Shawnee State Forest, OH

Chances are, you've probably never heard of the Shawnee State Forest in Ohio. Well, to tell you the truth, neither had I until I started looking for backpacking locations in the mid-west, close to home. The Shawnee Forest is the largest state forest in Ohio, with over 60,000 acres, covering most of the area near the southern tip of OH along the Ohio River. The park has set up plenty of trails and locations for backpackers to camp along the way. The longer trail is 60 miles long and can be quite strenuous at parts. The link to the brochure outlining the features and specifics of the trail can be found here. One nice thing that I have found out about this trail is that it is free for everyone to use. All you need to do is fill out a self registration card when you arrive at the park and carry the card with you while you hike.

The area that is designated for backpacking seems to be very unique. There are no motor vehicles allowed so it is one of the best places to find peace and quiet and get out to see wildlife. I read a blog of a few people that hiked this trail and they seemed to like it very much. It sounds like they did not take the hiking very rigorously, but they were still able to hike a large portion of the trail.

While reading about the park, I found out that there was a large ice storm in 2003 that killed alot of the trees and left damage that is still seen today. Many limbs were knocked down and full trees killed from the large sheets of ice that covered the park. After about a year all of the park was cleaned up to the public, but many of the dead trees had to be logged. According to what I have read, this logging is completed and the park is back in full operation. You can still see some damage to trees if you look closeley, and the forests are a bit thinner in general, but it seems like the ice storm has been taken care of for the most part. This picture shows the damage done to a home in the nearby shawnee township:

I think this would be a great park to visit and go backpacking through for a few days. There are some beautiful hills and colors in this area, especially when it is fall time. Have a great time backpacking out there!