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

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

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Amish Country Byway

East-central Ohio (Holmes County and neighbors)
Scenic byway · Holmes County to Holmes County
164miles
4stops

A 164-mile loop of state highways linking the Amish communities of Holmes County.

Length
164 miles
Designated
March 1998
Route
Many state highways in Holmes County, connecting Amish communities
Feeder byways
Gateway to Amish Country (30 miles on US 62 and SR 514 in Knox County) and the Johnny Appleseed Historic Byway
Best for
Horse-drawn buggies, cheese, furniture and farm stands
Designation
An America's Byway; start with SR 39 and US 62. One guide gives 160 miles

The story

Holmes County has one of the largest Amish settlements in the world, and the byway loops through its farm country, villages and shops. The county's Amish story goes back to the early 1800s: the village of Sugarcreek was first settled in 1814 by Amish families, and Swiss immigrants who came from the 1830s joined them in making cheese, which is why Sugarcreek calls itself the Little Switzerland of Ohio.

The Amish are a living community rather than a museum, and the byway passes working farms, buggy-shod roads and one-room schools. Photographing people can offend, and many Amish prefer not to be photographed, so ask first. Buggies share the road, and drivers should slow down and give them room.

Stops along the way

1 Sugarcreek
The Little Switzerland of Ohio, with the World's Largest Cuckoo Clock and the free Alpine Hills Museum. See the Sugarcreek entry.
Open
2 Berlin, Millersburg and Walnut Creek
The main Amish shopping and dining villages of Holmes County. See the Amish & Mennonite Heritage Center entry.
Open
3 Zoar Village
A German separatist village a short drive east. See the Zoar Village entry.
Open
4 Mohican State Park
A gorge and canoe river to the northwest. Mohican State Park is about 25 miles away.
Open

Take the stops with you

Load the 4 stops into your maps app to drive between them.

The file holds 4 waypoints and a stop-by-stop route line. Locations are approximate, often a town center, so use the stop notes to find the exact spot. Your maps app chooses the roads between stops, usually the fastest, so follow the byway signs where they differ. The GPX arrives in a zip file; unzip it and open the .gpx in a GPS or hiking app. The CSV imports into Google My Maps.

Where to camp nearby

Mohican State Park
A gorge, covered bridge and campground near Loudonville.
Open
Malabar Farm State Park
A farm park about 35 miles to the north.
Open
Leesville Lake
A muskie lake with marina camping to the east.
Open

Tips

  • Do not photograph people without asking, and give buggies room.
  • Most Amish businesses are closed on Sundays.
  • Go on a weekday, since weekends and fall foliage weeks are crowded.

Distances are the route lengths given by the sources. Confirm road conditions, closures and seasonal hours before you go.

Ohio scenic byways list →

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.