This past weekend we visited the Fallsville Wildlife Area in Highland County. The wildlife area contains a stream valley with a large waterfall. After recent rains it was running quite well. The wildlife area and the falls are named after the town of Fallsville, OH. The town is long gone, but the name lives on.
We parked off of Careytown Rd. about a 1/4 mile south of the local ODNR Wildlife Area Headquarters. A small dirt road is shown on maps as Township Road 432. The road widens into a parking area, then leads off into the woods. However, just beyond the parking you have to follow the road on foot because there is a barrier preventing vehicles from going farther.
After parking we walked down the road and entered the woods. A fishing pond appeared on our right and the path narrowed and continued on to the right. At times the trail was wet and muddy. We could hear the roar of water in the distance — a good sign. About a half mile from the parking lot, we found ourselves looking down on Clear Creek plummeting over a waterfall into a steep valley below. We spent some time taking photos and then returned to our car to drive 40 minutes to our next destination; Fort Hill, for some more hiking.
Fallsville Wildlife Area is a 1,382 acre site primarily intended for public hunting and fishing. It is 30% wooded and contains a number of stocked fishing ponds and a old quarry and with largemouth bass and bluegill. It also features a shotgun range and a dog training area.
Additional information
- TrekOhio: Highland County Parks & Preserves — this is the county where the Fallsville Wilderness Area is located. On this page you’ll find links to the official site, as well as information on nearby sites.
- TrekOhio: Fort Hill
- TrekOhio: Waterfalls!!! — We provide information on waterfalls all around Ohio.
Location
Parking: Intersection of Careytown Rd / TR-432, New Vienna, OH
Geo-coordinates of Waterfall: 39.286222, -83.635207
Nearby Landmark: ODNR Wildlife Area HQ: 10221 Careytown Road, New Vienna, OH 45159
More on Waterfalls
Cuyahoga Valley National Park: Brandywine Falls
Honey Run Highlands Park
Beach City Wildlife Area: Dundee Falls
Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve: Robinson Falls
First I’ve only been to Fallsville Falls once after an very heavy week of rain. The water along the edge of the falls was very high and I learned first hand that moss that doesn’t get wet very often is very slippery, as I fell and broke my arm, before even taking my first shots, but I was able to get 40+ shots. The path to the falls is a very easy hike. The path down to water level is a little tricky, but not too bad if you go downstream from the falls a little ways, then hike back up along the bank.
Here are a few pictures:
https://mjlight.smugmug.com/Waterfalls/Fallsville-Falls-Ohio/i-qVVwsHC
Mike, I checked out your photos; they’re very nice! I was sorry to read that you slipped and broke your arm. I’m amazed that you were able to carry on with your plan to photograph the falls. I’m pretty sure that I would have been ready to go home at that point.
Great place , I live just down the road and visit often . When it is not so muddy it is great to visit the bottom of the falls as well as the top , When the water is low you can walk right under them . I have great photos taken from the bottom standing in the creek looking straight on . I cant post here or I would share . really enjoying your posts .
Rae
Rae,
Thanks for you kind words about our site. 🙂 I would be interested in seeing your photos. If you’ve already uploaded them some place, you could send a link to the photo (or album). Or you could send them to our gmail account. Our username is trekohioblog.