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Great Seal State Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 574 Google reviews · Running trail in Chillicothe, Ohio · Posted hours
Runner's snapshot
- Surface
- Mixed
- Loop distance
- 23 mi
- Shape
- Loop
- Shade
- Not reported
- Access
- Posted hours
Confirmed from Great Seal State Park's own listing, the park or land manager's website, and runner reviews. Blank cells mean we could not verify that fact — we would rather say "not reported" than invent one. There is no Easy / Moderate / Hard rating on this page on purpose: a one-word difficulty score tells you nothing about whether a trail suits your run. Surface, distance, shade and hours do.
1,862-acre green area with biking, hiking & equestrian trails, plus campsites, hunting spots & more.
What runners say about Great Seal State Park
“pit toilets are ok, not my favorite, but ok - if you keep them clean and supplied with hand sanitizer.”
“In addition to stunning views of the surrounding area there is a wonderful memorial to honor lives lost, sacrifices made, and bravery during the pandemic.”
Great park for a hike, with beautiful scenery and a very cute storybook trail, which I'm sure is great for the little ones (me and my friend, however, are both sixteen years old, but its still cute!) Has a nice little park too. Would one hundred percent recommend!
This is one of the more challenging hikes close to Columbus. The ridge trail has some decent elevation, and there's 25 miles of trails! The downside is the trails are poorly marked, and don't coincide with the maps, so if you do a loop trail there's a risk of getting lost.
Beautiful state park. Miles and Miles of hiking and mountain biking trails. Much more elevation than you would expect from the area. The campground was very well kept. No electricity and a simple outhouse but a great camping experience. Water available by the pavilion.
The hills in Ohio are gorgeous. I hiked the Grouse trail and Split Rock trail. The trails were well marked and maintained. The trails were beautiful with a lot of hills and ravines.
Trail conditions & character
“In addition to stunning views of the surrounding area there is a wonderful memorial to honor lives lost, sacrifices made, and bravery during the pandemic.”
“The rolling wooded hills of the park are said to be the inspiration for the Great Seal of the state.”
“The downside is the trails are poorly marked, and don't coincide with the maps, so if you do a loop trail there's a risk of getting lost.”
“The park offers several hiking trails including a Storybook Trail near the campground the Sugarloaf Mountain trailhead is located within the park as well.”
“The ridge trail has some decent elevation, and there's 25 miles of trails!”
Plan your run at Great Seal State Park
The practical stuff
- AccessPosted hours — posted hours below; park gates sometimes close earlier than the listing says
- SurfaceMixed — more than one surface along the route, so check the segment you plan to run
- Loop distance23 mi back to where you parked. Long enough for a real long run.
- ShadeNot reported. Assume some of it is exposed and carry water in summer.
- At the trailheadparking, restrooms — reported by runners
- Trail mapOfficial trail map
- Websiteohiodnr.gov
- Phone(740) 887-4818
- Social Instagram · Facebook
Hours
| Monday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Tuesday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Wednesday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Thursday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Friday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Saturday | 6 AM–11 PM |
| Sunday | 6 AM–11 PM |
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