This is Alpha, the first-born, when he was 2YO.
This is Beta, the second-born, when he was about 2YO.
This is Gamma, the third-born, when he was about 18MO.
Spring Break 2022, Part 1
Apr
27
2022
Like many Michiganders, we headed south for our spring break.
Unlike many Michiganders, we stopped heading south after only one state and we spent our week in Ohio.
Our friends spent their days on the beach. Our kids had fun seeing who could grab the biggest icicle off the rock ledges.
Our destination was Hocking Hills. We found a VRBO in Logan and set out from there each morning for some trails. For those of you not familiar with this part of Ohio, you are best off picturing West Virginia for the terrain.
Day 1:
We couldn’t check in until 4:00, so we didn’t need to leave that early. It was 10:00 or so when we left.
Normally, when we drive somewhere, we stop at around the 2.5 hour mark for a break. Use the bathroom, stretch the legs, etc. So we usually have lunch around the 2 hour mark. On this day, Some Wife handed out the lunches we had packed, everyone ate as we drove, then we scouted for the upcoming rest stops. I took a survey and no one needed to stop, so the plan was to drive until someone needed to stop.
We ended up going the whole 4+ hours without stopping. I think that’s the first time we’ve ever done that. Turning point for family vacations right there.
We got there early enough so we did everything else before checking into the house: visit the visitors’ center, tour the pencil sharpener museum (right next to the center, and only about 10’x15′ – one of the tinier musea around), hike Rock House, hike Rock Bridge, pick up groceries for the week (hooray for curbside pickup), and grab a carryout pizza (hooray for no cooking the first evening).
Rock House
We chose Rock House for the first afternoon because it was close. Rock House is like a cave with many large openings.
I’ll start with a picture of a tree that looks like a snail, which is on the trail to the actual Rock House
Next is a couple of the kids clambering around the path to Rock House. Notice the icicles. In many areas the path led you under icicles, and we witnessed several of them falling.
Here are a couple pictures from inside Rock House.
This is just outside the actual Rock House cave part, but still on the Rock House trail. Beta found a way to a ledge halfway up the cliff.
This is the end of the Rock House cave part. The trail is at the bottom, but top left you’ll notice a cave-like opening. That’s what the openings look like from the outside.
After that, we drove to the next geological formation, which was Rock Bridge.
Rock Bridge
Rock House was in a gorge, so the path there was interesting. It took a while to hike because we were descending then ascending through rocky terrain.
In contrast, here’s the path to Rock Bridge:
It was a long path, maybe a mile there and a mile back. It was on our list of things to see, but much of the family was not interested in more physical exertion at that point. So Beta and I went and made it quick. The path did get more interesting, with some hills and a stream and such, but the first half was pastureland (which is scenic in itself, but not why we came to HH).
At the end of the path, you find the Rock Bridge:
You walk across it and get a photo:
Then you walk back across it and go back the path you just came in on, because it’s a dead end there at the rock bridge.
The pictures don’t do it justice, but the drop is about 30-40 feet.
That was it for hiking for the day. We got all our food then setup at the rental house. And it was evening, then morning the next day.
Day 2:
First on the agenda for day 2 was Old Man’s Cave. The visitor center that we visited on our way into Logan was for that whole area of Ohio. The Old Man Cave visitor center was way bigger and nicer, but it was just for the state parks. We met my brother and his family there, then set off on some hikes. It worked well for the kids because it was more fun hiking with cousins than just siblings.
Old Man Cave
Our first feature to view this day was the Upper Falls. This is one of the pictures you are likely to see if you look up pictures of Hocking Hills without specifying which part of Hocking Hills.
One of the nice things about visiting HH in the spring rather than the summer is that the crowds aren’t as big. From what we heard, it would be hard to get a picture of the Upper Falls with no people in it, if I took that photo in the summer.
Next feature on that OMC trail is the Devil’s Bathtub. I was hoping it would be boiling and sulphurous, but no, it’s called that because it’s really deep.
My favorite part of the whole trip was this bridge:
I just liked that someone went to the trouble of making a minimalist bridge in an interesting architectural style. This was the only one like it that I saw throughout the parks. Each stand is separate – not connected to the steps on either side of it. And the post are low, a bit above my knees, so as not to obstruct from the views.
And then we ended up at the Lower Falls. This was more fun for the kids than the Upper Falls, because you couldn’t get close to the falls at Upper Falls.
The Lower Falls was the far end of the trail option we planned for OMC, so we turned around there and the way the trails are structured you pass through Old Man Cave on the return from Lower Falls. I don’t have a picture of Old Man Cave. What we thought was OMC was just a tunnel, and OMC itself is I think a large recess in a ledge. We saw it, but we didn’t know that was the official OMC until we got back to the visitor center.
Then we had a picnic lunch together at some picnic tables just outside the visitor center. Then after potty breaks and refills of water bottles, it was off to the next trail.
To Be Continued…
He carves out channels through the rocks, And his eye sees anything precious.
Job 28:10
This little article thingy was written by Some Guy sometime around 6:57 am and has been carefully placed in the Travel category.
