Old Man S Cave Hocking Hills State Park
Camila Farah
Old man s cave one of 7 major hiking trails at hocking hills state park.
Old man s cave or retzler s cave stories began in the late 1880s centered around the body of a man and dog found in a cave near cedar grove ohio presumed to be a trapper. Hocking hills state park is located about 55 miles southeast of downtown columbus on state route 664 in hocking county. By 1907 the legends had grown to include the name of the trapper as retzler and the dog harper. Strenuous trail with waterfalls and cliffs that has two routes through the gorge each a one way system which is either a 1 mile round trip or 1 5 miles round trip.
The cave was dubbed old man s cave by travelers wishing to gaze upon the bones and flintlock rifle. Ash cave is on the buckeye trail and grandma gatewood trail. A mile long gorge at old mans cave displays a variety of geologic features including waterfalls sandstone cliffs and rock formations with names like the devils bathtub sphinx head eagle rock and whale in the wall. Old man s cave is named for an old hermit named retzler who lived in the cave along with his dog harper.
Transportation is provided back to parking area near old mans cave. Start at old mans cave on a hike to ash cave with a stop at cedar falls for refreshments for a donation. It offers a gorge trail and a upper rim trail. Across the street from the parking lot are several picnic tables.
Source : pinterest.com