NEWS

State shows off renovated cabins at Mohican State Park

Lou Whitmire
Reporter

LOUDONVILLE - The newly renovated cabins at Mohican State Park Campground offer all the amenities of home, plus you can step outside and go canoeing along the Clear Fork or walk on any of several nearby hiking trails.

Bethany McCorkle, an Ohio Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman, shows off a newly renovated cabin at Mohican State Park Campground on Friday.

Twenty of the 25 cabins at the Mohican State Park Campground will be completely remodeled and ready for renting by Memorial Day.

The remaining five cabins will be completed by fall, park officials said.

James Zehringer, the director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, joined by state, local and community leaders Friday afternoon talked about the $8.5-million improvements that have taken place at Mohican State Park. The afternoon ribbon-cutting ceremony attracted a large crowd at the park's Campground A.

ODNR has made $88.5 million in improvements to the state parks in Ohio, Zehringer said.

"We asked the people what they wanted and we got almost 8,000 responses what to do with the state parks," said Zehringer. "It's no wonder that Mohican State Parks was listed in the top 10 attractions in the State of Ohio."

Park manager Josh Gardner said the cabins, which guests and media toured Friday, currently rent for $110 a night.

"We take reservations for up to one year out," he said, noting the cabins are open year-round and already are mostly rented for the summer.

"They're really popular at Thanksgiving," he said of the two-bedroom cabins with full kitchens with living room space and spacious screened in porches.

The Division of Forestry employees are making kitchen tables and end tables for living areas of the the newly renovated cabins, too, officials added.

Improvements to Mohican State Park have included the renovation of cabins, a new nature center, upgrades to the playground, shower house and restrooms, repaved campground roads, new splash pad, added hookups with 50-amp service for campers, and soon, a new fence around the swimming pool.

The $8.5-million renovations also included improvements to the Mohican State Park Lodge, including a new roof, a new chiller and remodeled guest bathrooms.

Jim South of the Mohican Trails Club said members have been instrumental with improving visitors' access to the park.

The Mohican State Park is 1,000 acres and the Mohican Memorial Forest is 5,500 acres, South said. The Mohican State Park has the Clear Fork cutting through it, making it unique, South added.

"In the past 10 to 12 years, the group has built 12 bridges, a stairway with 1,200 steps and hundreds of feet of walkway. Our goal in the last 12 years is to try to improve access to all these beautiful areas of the park," South said. There are 10 miles of hiking trails, 25 miles of bicycle trails and another 40 miles of bridle trails, he added. All the trails are accessible to hikers.

Bonnie Burman, the director of the Ohio Department of Aging, talked about the health benefits of state parks, especially for the states increasing age 60-plus population.

"Going for a walk in green space is one of the best things you can do," she said.

State officials showcased the newly remodeled cabins along the Clear Fork at Mohican State Park Campground on Ohio 3, south of  Loudonville Friday.

lwhitmir@nncogannett.com

419-521-7223

Twitter: @LWhitmir