SOUTH BLOOMINGVILLE, OHIO: Conkle's Hollow is not big, and it's not well-known.

But, to me, it is the No. 1 outdoor destination in Ohio — hands down.

Conkle's Hollow in southeast Ohio is a spectacular sandstone gorge with sheer cliffs that rise 200 feet. It is as narrow as 100 feet in places.

Depending on the season, you may see waterfalls tumbling over the striking cliffs, spectacular spring wildflowers, icicles and super-big views above the north-south canyon.

It is a wild, rugged and breath-taking place that somehow seems totally disconnected from suburbanized Ohio. Visitors look around and ask: Am I really in Ohio?

Some consider hemlock-lined Conkle's Hollow to be part of nearby Hocking Hills State Park, but the 87-acre tract is actually a state nature preserve. It is on Big Pine Road just off state Route 374 in Hocking County.

The preserve, about 31/2 hours from Akron, gets about 200,000 visitors a year. You are likely to encounter a few hikers but not crowds.

It is 12 miles south of Logan in Benton and Laurel townships and about three miles from the popular Old Man's Cave area of the state park.

The canyon — reportedly one of the deepest in Ohio— was named for German immigrant W.J. Conkle, who left his name and the year 1797 on the west well of the canyon and settled nearby.

It was bought by the state in 1925 and was dedicated as a nature preserve in 1977. It was once part of the state park.

There are two trails at Conkle's Hollow: a 21/2-mile trail that circles the gorge on top of the cliffs, and a more subdued 1-mile trail on the valley floor.

The up-high Upper Rim Trail offers stellar overlooks providing sweeping vistas of Hocking Hills country.

It begins with a steep climb and ends with a downhill hike. But most of the Rim Trail is flat, although there are a few dips.

It's a hike with some risk. There are no guardrails, and it's not a place for small children — or anyone unsteady on rock or nervous about high places. Bare rocks can be wet, loose and slippery. Be careful.

The best views at Conkle's Hollow are from the rock ledges at the canyon edge on the east side of the Upper Rim Trail.

At the northern end of the canyon, the Upper Rim Trail hikers get a good look at a 95-
foot waterfall that is not visible from below.

The cliffs of Black Hand sandstone are imposing. They range in color from grays and tans to buffs, creams and oranges.

The stone at the top and bottom of the cliffs is harder and more cemented together. The center stone is softer and more apt to erode. It looks as if scoops have been removed from the canyon walls. Some of the cliffs are pocked with caves, recesses and dramatic overhangs.

The rock was deposited 350 million years ago as sediment at the bottom of the ocean that then covered Ohio.

Some boulders have tumbled from the cliffs to the bottom of the gorge and into the stream, an unnamed tributary of Big Pine Creek.

The west side of the loop trail is farther from the cliffs, but it offers looks down into three breathtaking side canyons.

The west side is wetter, cooler and shadier.

Some say the hollow is at its best when the leaves are changing colors in the fall.

I would opt to hike the Upper Rim Trail from late fall to early spring, when the leaves are not on the trees. That would enable hikers to really get a glimpse of what's in the gorge.

Lower Gorge Trail

On the down-low Lower Gorge Trail, you start at the open end of the canyon.

You hike along an easy-to-follow trail through the hardwoods, ferns and wildflowers. At first, the cliffs are not visible through the vegetation.

The canyon then narrows and the walls get closer. The trail gets a little tougher, with roots, rocks and logs, but most hikers can handle it.

It's a half-mile to the canyon's dead-end — with two waterfalls, sheer cliffs and dramatic overhangs. One waterfall, a 25-footer, is visible from the lower trail.

It is a handicapped-accessible trail for 85 percent of its length.

A short side trail goes to Diagonal Cave and a nearby waterfall along the canyon's east wall.

Then you hike out the way you came in on the Lower Gorge Trail. There are no connecting trails, and visitors are directed to stay on the trail. Climbing waterfalls and cliffs is illegal and dangerous.

Habitats at gorge

The gorge features three habitats: hickories, sycamores and birches along the stream; hemlocks, oaks, beeches and pines on the canyon walls; and scrub pines atop the gorge where the soils are thin, rocky and acidic. It is very dry atop Conkle's Hollow compared with the lush and well-shaded inner canyon

Hemlocks, lots of ferns, lichens and mosses give Conkle's Hollow a bright green color.

The lower temperatures in the canyon allow unusual plant species to thrive.

Winter can also produce frozen waterfalls in the heart of the gorge. Very cool.

Some say the spirit of pioneer Conkle still roams the canyon. Others say Shawnee Indian raiders may have buried in the gorge silver seized from early settlers. The raiders were reportedly captured and hanged shortly after they buried the silver.

Rock climbing, rappelling

Hours: dawn to dusk daily.

Amenities are few: restrooms, picnic tables, a parking lot and a few informational displays.

Just around the corner from Conkle's Hollow, you will find a rock climbing and rappelling area in Hocking State Forest.

That 99-acre tract, one of two state-owned climbing areas in Ohio, lies one mile east of the state nature preserve on Big Pine Road. The area gets as many as 900 climbers a month.

The climbing area features about one mile of cliffs up to 120 feet tall, along with fallen house-sized boulders, cracks, chimneys and overhangs.

An outfitter, Earth-Water-Rock: Outdoor Adventures Ltd., offers guided climbs. Contact the company at P.O. Box 523, Athens, OH 45719, 740-664-5220, http://www.ewroutdoors.com.

The Hocking Hills area has become an Ohio tourist hot spot. It is filled with hundreds of rental cabins, many with hot tubs and other amenities.

Contact information

For more information, contact the Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves, 2045 Morse Road, Suite F1, Columbus, OH 43229, 614-265-6453 or 740-653-2541. You can also check http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/dnap.

You can contact Hocking Hills State Park at 19852 State Route 664 South, Logan, OH 43138, 740-385-6842. The Web site is http://www.dnr.state.oh.us.

You can contact the Hocking State Forest at 19275 State Route 374, Rockbridge, OH 43149, 877-247-8733.

For tourist information, check with the Hocking Hills Tourism Association at 13178 State Route 664 South, Logan, OH 43138, 740-385-9706 or 800-HOCKING. The Web site is http://www.1800hocking.com.
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