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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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

Little Lyons Falls

Perrysville · Ashland County
Narrow cascade dropping into a collapsed, slot like section of Clear Fork Gorge
25 ftheight
Moderatehike

Visiting information you can trust

Check before driving — this site is seasonal, approximate, privately run, or otherwise uncertain. Confirm hours and access with the official source above.
Content last reviewed
September 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source
Official page
Location confidence
Approximate — boundary or exact point not confirmed
Approximate location, use the address or trailhead
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures

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.

A narrow 25 foot cascade a short walk past Big Lyons Falls, tumbling into a partly collapsed slot of the Clear Fork Gorge.

Height
About 25 feet
Trail
About a quarter mile past Big Lyons Falls on the same loop
Managed by
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Mohican State Park
Best time
Shortly after heavy rain
Fee
Free
Note
No single vantage point shows the whole falls

When it flows

A low volume falls like Big Lyons Falls nearby, most impressive shortly after heavy rain and reduced to a trickle in dry weather.

The story

Little Lyons Falls formed the same way as its larger neighbor, water cutting down through Clear Fork Gorge's sandstone within the same glacially carved valley, but here the gorge wall has partially collapsed in on itself, which is why the falls cannot be seen in full from any one spot on the trail. It sits within the same National Natural Landmark old growth hemlock and pine forest as Big Lyons Falls.

The falls shares its name and origin story with Big Lyons Falls downstream, tied to the pioneer era Lyons family, and it was brought into public use as part of the same 20th century development of Clear Fork State Park (est. 1949), later renamed Mohican State Park in 1966. It remains a secondary stop most visitors reach on the same loop hike that passes Big Lyons Falls, just before the trail reaches Pleasant Hill Dam.

Coordinates are approximate, estimated from trail descriptions rather than a surveyed point, since no source gives a separate coordinate for Little Lyons Falls. Like Big Lyons Falls, this is geographically in north central Ohio; region is coded as central since the allowed values do not include a north central option.

Stay behind railings and on marked trails. Wet rock at the top and base of a falls is slick in every season, and most Ohio falls do not allow swimming, wading or climbing. Flow depends on rain: many falls are a trickle in late summer and at their best after a wet spell, in spring, or frozen in a hard winter.

Getting to the falls

About a quarter mile past Big Lyons Falls on the same Hemlock Gorge Trail loop from the Covered Bridge, just before the trail reaches Pleasant Hill Dam.

Status
Open
Hours
Gorge Overlook and Lyons Falls Trail open half hour before sunrise to half hour after sunset
Cost
Free
Phone
419-994-5125
Managed by
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Mohican State Park
Please note
Stay on the marked trail, use caution near the collapsed gorge wall, hikers yield to bridle trail riders
Address
Hemlock Gorge Trail, Mohican State Park, 3116 State Route 3, Loudonville, OH 44842
Official page →DirectionsShow on the map

The pin on the map is approximate; use the address or the park's own directions to find the trailhead.

Trails close for repairs, ice and high water. Check the official page before a long drive.

More falls nearby

Big Lyons Falls
About 1 mile · 80 ft
Open

Parks nearby

Mohican State Park
The falls is inside this park
Open
Mohican-Memorial State Forest
About 2 miles · Adjoining state forest
Open
Malabar Farm State Park
About 5 miles · Nearby state park
Open

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