On our way to this campground Nate stopped off at a few parts stores to see what the stock was for 16 spark plugs since the closest part store to the campground was 30 minutes. Of course, none of them in the area had 16 spark plugs in stock so we ordered them. Due to the distance from the campground, we decided it would be best to change them by the auto store just in case something went wrong. Surprise lol a spark plug broke off leaving the threads stuck in the engine block. Thankfully AutoZone had a loaner kit for removal but after looking at it and calling a friend from home that retired from Ford Nate found this loaner was for an older Ford engine and would not work on ours. There was also a Napa and Advance Auto within walking distance where Nate found a screw extractor kit that did the job. With great dread and caution Nate was able to get the rest out without any issue. Since this was such a job, we were not able to go exploring anymore of Hocking Hills, so we booked another night in hope of being able to.
We are up and running again today and are excited to hit the road. In the morning we went to Old Mans Cave. All the trails in Hocking Hills State Park are one way. The entire hike was gorgeous, but it felt like you were in a line at Disney due to the number of visitors today. Of course, I enjoyed this trail because there were many waterfalls along the trail. The first area we approached was a beautiful unnamed waterfall. The second area was Upper Falls, this was an even more impressive waterfall that fell among high cliffs under a small stone arch bridge. Next, we came upon Devils Bathtub this waterfall fell into a chamber, it appeared like it was swirling down the rocks. The trail lead atop an artistic concrete walkway with steps each held by its own concrete pilar and not attached to each other. The path lead thru a tunnel under a portion of the hill to another small waterfall. Finally, up some stairs to Old Mans Cave. It was a cave in the north wall of the main gorge. On the way out we stopped off at the gorge overlook bridge.
It was a little disappointing to see that after walking with all those large crowds the paths below were clear. Heading back to the parking lot they had a bird feeding area, Daisy was eager to leave, I just couldnt leave this area. Glad I hung in there because I was lucky enough to spot an American Goldfinch and get a good number of pictures up close.
After eating leftovers at the trailer, we hiked to Rock House. It was a little less crowded at this location. The descent to the cave was down many natural stone carved steps of varying heights which made for a fun journey. It was wet and slippery to make it even funnier. The Rock House cave was quite large in size with many windows into the lush green forest. The sandstone walls and floor were really smooth and had many letters carved into them, reminders of past visitors some of which had dated back to the late 1800s. Continuing on the path past the cave we discovered the bridge had been out of service due to a tree falling onto it deeming it unpassable, but many of us went down below where others
started a new path around and continued. The rest of the way back up was a steep incline with not much to see.
