Fly In, Camp Out in Ohio
Noble County Airport (I10), Caldwell, Ohio — September 2020
Noble County Airport is located within Ohio’s Wolf Run State Park and has a fly-in camp area. We learned about it from FunPlacesToFly.com when we were looking for stopovers on our trip to Kansas City. That adventure fell through when we discovered our pitot static system full of water on the morning of our planned departure. Nonetheless, a few weeks later, once the plane was fixed, we decided to fly out to Noble County to check it out.
We had success reaching the airport on Facebook Messenger to confirm that the airport and campground were open. We were instructed to park in the grass by the trailhead for the campground. The ground was firm and the grass was mowed, but we didn’t see any tie down rings or ropes. We added a claw to our ever-running airplane gear wish list.
As we headed up the campground trail into the woods, we came to a “Pilot Registration” sign and two gear carts from the Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF). Maybe 200 yards in, when we could no longer see the runway, we came upon the first camping area: a large grassy clearing with a few picnic tables and fire rings. This was all that we had seen online of the camping area; we didn’t know that there was more.
From the clearing, a path continued into the woods again and came to a second campsite nestled in the trees and overlooking Wolf Run Lake, with two picnic tables and a fire ring. It was beautiful. We set up camp there.
There was probably room for a handful of tents in relatively close proximity, but we were lucky to have the entire fly-in camp area to ourselves. In fact, we never saw another plane come in the entire time we were there.
From the campsite, there was a path to the lake shore and a picnic table precariously at the edge. We had breakfast there, watching early morning boaters fish.
The fly-in campsites were across the way from Wolf Run State Park’s main campground. Through the trees, we could see campfires across the water as dusk fell. Nonetheless, our site felt surprisingly remote. We could hear a nearby highway intermittently, but this did not bother us. The spot was lovely, peaceful, and serene. We even heard a Barred Owl at night. (Who cooks for you? Who cooks for y’awll?)
On the subject of wildlife: As we headed to bed, we realized that we had not planned well for nighttime food storage. We had only brought a soft-sided cooler and a few reusable grocery bags to store our leftovers and breakfast. We joked about this would be the time we’d finally see a bear. It was a little less funny after some quick Googling revealed that there actually was a growing black bear population in the “wooded, Eastern half of Ohio.” Fortunately, no run-ins this trip (and we did manage to hang our food).
In addition to camping, Wolf Run State Park offered hiking, fishing, boating, and camping. We didn’t make it over to the main part of the park. It’s about a four mile walk from the airport around the lake to the park office using the roads. If there’s a trail, we didn’t see it.
We were advised by the airport to “prepare for primitive camping.” There were two pit toilets at the fly-in campground; both marked as closed. The FBO across the runway was accessible 24/7 with a door code and had restrooms (but no showers). The runway was 3,811 x 65 ft in fair condition, we didn’t see tiedowns anywhere on the ramp, and the airport did not sell fuel.
Our review: This place is a gem.
Trip Gear Hero: Sun Shower and Campsuds biodegradable soap — we were able to snuggle up nice and clean.
