COLUMBUS, OH -- The Old Man's Cave campground at
Hocking Hills State Park in Hocking County will be closed between Tuesday, September 2, and Thursday, September 25, while workers construct a new, reconfigured entrance to the facility and make additional improvements. The 172-site campground will reopen on Friday, September 26, in time for southeast Ohio's annual Fall Color touring and camping season.
About 113,000 visitors camped at Hocking Hills State Park last year, making it one of the busiest campgrounds in our system, said Dan West, Ohio State Parks chief. This brief closing between Labor Day and the Fall Color season will allow us to move forward with planned upgrades to the campground entrance and facilities.
Cottages, trails and the popular dining lodge at the park will remain open and fully accessible during the campground closing. Prospective campers will be redirected to other nearby state park campgrounds, including those at Tar Hollow, Lake Hope and Burr Oak.
Work began a year ago on more than $1.9 million in improvements to the Hocking Hills State Park Campground. A new, combined visitor's center, check-in station and commissary is scheduled to open October 20. A safer, reconfigured entrance from State Route 664 will greet campers on September 26. The work was financed through a NatureWorks grant. Gutknecht Construction Company of Columbus is serving as general contractor on the project.
"The new entrance will feature an access lane, bridge and roadway that will accommodate larger RVs and allow more room for vehicles standing by to check in," West said. "We've also taken advantage of the closing to upgrade primary electrical service in the campground."
The towering sandstone cliffs, waterfalls and gorges of Hocking Hills State Park have been a recreational destination since the mid 1800s. Located adjacent to Hocking Hills State Forest, the 2,331-acre park features 24 miles of hiking trails, a 17-acre fishing lake, four picnic shelters, 40 family cottages and a dining lodge that's open during the summer and fall touring season.