Strouds Run State Park: White Pine and Vista Point Trails (Blog Hike #980)

Trails: White Pine and Vista Point Trails
Hike Location: Strouds Run State Park
Geographic Location: east of Athens, OH (39.35180, -82.04494)
Length: 1.7 miles
Difficulty: 5/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: October 2023
Overview: An out-and-back to a vista overlooking Dow Lake.
Park Information: https://ohiodnr.gov/go-and-do/plan-a-visit/find-a-property/strouds-run-state-park
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=949963
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming October 18)

Directions to the trailhead: From downtown Athens, head north on Lancaster Street.  Drive Lancaster St. north 0.4 miles to Columbia Avenue.  Angle softly right on Columbia Ave.  After passing over US 33, turn right on Strouds Run Road.  The trailhead parking area is 2.2 miles ahead on the left.

The hike: Occupying land acquired in the 1940s and 1950s for the now defunct Athens State Forest, Strouds Run State Park comprises 2606 acres in the hills and hollows east of Athens.  The park is centered around Dow Lake, a 161 acre man-made lake that was built in 1960.  The park is named for William Stroud, who was a shareholder in the Ohio Company of Associates.  The Ohio Company was a land company in the 1700's that founded Marietta, Ohio and facilitated European and early American settlement of southeast Ohio including Athens County.

            The large park offers many amenities including a 76-site developed campground, numerous picnic areas, and aquatic recreation on Dow Lake.  The park is oft-frequented by students at nearby Ohio University, and some of the University's aquatic sports such as rowing train on Dow Lake.  For hikers, Strouds Run State Park offers over 14 miles of trails that range in difficulty from flat lakeside strolls to long, steep routes through the hills.  The hike described here leads to the park's most famous overlook while passing some other interesting sites, and it is long and hilly enough to get you going without completely wearing you out.  I came here on a cool damp Saturday morning before an Ohio University football game and had a nice hike.

Trailhead for White Pine Trail

            A brown road sign that says "White Pine Trail" stands at the rear of the parking area and marks the trailhead.  The narrow trail climbs steeply and reaches a trail intersection after only a few hundred feet.  The trail going right leads to the mountain bike trailhead, so you need to turn left to continue climbing on the White Pine Trail.  As the trail's name suggests, a large number of white pine trees (probably planted by foresters) grow on this hillside, and in total you gain about 200 feet of elevation on this initial segment.

Climbing steeply on the White Pine Trail

            At 0.3 miles, you reach the top of the ridge and a trail intersection with the Vista Point Trail, which goes left and right.  A well-placed bench also sits here.  To head to this park's most famous vista, turn right to begin heading east on the Vista Point Trail.

Hiking the Vista Point Trail

            The Vista Point Trail is a ridge-running trail that embarks on a gently rolling course.  Just past 0.4 miles, you reach an ancient burial mound that sits to the right of the trail.  Experts think this mound is between 2100 and 2400 years old, and many similar mounds were built on the hills of southeast Ohio.  This mound is fairly long but not very tall, and almost nobody would notice it today but for the interpretive sign.

Ancient burial mound

            The trail meanders its way east along the top of the increasingly narrow ridge.  Maple and pine trees dominate this ridge at first, but more oak trees appear as you approach the end of the ridge.  Just shy of 0.9 miles, you reach this park's most famous vista.  While this vista peeps through a narrow window in the tree branches, you can see Dow Lake, the park's main lake, below surrounded by several ridges.  I came here in late October just after peak leaf color, and some remaining reds and yellows brightened the hillsides.

Vista of Dow Lake

            From this overlook, 2 options to get back to the trailhead present themselves.  The Vista Point Trail switches back to descend the steep and rocky hillside and intersect the Thunderbunny Trail, a mountain bike trail that leads west back toward the parking area that contains your car.  I didn't feel like hiking steep terrain or sharing the trail with mountain bikes, so I simply retraced my steps back up the Vista Point Trail and down the White Pine Trail to complete my hike.  The two options are about equidistant, so choose whichever one you like best.