Wayne National Forest

Wayne National Forest
U.S. National Forest
Wayne National Forest sign
Named for: Anthony Wayne
Country	United States
State	Ohio
Counties	Athens, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Monroe, Morgan, Noble, Perry, Scioto, Vinton, Washington
Ranger Districts	Athens (Athens Unit), Athens (Marietta Unit), Ironton
Coordinates
Highest point	Knob near Oliver Run
- location	east of Antioch, Ohio
- elevation	1,368 ft (417 m)
- coordinates
Lowest point	Ohio River
- location	north of Millersport, Ohio
- elevation	523 ft (159.4 m)
- coordinates
Area	240,101 acres (97,165 ha)
- Proclamation Boundary	832,147 acres (336,758 ha)
Established	December 1992
- Wayne Purchase Unit	November 1934
- Wayne-Hoosier PU	December 1949
- Wayne-Hoosier NF	September 1951
Owner	US Forest Service
IUCN category	VI - Managed Resource Protected Area
Headquarters	Nelsonville, Ohio
Location of Wayne National Forest Location of Wayne National Forest
Wikimedia Commons: Wayne National Forest
Website: Wayne National Forest

The Wayne National Forest is located in the south-eastern part of the US state of Ohio, in the Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau. It is the only national forest in Ohio. Forest headquarters are located between The Plains and Nelsonville, Ohio, on US Route 33, overlooking the Hocking River.

The originally forested land was cleared for agricultural and lumbering use in the late 18th and 19th century, but years of poor timbering and agricultural practices led to severe erosion and poor soil composition. The Wayne National Forest was started as part of a reforestation program.

The forest comprises three administrative and purchase units: Athens, Marietta, and Ironton. Many of the lands included in the forest are former coal-mining lands, and much of this land is owned by the federal government without the mineral rights, those having been retained by former owners.

As of January 2012, the forest has 240,101 acres (972 km²) in federal ownership within a proclamation boundary of 832,147 acres (3,368 km²).

• The Athens Unit is located in Athens, Hocking, Morgan, Perry, and Vinton Counties, and includes 67,224 acres (272 km²) as of 2002. It features the Wildcat Hollow Trail, a hiking trail just northeast of Burr Oak State Park in Morgan County; the Stone Church Horse Trail in Perry County; the Utah Ridge Recreation Area in Athens County, and the Dorr Run ATV Trails in Hocking County.
• The Marietta Unit is located in Monroe, Noble and Washington Counties, and includes 63,381 acres (256 km²) as of 2002, with over half of the total being within Washington County.
• The Ironton Unit is located in Gallia, Jackson, Lawrence and Scioto Counties, and includes 99,049 acres (401 km²) as of 2002, with over two-thirds of the total being within Lawrence County.

The area of Ohio included within the Forest is based on late Paleozoic geology, heavy in sandstones and shales, including redbeds, with many coal beds. The topography is typically very rugged, with elevation changes typically in the 200–400-foot range.

The North Country Trail passes through several areas of the Wayne, in which it is coincident with the Buckeye Trail and the American Discovery Trail.

External links

• Wayne National Forest Official Website
• A Forest Returns: The Success Story of Ohio's Only National Forest –- oral history on the beginnings of the Wayne.
• Economic Analysis of the 2006 Wayne National Forest Plan – a critical analysis of future USFS plans for the Wayne