Mohican State Park

On the ground

The gorge is the park's organizing feature. Clear Fork Gorge cuts into sandstone bedrock, creating steep cliff walls and bedrock outcroppings, carved by the erosional forces of glacial meltwaters from the Wisconsinan glaciers that ended their advance in the Mohican region more than 14,000 years ago. Two stone decks at the Clear Fork Gorge Scenic Overlook provide dramatic vistas over the Clear Fork of the Mohican State Scenic River, an area built during the 1930s and dedicated as a Registered National Natural Landmark. A plaque marking the Clearfork Gorge National Natural Landmark stands among the park's historic features, alongside a Covered Bridge, a Grist Mill, a Historic Cabin, and Pleasant Hill Dam. Trails follow the rim and drop into the gorge: the Gorge Overlook Trail runs 1.32 miles, the North Rim Trail runs 1.03 miles, and the Blue Trail runs 2.19 miles, while the Hemlock Gorge Trail extends 2.34 miles to the Swinging Bridge and the Covered Bridge.

History runs deeper than the stonework. The area was once hunting ground for the Delaware Native Americans, whose more famous warriors included Janacake, Bill Montour, Thomas Lyon, and James Smith, who was captured by the Native Americans and later adopted into their tribe. John Chapman, immortalized as Johnny Appleseed, frequented the region during the 1800s caring for his apple tree nurseries, and his name and a date carved into the wall of Lyons Falls were an attraction for years. For a longer ride, the Mohican Mountain Bike Trail is mapped at 19.51 miles, and the park describes it as the 25-mile EPIC Mohican Mountain Bike Trail, which loops the gorge and passes through both the state park and state forest.