Salt Fork State Park: Ohio's Sprawling Outdoor Oasis

At over 17,000 acres, Salt Fork is Ohio's largest state park. As such, it contains a wide range of amenities, including the deluxe Salt Fork Lodge and a fully outfitted 18-hole golf course. Other modern conveniences the park offers include everything from a gift shop to rental cabins with hot tubs.

But if you're like a lot of outdoor enthusiasts, you'll be glad to know the park has more to share than golf courses, swimming pools, and other manmade contrivances. In addition to posh digs, this southeast Ohio haunt hosts a healthy collection of hiking trails, boating opportunities, and more. The park even features a famous stone house that's on the National Register of Historic Places.

Whether you come for the dog park, archery range, or any of the other fun installations available, we hope the information below helps you plan the perfect getaway! For more information, be sure to check out the Ohio Department of Natural Resource's website.

Cabins and Campgrounds in Salt Fork State Park

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If the Salt Fork Lodge's 148 guest rooms don't appeal to you, you'll be glad to know the park also hosts convenient cabins and campgrounds. Most of its cabins are affiliated with the lodge and are close to resort features like its swimming beach and snack bar. Check-in is at 4 p.m. daily for both cabins and rooms.

Meanwhile, campers can choose from several sites, many of which have full RV hookups, 50-amp electric connections, and other amenities like heated shower houses. Primitive sites are also available for those looking to rough it in tents. Trailheads and other park features are easy to access from each campground.

A Trail for Every Reason and Season

The park has over 10 hiking trails for visitors to choose from. Each one is under two miles in length, but many are scalable when combined. The bulk of these trails are located near the park's nature center and dog park.

Where horseback riding is concerned, the park has quite a few bridle trails to choose from, most of which are between 10 to 20 miles in length.

Finally, one of the park's trails is reserved exclusively for snowmobiling, and many others make great cross-country skiing paths when the snow comes to southeastern Ohio. Similarly, the park has a lot of hills that make for great sledding, and sections of Salt Fork Lake are open to ice skaters when ruled safe by the ODNR.

Water You Talking About?

Boaters will be happy to know the park has eight launch ramps spread across its winding lakefront. While kayaks are one of the more popular options, the lake is open to fishing and all types of water recreation.

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