salt fork state park

Ohio's largest state park, to say there's something for everyone is no stretch. Salt Fork is one of the few state parks with an onsite lodge, and it's a great one, with excellent guest rooms, banquet facilities and dining options. As for the park, itself, the large lake is conducive to boating and fishing, and there's plenty of great hiking and bridle trails. Be sure to visit Hosak's Cave (be careful with your footing and do not climb the actual cave, as a memorial just outside the cave trail points out) and the old cabin located inside the park. Just a nice, scenic area about as far from civilazationa as you can get while still being relatively close to civilzation.

Our family loves to visit Salt Fork. There is a marina, beach, lodge, and lots of wildlife. We have visited in all of the 4 seasons. Winter is nice for sled riding, fall is great for hikes through the changing leaves, summer has great fishing and spring has lots of new growth. This state park is always clean and beautiful. We like to have breakfast at Cracker Barrel in the nearby town of Canbridge when stay there.

I have visited Salt fork park a few times for conferences. Looks exceptionally lovely in fall. I get to do trail hiking and enjoying scenery while attending a conference.

Staying at Salt Fork Lodge is serene, quiet.... great getaway tucked far off the beaten path...Day trip to Cambridge, amazing street decorations of Dicken Village Displays alone the Main Street full scale....

I'm new to the area and was looking for some hiking trails. I was amazed at some of the beautiful views I found on my first trip. This place is huge and has many activities to offer. This summer is gonna be great, exploring all the nooks and crannys of this park!

We rented two of the cabins for a family Thanksgiving get-together. We didn't do much because most of the park's attractions were closed for the winter. There was a GREAT craft at the lodge on Friday and Saturday though. The cabins were OK. The one we were in slept 6 - 1 bedroom with a double bed and a 2nd with two bunk beds. VERY quiet! Nice screened in porch with picnic table. Fire ring at each cabin. Ours was right on the lake with great views. All the appliance worked OK. Small kitchenette with a small table seating 4. We took side trips and visited.

This is the biggest state park I've ever been to. There are so many different and exciting things to do. We played golf here and let me tell you.....grab on and hold on for the ride of your life, hills, mountains, valleys, ravines, sand, deep grass....too much fun!!

Great views, beautiful lakes & easy walking trails (they are paved)made for a beautiful strolls for this over 60 couple. Some paths are wheelchair navigable.

Salt fork is the largest state park in Ohio. The woodlands, meadows and reservoir are gorgeous and offer something for everyone: boating, boat rentals, fishing, swimming, picnicking, bicycling, walking and jogging. There are hiking and bridle trails, caves and rock formations, historical landmarks, an 18 hole golf course, miniature golf, archery target course, furnished vacation cottages, a full service lodge and a fenced dog park with water access. Open year round, winter enthusiasts enjoy snowmobiling, sledding, cross country skiing and ice skating, ice boating and ice fishing.The campground is very nice. Sites have electricity and some have full hookups. They are large with paved pads, picnic tables and fire rings. Wheelchair accessible sites are located in loop C. Comfort stations are scattered throughout the campground. They are not heated and have cold water for hand washing. Three heated shower houses have toilets and coin operated washers and dryers. It cost $2.00 per load to wash and $2.00 per load to dry. Comfort stations and shower houses are handicapped accessible. The campground has its own beach, boat launch and docks. These are for guests of the campground to use, not for the general public. There is also a group camp, horse camp and primitive camp.We enjoyed every minute of our stay at this terrific state park and highly recommend it.

We have yet to find a lake anywhere in the state of Ohio that has clear water. The water at Salt Fork, like every other lake we’ve seen has brown, murky water and a very slimy, muddy bottom, except at the beach areas, which have a sandy bottom. The lake is shallow, probably 15’ or so at its deepest. The water is clean though… just don’t expect to see more than a few inches underwater, even with a mask. Not really a swimmer’s paradise, but if you enjoy being ON the water rather than IN it, then this lake is worth checking out. We bring our boat here every chance we get during the short summer. There is no limit to horse power, so you can fly! The lake is great for tubing and skiing. It has many coves you can hunker down in if you want peace and quiet, and a lot of wide open space to if you want to let it rip. Watch out for other boaters… some people are insane! The lake can get very crowed on a hot weekend, especially on holiday weekends. The beaches are okay, but watch out for all the goose turds. We always go swimming in the Boat Swim area where the water is well over our heads. The area surrounding the shoreline is very pretty and forested. There are no houses blocking out the scenery, like there is at several other Central Ohio lakes… just a lodge with a few small cabins. There are tons of hiking trails, horse trails, and even boat rentals. There is plenty of wildlife too! We’ve seen deer drink from the lake, and on a day out this summer, my wife and I anchored the boat and began swimming. Just overhead flew the only bald eagle we’ve ever seen in Ohio. Later the same day, we saw a rabbit swimming! I think it was trying to get away from a weasel, or some similar animal we saw shortly after.Autumn is a very nice time to go as long as you don’t plan on getting in the water (burr!). The leaves changing color and reflecting off the water on a nice calm day can be spectacular.

Went here for our anniversary. Park was absolutely beautiful and weather was wonderful, but cabins were 1950s style with dark paneling in every room. TONS of stairs to go up and come down, since the hillside cabins are up in the air. You think you won't mind, but by the second day you Will mind. Very uncomfortable couch and chairs. No smoking, but carpet smelled like smoke and pee. Every time fridge ran it sounded like a jet taking off. NO hot water!!!! Hubby said they had scald proof on it because it was a family cabin. Beds were very comfortable, but bring your own pillows. They have theirs wrapped in plastic. This park is too beautiful not to come back to, but will either stay in lodge or will rent cabin with hot tub. Still enjoyed the view from the screened in porch, but noticed not all cabins had such a nice view. If you get a family cabin, make sure you get one that you can see the lake from.

Stopped on our way home to Denver from Pittsburgh. It was a Sunday and there seemed like there was hardly anyone there (which is a good thing). Just took a right on a random road. Found a good spot to pull off with a picnic table in a clearing. Decided to take a walk on one of the trails leading into the woods to give us all a chance to stretch. The woods were thick and beautiful, nothing like you get in Colorado. Defintiely a great place to go camping, and I'm sure fishing as well. Didn't have time to fully explore, but would definitely make a point to stop in again. Didn't see a sasquatch though. Quite dissappointed in that.

Great park with varied ecosystems, lots of hills and lakeshore, rugged trails, good facilities. We will definitely return.

There is no bike trails AT ALL! None! Unless you like swimming in a private beach covered in goose poop, or a public beach that looks like an abandoned murder mystery, there isn't much else to do. We left a night early and have been waiting for our refund. That was 4 months ago! Not a good experience at all. Nothing good to say about this park.

WE recently had a family reunion at Salt Fork State Park in Ohio. The park was beautiful and so quiet. Our very nice room had a small balcony which overlooked the lake. In the mornings thedeer were right out there playing for us to enjoy. The service was fantastic. We had rented the Morgan room that was very clean and nicely set up. On Friday we had a pizza party and the gal who set it up was so helpful and friendly. On Saturday we needed some extra tables and ice.The staff provided it quickly and told us to let them know if anything else was needed. The Pool (outside) was fabulous. We didn't get much hiking down because of time limitations but hope to go back.