On The Move to West Branch State Park

Hi, friends! 

I’m starting a series of blog posts here with accompanying YouTube clips sharing how I explore and fuel healthy adventures to each of Ohio’s 75 state parks. Hiking, climbing, paddling, and exploring takes a LOT of energy, and if you fuel up the right way, you’ll be set to maximize your journey now and prevent injury, stall muscle burnout, and sustain your energy levels for the long run! Adventure awaits!

Adventure: West Branch State Park

Location: Ravenna, OH – Portage County

Passport Region: Northeast

Season Visited: Summer

Length of Stay: Two Days

Features Available from Ohio Department of Natural Resources Park Passport: accessible facilities, biking, boating, camping, disc golf, dog park, fishing, fishing pier, hiking, horseback riding, hunting, launch/ramp, lodge, marina/dock, paddling, pet friendly, picnicking, playground, shelter house, swimming area, wildlife watching, winter activities 

About West Branch State Park

Like many other lakes and state parks in the area, the West Branch area contains many boggy marsh areas that were formed as a result of glacier activity many years ago. The Michael J. Kirwin Reservoir constructed consists of a 2,650 acre body of water over seven miles long. Boats with unlimited horsepower are permitted and many boating rental types are available, but there are several areas of the lake, including 300 feet from all shorelines, that are designated “no wake” zones. This means there is plenty of safe opportunity for swimming, gentle paddling, fishing, and more. The rest of the park is made up of over 5,300 acres of meadows and woodlands. Disc golf, horseback riding, snow mobiles, and more activities can be found here!

The campground has 103 sites, some of which are ADA accessible and some that are also near the shorelines and the camp-designated beach and boat launch areas. The bathroom and shower houses that I experienced were impeccably clean and well kept. I was very impressed and highly recommend! My only camp mishap was pitching my tent overtop a mole’s exit hole on night one…ask me for that story!

My Adventures & Recommendations

For video details of my trip, watch the adventure here!

Adventure: Evening SUP from the “camp only” launch ramp accessible in the campground. I saw deer, a turtle, some fish, and had an incredibly serene and beautiful welcome to the park during this late afternoon paddle.

Recommendation: If you have any kind of water craft (kayak, SUP, boat) you can “beach” it in this area to swim!

Adventure: Morning/early afternoon hike on the 11.1 mile Mountain Bike Trail. I started on the trail around 9:30am and finished just before 2:30pm, with a quick break for lunch in the middle. The lake views, fir grove scents, and wildlife watching were awesome! However, being a mountain biking trail, the path was generally narrow, rocky/root-filled for biking challenges, and did not allow for many spots to rest or eat lunch with a view. The Quarry Trail segment, which is optional on this loop, left my ankles angry with me after forcing the to handle so much unstable, rocky ground. I don’t regret it though because there were some cool sights to see, including a groundhog!

Recommendation: The views of the reservoir are beautiful, so I’d recommend trying to stop for a filling snack or early lunch before moving toward the south half of the trail, or doing the trail backward with the north half second. There were a couple of places where it was possible to climb down onto the beach, away from the trail to take a break. The Quarry Trail segment as also VERY challenging on the ankles and came with some annoying buzzing insects, so only attempt this section of the hike if you’re feeling powerful and are maybe equipped with bug spray. All the signs say that bikers should only attempt this segment if it is dry and they are experienced. It was even challenging on two feet!

Adventure: Afternoon SUP on the Michael J. Kirwin Reservoir’s large “no wake zone” area. I spent a couple of hours alternating between paddling around and floating blissfully with a book on the reservoir. While there is a large, unlimited horsepower section of the lake for all kinds of water skiing, tubing, and speed boat fun, there is another huge section that is dedicated to calm waters, which is great for anchoring a boat for swimming or for paddlers who don’t want the waves from the boats to challenge them. 

Recommendation: Definitely spend some time on the Michael J. Kirwin Reservoir, no matter what kind of water craft you rent or own! There is something for everyone and the views are astounding.

Adventure: Morning hike on the state park trails, looping together for 3.1 miles. There are four distinct trails on the state park’s hiking plaques just outside of the campground, but if you look up the West Branch State Park North Loop, you can see that it is easy to connect them all together for a longer loop. The Deer Run Trail overlaps with a portion of the disc golf course (which I’ve never seen wind through a forested area and next to a lake before!) so if you’re hiking it during busy daylight hours, watch out for flying discs! 

Recommendation: The Club Moss and Wild Black Cherry Trails wind along the lake and through some beautiful forest areas. Since none of the areas hikes change much in elevation, these two trails would make for a gorgeous, peaceful morning walk with a travel mug of coffee to stretch your legs and catch some awesome lake views. You can choose your mileage – there is an option to cut back to the road if you only want to do the 1-mile Club Moss Trail and skip the Wild Black Cherry loop.

How I Fueled My Adventures

An overview of my meal plan for the weekend is shown below. There are more items I would have loved to try out, but there’s always next time! Each meal was thought out with both nutrition and ease in mind. There are a balance of carbs, fats, and protein in each, as well as a mix of food groups to ensure a variety of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Nothing is worse than having digestive upset ruin your vacation because of a major shift in food choices, right?!

Prepping ahead of time is such a huge time AND space saver. Foil packets and pre-cooked, frozen entrees are easy to throw together ahead of time and save you the need to bring extra utensils and seasonings, save dish washing at the campsite, and save on trash build up as well. The salmon could be swapped out for another fish, as it was really the one item that increased the total cost of the food for the weekend, but man was it delicious!

While it was still very tasty, my fatal mistake with the blueberry cobbler was forcing too many biscuits in the tin with the blueberries. As a result, most of the blueberries ended up bubbling up and dripping out of the tin and into the fire before the biscuits cooked all the way through. Unfortunately, I didn’t eat more than one serving here. In the future, I would prepare to bring just a few biscuits in a smaller tin with less berries. The concept was awesome though, and if you’re preparing for a group or a whole family, an entire tin of biscuits would be great! Just make sure they’re spread out a bit in a larger tin.

In the mornings, I thoroughly enjoy my campsite coffee – if only I had a good spot for my hammock here! Quality hammock time was the one thing missing from my adventures. In the summer, I enjoy iced and cold brew coffees. All I did for this weekend was pre-prepare some cold brew concentrate by mixing 12oz in a jar with some creamer and throwing it in the cooler. Come morning, I added half of the solution to my yeti, stirred in 6oz of fresh water and a few ice cubes, and was ready to enjoy.

I kept the snacks and hiking food simple here. The goal was a balance of nutrients, quick fuel, and a variety of vitamins. Plus hydration. Always hydration. You can see the two gallon dispenser I brought with me to the campsite to ensure a large supply for the warm weekend in the sun! Peanut butter on whole wheat bread, a banana, and homemade peanut butter & walnut oat bars were simple to carry in my hiking backpack and filled that need. The orange was a refreshing snack afterward!

The pizza log was the most exciting meal attempt of the weekend, as several of my friends would attest. I saw this option on the web and knew I had to give it a try. Using premade dough, you simply add your sauce and desired toppings, and then roll up like a pumpkin roll (I might be ready for Autumn) and pinch the ends and seams up so that it forms a log shape. This gets rolled into a greased foil covering that is ready to throw over or into the fire coals for cooking! I froze it ahead of time, as well as the breakfast burritos, so that they would help keep things in the cooler chilled while defrosting for use when ready.

Unfortunately I left the pizza log in the fire for a bit too long, which resulted in the outer layer of crust charring and sealing against the foil. However, the inside layers were still cooked perfectly and eaten just as well in a deconstructed format with a fork. I would definitely recommend this as a meal option for future campers.

State Park Rating: 9.5/10

Highlights: Hiking on several trails that bordered the lake, you were able to be both immersed in the woods and experience the views of the water at the same time. I loved these trails. Second highlight was floating on my paddleboard on the lake. I love the immense “no wake zone” that allows for more peaceful recreation away from the excitement and waves of the water sport seekers. The entire park is absolutely gorgeous. I would love to see the colors in the fall and the activities available in the winter snow!

P.S. - After long days full of activity, don’t forget to stretch out!! Preserve your joints and muscles for the long run!

Namaste-

JMJ