Road closure, coffee & weekend update

exterior of Hocking Hills Inn and Coffee Emporium

Big Pine Road Closure

Big Pine Rd. is closed just east of the intersection of Big Pine and State Route 374, which means that getting to Conkles Hollow from Marsh Hollow requires a longish detour. Here’s how to do it:

  • Heading east on Big Pine from Wagner Rd., turn right at the Route 374 intersection.
  • Continue on Route 374 and turn left where it joins Route 664.
  • Continue on Route 664/374 past all of the Old Man’s Cave turn offs, and past where Route 374 splits off. Note: stopping at the Old Man’s Cave Visitor Center would be a good idea.
  • Keep going on Route 664 until you reach BlackJack Rd, then turn left.
  • Continue on BlackJack until it dead ends into Big Pine Rd., then turn left.
  • Continue on Big Pine until you reach the entrance to Conkles Hollow which will be on your right.

The bridge replacement project should be completed by 4 pm on September 5.

Hocking Hills Inn & Coffee Emporium

interior Hocking Hills Coffee Emporium

Inside the Emporium

A few days ago, a friend and I visited the Hocking Hills Inn & Coffee Emporium for lunch. This is a relatively new inn and eatery in the Hocking Hills, located at 13984 State Route 664 S, Logan OH. The photo at the top of this post is the exterior, which has ample outdoor seating. Pets are allowed only on the lower level. We ate inside which was charming and comfortable. Our meals were delicious: my meatloaf was served on a very nice bun and my friend’s generously sized breakfast pizza was served on a very nice flatbread. Coffee was very good. Unfortunately we did not try any of the fancier coffee drinks such as Hocking Hills Macchiato, Muddy Boots Mocha, etc. However, we did share a wonderful brownie cheesecake. Highly recommended!

 

Weekend Update

Still planning your Hocking Hills getaway? Take a look at this week’s WEEKEND UPDATE for ideas. Of visit ExploreHockingHills.com to check out the calendar of events.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend,

Mary at Marsh Hollow

Breakfast at the Village Cafe

Yesterday,  our little Bobo had an appointment at the groomers in Laurelville (with the clever Natalie at Love on a Leash). It’s not worth it to drive home so I usually have breakfast while I’m waiting. I decided to have a relatively healthy breakfast so went to the Village Cafe for their BIG bowl of oatmeal,  served with brown sugar and milk. I always get a well buttered English muffin to top things off. The healthy part comes in using only a teaspoon of the sugar.

There’s a full breakfast, lunch and dinner menu at the Village Cafe. I particularly like their chicken salad sandwich,  and the daily specials are pretty good. Service is prompt and friendly.  Always. Hours are generally 6 am to 9 pm, but it’s always a good idea to call ahead: 740-332-6415.

Located on State Route 56 in the village, but official address is 16039 Water St., Laurelville.

There is no public pool in the Hocking Hills

Recently we’ve been approached by visitors looking for a pool at Marsh Hollow. The park people have been visited by people looking for the public pool at the old dining lodge. These pools do not exist. In our case, there never has been a pool at Marsh Hollow. As for the one at the lodge, when the lodge burned down the pool went away too. So no pools at these locations!

Recent interest in these pools can be traced to a blog entry I wrote in 2009 about the old pool at the now burned down lodge. I recently updated it to say that it no longer exists but apparently  people are reading cached pages that have not been updated. Not sure how people translated that post into Marsh Hollow having a pool, but we never had one.

One more time: there is no public pool at the old Hocking Hills Dining lodge, which burned down about 1 1/2 years ago. There has never been a pool at Marsh Hollow.

Visitors can swim at Lake Logan, which has a public beach. If you are camping both the KOA and Hocking Hills State Park campgrounds have pools, but you must be camping there to use them. There are also public pools in Logan and Nelsonville.

One last time: there is no public pool at the old Hocking Hills Dining lodge, which burned down about 1 1/2 years ago. There has never been a pool at Marsh Hollow.

 

A very short wildflower walk

image of spring beauty
image of trout lily

Trout lily

Although it would have been interesting to photograph any wildflowers brave enough to pop up through the snow, I haven’t been too inspired to go on any wildflower walks in the chilly April we’ve been having. However, things have warmed up nicely and our fields are filling up with dandelions, spring beauties, violets and bluets. Up in the woods, the May apples are sprouting everywhere although they won’t bloom until May.

On today’s brief walk along the creek, I saw countless spring beauties and cut-leaved toothworts. The trout lilies are up too. I like their nickname: adder’s tongue.

Rue anemone are not quite as numerous, at least yet. Their creamy white “petals” are actually sepals. They can have 6-10 of these “petals.”

image of rue anemone

Rue anemone

The photo at the top of this page is a spring beauty. They are everywhere, with colors ranging from white to almost purple. Deer must not like to eat them as opposed to our domesticated lily leaves which must be a favorite deer snack.

John, our operations manager, went morel hunting yesterday. He’s got a patch he’s watching closely. Hocking County will get a lot of rain today and tomorrow, with further warming, so they ought to start sprouting like crazy later this week. Happy hunting, John!

Mary at Marsh Hollow

Last minute specials

kids dog on bridge

Winter is a great time to visit the Hocking Hills and Marsh Hollow: the crowds are gone, the rates are lower and it’s the quietest time of year. On top of that, we offer last minutes specials, generally for 1-6 days in advance. The last minute calendar is updated every day, so even though this post was made on January 4, the table below is current:

Call John at 614-499-8205 to book one of these great deals. Two day minimum, pets are welcome!

Mary at Marsh Hollow

An afternoon’s drive in the Hocking Hills and nearby Vinton County

We are planning a short family vacation at Lake Hope State Park, which is only about 45 minutes away from Marsh Hollow. Dave and I decided we wanted to visit first, to make sure we thought it would suit ages 3 to 78. Yes it will! Anyway, the park has lots to offer, from cabins to camping, to a small beach, marina, hiking trails, archery range, truly tasty dining at the lodge, mountain biking trails (I think it might be the no. one place for this in Ohio), a nature center….and lots of chill time. This would also make a nice day trip from Marsh Hollow….so stay here and go there.

The next stop on our drive was the new Hemlock Bridge Trail at the Hocking Hills State Park. If you follow our Facebook page, you might know that I went to the dedication and vowed to hike this trail soon. So here it is mid-June, and I have not. We are planning a creek bridge replacement at Marsh Hollow and wanted to get some ideas from the swinging bridge construction.We hiked part of it, but the park is not wrong to rate this as moderate to difficult. It is not appropriate for small children.  We were not prepared so turned back. Wear your hiking boots and bring your walking stick. Even though we only got to the turnoff to Whispering Cave then turned back, this hike is gorgeous.

Our final stop was at Jimbo’s Burgers & Beer, on State Route 56 in South Bloomingville. It is under new management and has been completely remodeled. We sat outside, as it was a beautiful June evening. The outdoor sound system was very nice. They are open Thursdays through Sundays so very much geared to the tourist trade. The mushroom-swiss burger was very tasty and large. You can have it on a pretzel bun or gourmet bun. Fries were also very, very good. The coleslaw was delicious but I generally prefer more cabbage and less dressing on mine.

Although we didn’t spend any time inside (except restrooms which are new and spotless), we could see that it was very nice, a mix of tables and booths and multiple big screen TVs. There is also a jukebox, which hopefully offers up more than boomer music.

It is also family friendly so yes, bring the kids. The menu includes more than burgers and the beer list is good. Hey, they offer Corona and Blue Moon, and all the traditional Bud and Miller stuff plus 1 IPA. We will go back for sure.

Mary at Marsh Hollow

Along the Buckeye Trail – Table Rock

photo of Table Rock

Last Saturday (or lasterday as granddaughter Molly would say), Dave and I hiked a small portion Old Man’s Cave section of the Buckeye Trail that runs between the rappelling area parking lot on Big Pine Rd. and Unger Rd. If you continue on, you reach Old Man’s Cave. We stopped at Unger Rd. and turned around to go back. In total we hiked 5 miles.

The weather was beautiful with a very unseasonable 60 degree temperature. We saw only two other people on the trail. Except for rappellers, we rarely run into much “traffic” in this area. In this section, the Buckeye Trail is also a bridle trail for most of the distance. We saw no horses or even evidence of horses yesterday.

To start, park at the rappelling area parking lot on Big Pine Road. It’s just a short distance past the entrance to Conkles Hollow. Cross the road, and look for the Buckeye Trail blue blazes on trees. Cross the bridge over the creek, then turn left at the registration stand to start the trail. Just follow the blue blazes up the hill, past and through some really cool rock formations.  When you see a 3 sided horse tie, you’re at the top.

Walk a little toward the horse tie, then turn around to look back and to the right. You should be able to see the Table Rock formation. Walk back a little toward where you exited the rocks, then turn left to continue on Buckeye Trail and along the top of the rappelling area. The trail needs some better marking because it is not clear where you should walk. By the way, this is not an area to bring little kids. In some places, the trail is close to the edge of the cliff.

Just keep going. Eventually the bridle trail splits off but you will rejoin it in a little while. After the trail turns away from the cliffs, it travels through a logged area that has been replanted with baby trees. Keep to the left and do not follow the logging road on the right. Although you will end up on Unger Road, it is not the Buckeye Trail. Unfortunately, this is exactly what we did! That logged area was disorienting. [we need to revisit this area because it probably has been better marked by now.]

As I mentioned, following this trail out and back is about 5 miles. There is a lot of uphill at the beginning but it is not a truly strenuous trail. It has some beautiful rock formations and a lovely hemlock forest. and it is seldom seen by most visitors to the Hocking Hills.

Mary at Marsh Hollow