Hocking State Forest
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
4,676 acres26.2 mi of trail
Orange TrailBuckeye TrailRed TrailPink Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Yprahs · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Laurel Township
Laurel Township has 5,377 acres of parks, 6,401 for every 1,000 residents
23% of Laurel Township’s land is conserved, about 5,763 acres. 33 miles of mapped trail cross Laurel Township, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Hocking State Forest (26.2 mi), Hocking Hills State Park (1.9 mi), Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve (1 mi).
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
5,763 acres · of 38.3 sq mi of land
Trails
33 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
5,377 ac
6,401 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
47%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Laurel Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Laurel Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Laurel Township is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Laurel Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (33 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land6,401 acres of park per 1,000 residents (5,377 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home47% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 90%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Hocking State Forest, with 26.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hocking Hills State Park
Nature preserve
361 acres1.9 mi of trail
Cantwell Rim TrailRock House Gorge TrailRock House Rim TrailCantwell Gorge Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
27 acres1 mi of trail
Conkles Hollow Rim TrailOrange Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
5,763 conserved acres
23% of Laurel Township’s land. Who manages Laurel Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources5,509 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits254 ac
State Conservation Area · 5,136 acState Park · 373 acRecreation or Education Easement · 254 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 254 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hocking State Forest State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 4,702 | Open |
| Hocking Hills State Park State Park | State natural resources | 373 | Open |
| Little Rocky Hollow Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 254 | Closed |
| Sheick Hollow Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 159 | Closed |
| Saltpetre Cave Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 14 | Open |
| Conkles Hollow Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 8 | Closed |
Things to do
11 places to go in Laurel Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Waterfalls in Laurel Township
Lower FallsIn Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve
DirectionsRim Trail Falls (off-trail)In Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve
DirectionsRock House FallsIn Hocking Hills State Park
DirectionsPlus 3 waterfalls without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Laurel Township
4 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Laurel Township
Hocking Forest Horse CampIn Hocking State Forest · OH DNR
DirectionsTrails & water
16 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 21.6 miUnpaved · 8.7 mi
Buckeye Trail4.9 mi
Orange Trail4.7 mi
Red Trail3.2 mi
Pink Trail3.1 mi
Silver Trail1.9 mi
Turquoise Trail1.7 mi
Purple Trail1.5 mi
Badger Cave1.1 mi
Cantwell Rim Trail0.9 mi
White Trail0.9 mi
6 more trails
Light Green
0.9 miConkles Hollow Rim Trail
0.6 miRock House Gorge Trail
0.5 miRock House Rim Trail
0.2 miCantwell Gorge Trail
0.2 miAirplane Rock Trail
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Laurel Township
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 41 | 51 | 64 | 73 | 81 | 84 | 83 | 77 | 65 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.7 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.1 | 3.2 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Laurel Township →
Next door
Laurel Township and its neighbors
Laurel Township has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Benton Township37 miLaurel Township33 miGood Hope Township11 miFalls Township7.2 miPerry Township2.9 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laurel Township | 23% | 0.9 | 6,401 | 47% | A |
| Benton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Perry Township | 1% | 0.1 | 155 | 25% | C+ |
| Falls Township | 6% | 0.1 | 9 | 59% | C+ |
| Good Hope Township | 25% | 0.4 | 596 | 24% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Laurel Township
Where can I hike in Laurel Township?
The longest trail networks: Hocking State Forest, 26.2 miles; Hocking Hills State Park, 1.9 miles; Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Laurel Township is conserved land?
23% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Ohio town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Laurel Township’s trails?
Hocking State Forest and Hocking Hills State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Laurel Township?
28,888 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Laurel Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 5,377 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Laurel Township have?
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Laurel Township neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →