Public land camping
Camping in Ohio
6 federal places to camp in Ohio, from Forest Service and Army Corps of Engineers, on the land they sit on.
- 6
- federal places to camp
- 3 Forest Service, 3 Army Corps of Engineers
- 362
- campsites you can book ahead
- At the 4 places that take reservations on Recreation.gov. The rest are first come or not listed there
- 1,039 ft
- the highest you can drive to
- Mill Creek Camping (Berlin Lake)
- 4
- counties with federal camping
- 2 gateway towns, each with three or more within 30 miles
The Ohio campground map
Select a pin for its elevation, its sites and its page. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see how you get there, and use the finder for a campground, a town or a peak.
Interactive map. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select any point to see which agency manages the land. Arrow keys pan and the plus and minus keys zoom when the map has focus. A list of every state with its share of federal land is on the Explore page.
Map layers
Legend
Federal land, by managing agency
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
US Forest Service (USFS)
National Park Service (NPS)
US Fish and Wildlife (USFW)
Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
Department Of Defense (DOD)
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
Other Federal
State
Local
Alaska Native Lands (Patented or Interim Conveyed)
Alaska Native Allotment
Federal campgrounds, by agency
- Forest Service
- Bureau of Land Management
- National Park Service
- Army Corps of Engineers
- Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife and others
State and local land (USGS PAD-US)
- State land
- County and city land
- Regional agency or district
- Land trust or conservancy
BLM roads and trails
Roads Managed for Public Motorized Use
Road
Primitive Road
Roads Managed for Limited Public Motorized Use
Road
Primitive Road
Trails Managed for Public Motorized Use
Trail
Trails Managed for Limited Public Motorized Use
- Trail
Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Map
Roads
Roads open to all Vehicles, Yearlong
Roads open to all Vehicles, Seasonal
Roads open to highway legal vehicles only, Yearlong
Roads open to highway legal vehicles only, Seasonal
Special Designation, Yearlong
Special Designation, Seasonal
Trails
Trails open to all vehicles, Yearlong
Trails open to all vehicles, Seasonal
Trails open to vehicles 50" or less in width, Yearlong
Trails open to vehicles 50" or less in width, Seasonal
Trails open to motorcycles, Yearlong
Trails open to motorcycles, Seasonal- Special Designation, Yearlong
Special Designation, Seasonal
Trails Open to Wheeled Vehicles Only < 50" in Width, Yearlong
Trails Open to Wheeled Vehicles Only < 50" or Less in Width, Seasonal
BLM Wilderness
Wilderness Area
Wilderness Study Area
BLM recreation sites
- Camping
- OHV area
- Trailhead
Gaps with no tint inside public land are private parcels, often old mining claims and homesteads. They are not open to the public.
Dashed clay lines on the base map are unpaved tracks from OpenStreetMap. They show what exists on the ground, not what is legal to drive.
Select any point to see who manages the land.
The map could not start in this browser.
It needs WebGL, which is turned off or unavailable here. You can still browse public land by state, or use the BLM’s own maps.
Boundaries are approximate and land status changes. This map is a planning aid, not a survey or a statement of access. Confirm routes, closures and camping rules with the managing office.
Camping near a town
No town by that name has three federal campgrounds within 30 miles. Try the county list below.
Every federal campground in Ohio
6 places
- Iron Ridge - Lake Vesuvius Forest Service · Wayne National Forest · Lawrence County 767 ftelevation 32sites 45 ftlongest rig ReserveRecreation.gov
- Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area group campground Forest Service · Wayne National Forest · Lawrence County 580 ftelevation 1site n/alongest rig ReserveRecreation.gov
- Mill Creek Camping (Berlin Lake) Army Corps · Berlin Lake · Mahoning County 1,039 ftelevation 297sites 78 ftlongest rig ReserveRecreation.gov
- Mohawk Dam Campground Army Corps · Mohawk Dam · Coshocton County 822 ftelevation n/asites n/alongest rig First comeor not listed
- North Branch Kokosing River Lake - Campground Army Corps · North Branch Kokosing River Lake · Knox County 1,174 ftelevation n/asites n/alongest rig First comeor not listed
- Oak Hill - Lake Vesuvius Forest Service · Wayne National Forest · Lawrence County 867 ftelevation 32sites 64 ftlongest rig ReserveRecreation.gov
Nothing matches those filters. Clear one and try again.
Camping rules worth knowing in Ohio
- State forest camping is designated sites and a digital permit
- Camping is permitted on state forest land only in areas provided for it. Family campgrounds are at Fernwood and Harrison, primitive horse camps at five forests, and walk-in camps sit on the Shawnee, Zaleski and Tar Hollow backpack trails. Since September 1, 2025 the campgrounds that use the Forestry Campsite Reservation system no longer offer walk-in sites, and every camper at those sites must hold a valid digital permit issued through the reservation system. Backpack camps take no reservations and hold a 10-person limit. Source 18
- There is no camping in Cuyahoga Valley National Park
- Ohio’s only national park does not offer camping within its boundary. The Park Service states that no camping is permitted in the national park and that backcountry camping and staying overnight in parking lots are both prohibited, and it lists nearby state park and private campgrounds instead. The park is fee-free, needs no reservation to enter and keeps most areas open 24 hours, so plan it as a day drive and sleep somewhere else. Source 32
Campground records: Recreation Information Database (Recreation.gov), read September 19, 2026. Elevations: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Fees, seasons and limits change; confirm with the managing office before you go.