfield to Loudonville and Mifflin

Appalachian Byway

Southeast Ohio
A 105-to-115-mile drive on SR 78 from the Ohio River through Monroe, Noble and Morgan counties to Nelsonville.
Scenic byway115 miles
Hannibal, on the Ohio River to Nelsonville

Big Darby Plains Scenic Byway

West-central Ohio
A drive beside the state and national scenic Big Darby Creek through Union, Champaign and Madison counties.
Scenic byway47 miles
North Lewisburg to Plain City

Drovers' Trail Scenic Byway

Eastern Ohio (Belmont County)
A 37-mile drive in Belmont County that links the National Road with the Ohio River on the old route of farmers and cattle drovers.
Scenic byway37 miles
Hendrysburg to Bellaire

Granville Scenic Byway

Central Ohio (Licking County)
A 10-mile drive through the village of Granville, past Denison University and ancient burial grounds.
Scenic byway10 miles
SR 37 at James Road to North of Cambria Road

Heritage Corridors of Bath

Northeast Ohio (Summit County)
A 39-mile drive through Bath Township that connects 19th-century hamlets with Hale Farm and Village and Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
Scenic byway39 miles
Ghent Road area, Bath Township to Cuyahoga Valley

Jefferson Township Scenic Byway

Central Ohio (Franklin County)
A network of ten country roads in a corner of Franklin County that has stayed rural among the suburbs.
Scenic byway15 miles
Jefferson Township to Jefferson Township

Lower Valley Pike Scenic Byway

Southwest-central Ohio (Clark County)
An 11-mile drive on Clark County Road 316 along the Mad River, past a Revolutionary War battle site.
Scenic byway11 miles
I-70 near Fairborn to US 40 near Springfield

Miami and Erie Canal Scenic Byway

Western Ohio
A drive of 50 to 54 miles on SR 66 along the old route of the Miami & Erie Canal, with a canal boat ride at Piqua.
Scenic byway50 miles
Miami County to Allen County

Neil Armstrong Scenic Byway

West-central Ohio (Wapakoneta)
A byway about the early years of astronaut Neil Armstrong, including the years he earned his pilot's license.
Scenic bywayVaries
Wapakoneta to Wapakoneta area

North Ridge Scenic Byway

Northeast Ohio (Lorain County)
A 9-mile drive along all of SR 254 in Lorain County, past more than 100 historic homes from the 1830s.
Scenic byway8.8 miles
Lorain County to Lorain County

Old Mill Stream Scenic Byway

Northwest Ohio
A pastoral drive along the Blanchard River named for a 1910 song written on its banks.
Scenic byway52 miles
Findlay area to Putnam County

Scenic Olentangy Heritage Corridor

Central Ohio
A 10.5-mile drive on SR 315 along the Olentangy River, on the route of old Native trails.
Scenic byway10.5 miles
I-270, Franklin County to US 23, Delaware County

Presidential Pathways Scenic Byway

Southwest Ohio (Hamilton and Butler counties)
A 52-mile drive celebrating William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison through the rolling hills of southwest Ohio.
Scenic byway52 miles
North Bend to Butler County

Quaker Scenic Byway

Southwest Ohio (Clinton and Warren counties)
A 54-mile loop celebrating Quaker settlers, with meeting houses and the first school for free African Americans in Harveysburg.
Scenic byway54 miles
Waynesville to Wilmington

Scioto Heritage Trail

Southern Ohio (Scioto County)
A drive from Portsmouth into Shawnee State Forest along the highest ridges of Scioto County.
Scenic byway99 miles
Portsmouth to Shawnee State Forest

Tappan-Moravian Trail Scenic Byway

Eastern Ohio (Harrison County)
A 55-mile drive through the Tappan Lake and Clendening Lake regions, past Custer's birthplace.
Scenic byway55 miles
Harrison County to Harrison County

Wally Road Scenic Byway

East-central Ohio (Mohican and Walhonding valleys)
A 10-mile byway that follows part of the route of the 'Wally' railroad through the Mohican and Walhonding valleys.
Scenic byway10.4 miles
Loudonville area to Walhonding Valley

Welsh Scenic Byway

Southeast Ohio (Gallia and Jackson counties)
A drive of 34 to 64 miles on US 35 and SR 93 through the Welsh settlements of Gallia and Jackson counties.
Scenic byway34 miles
Jackson County to Gallia County

Gateway to Amish Country

Central Ohio (Knox County)
A 30-mile byway on US 62 and SR 514 in Knox County that leads into the Amish Country Byway.
Scenic byway30 miles
Knox County to Holmes County line

Ohio Underground Railroad Sites

Statewide
A drive to the museums and stations that sheltered and guided people escaping slavery, from the Ohio River to Lake Erie.
Heritage driveVaries
Cincinnati to Ashtabula

Ohio Art Corridor

Appalachian Ohio
A public-art route of murals, big sculptures and galleries through Appalachian Ohio's towns.
Heritage driveVaries
Circleville to Portsmouth

Every road trip in the guide (33)

Every place on Field Notes Ohio

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