Culture
Pickaway Park Offers Respite from Everyday Life
By: Athens Messenger staff reports
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Go Ohio Valley is a free app produced by Adams Publishing Group of Ohio and presents an avenue to explore numerous categories and activities in the region. This week’s featured listing features the A.W. Marion State Park in Pickaway County.
With camping season in full swing, those who love the outdoors are looking for hideaways to spend short vacations or weekends away from the rush of the crowd. In Pickaway County, that place is A.W. Marion State Park and Hargus Lake.
A.W. Marion State Park offers 309 acres of woodlands and water with a variety of recreational activities available year-round.
It is located in the till plain of eastern Ohio. The till plain is flat or rolling hills that has very fertile soil and is the result of the glaciers that covered America more than 10,000 years ago. Hargus Creek goes through the center of the park. The Adena settled here 2,000 years ago because of the fertile soil. In 1948, the Division of Parks and Recreation dammed up the Hargus Creek with an earthen dam. In 1962, the park was renamed the A. W. Marion State Park in honor of the first director of the Department of Natural Resources, who was a Pickaway County native.
The main feature of the park is the 145-acre Hargus Lake, which allows the use of boats with electric motors as well as row boats and paddle boats which are available for rent.
Hunting and fishing are permitted with a valid Ohio license, and while the lake offers no swimming beach, boaters may swim off of their boats in designated areas.
If you aren’t a boater, Hargus Lake Trail offers five miles of access to the entire shoreline of the lake, and Squawroot Trail, beginning at the campground, offers one mile of scenic terrain. Both trails are open for year-round use and are popular with hikers and trail runners alike.
Playground is available at the park and in the adjoining campground as well. Volleyball nets, basketball courts and horseshoe courts are also available for campers. Games and sporting equipment are available at the camp office for use by registered campers, and lake access for dogs offers a place for pets to enjoy.
The park is located at 7317 Warner-Huffer Rd., Circleville. More information can be found at www.PickawayCountyParks.org or parks.ohiodnr.gov/awmarion or by calling 740-474-3636.