Dillon State Park Campground / Campground in Ohio
"I read and walked for miles at night along the beach, writing bad blank verse and searching endlessly for someone wonderful who would step out of the darkness and change my life. It never crossed my mind that that person could be me." ~ Anna Quindlen
Dillon State Park consists of 2,285 acres. It is a scenic State Park that provides a lot of recreational activities for everyone in the family. Dillon State Park has a campground, cottages, a beach, tennis courts, hiking trails, boating, fishing, and more.
The Ohio State Park/Campground
10 Full hookup sites
165 electric sites
12 Non-Electric
20 Equestrian Site (Non-Electric)
26 Cabins (5 pet friendly)
Shower Houses
Flush Toilets
Laundromat
Dump Station
Playgrounds
Ball Courts
Gaga Ball
Disc Golf
Free WiFi at Camp Store
Water (seasonal)
Picnic Tables
Fire Rings
Dumpsters
General Store
Beach
Natural trails
Boating
Fishing
Campground is open year round
Spotty cell service
Reservations may be made up to six months in advance online at ohiostateparks.gov or by calling (866) 644-6727.
RV/Camper/Tent Campsites
Campsites can be reserved on the ODNR website or by calling 866-644-6727. There are full-hookup, electric and non-electric sites.
Fire rings
Picnic tables
Flush toilets
Showers
Dump station
Pets are permitted
Most campsites at Dillon State Park Campground have very little shade or privacy. If you enjoy a wooded lot, make sure you use google maps to find the best site.
There are 3 separate areas for RVs, campers, and tents. There are 2 separate cabin areas. So, you do not have every vehicle that comes into the campground driving by you.
Pulling into the campground we pulled up to the check in shack. There was a Santa sitting in the window. It said you had to check in at the camp store, so you have to turn back around and go to the store. But the store was closed. So, we just drove in and found our spot.
If you rented a cabin, you must check in at the camp store also. We would recommend calling to see when someone will be in the store. Once checked in, you must get back out on Dillon Hills Drive and drive down the road to the cabins. The cabins and trailer parks are completely separate.
Hiking
There are quite a few natural hiking trails. The equestrian trails were not well kept and there was a lot of trash. The ones we encountered were all easy to moderate. The trails are poorly marked. We would be walking on one trail to find ourselves on a completely different trail the next moment. When we were ready to return, we just started making guesses at which trials to take.
We did not get to do much hiking since a huge storm rolled in. The storm lasted a long time and took out the power to the campground. The next morning the power was restored to our section of the campground. But the other areas still did not have power.
Below are the Dillon State Park Hiking Trails.
Black Locust Paved Loop .5 Mile
Blackberry Ridge Trail .6 Mile
Eagle Ridge Loop .8 Mile
King Ridge Loop 1 Mile
Licking Bend Trail 4.4 Miles
Ruffed Grouse Loop .6 Mile
The Big Loop 1 Mile
Food
The Dillon State Park Campground does not have a restaurant. The camp store does have ice cream and candy available.
Since our campsite didn’t have electricity, we were unable to make dinner. On our way to the campground, we passed a pizza shop. We gave them a call and they delivered to the campground. And the food was amazing! Especially the garlic bread strips. As I am sitting here writing this, I am craving some more. If you are planning on taking a trip to Dillon State Park Campground, we highly recommend Buckeye Piez.
Recreational Area / Beach at Dillon State Park
The beach at Dillon State Park Campground was large and well kept. We did not see any trash laying around at all. Even though the temperatures were into the 90s, there were only a couple families enjoying the beach. It was very quiet and peaceful.
The beach parking lot was huge. Other amenities at the beach include:
Playground
Tennis Courts
Basketball Courts
Volleyball Courts
Gaga Ball
Soccer Field
Racquetball
Kiddie Pool
Shelter House
Restrooms
Other Recreational Activities
The fun at Dillon State Park Campground doesn’t stop at the beach area. You can also spend time at the Archery Range (bring your own equipment) during the day.
Or play disc golf on the Woodchuck Ridge Disc Golf Course.
Are you into astronomy? At night, set up your telescope on the Skydeck.
And if there is snow, you can bring your own sleds and have fun sliding down the large sledding hill.
Birding
When we visited Dillon State Park Campground it was hot! And there was a bad storm that made its way through. So, we did not get to do much birding. eBird shows that there have been 216 species observed at the park.
When we visited the Dillon State Park Campground and Beach are spotted:
Our Experience at Dillon State Park Campground
Dillon State Park was a very nice campground. We were unable to enjoy everything at the park due to the storm.
The storm knocked out the electricity at the park. From what we heard; the park has a lot of electrical problems. If you have a camper, we would definitely recommend taking a generator. We use the Generac 7129 GP3000i Inverter Generator. It is quiet, compact, and lightweight (as generators go).
The campground sites were spacious. However, they didn’t have much privacy. Since the sites were open, you could hear everyone around you. Our neighbors were extremely loud and partied throughout the night. There were also a lot of kids running around on the roads.
As for the cell service, it was spotty. Since we had the booster, we were able to get pretty good Verizon service at the camp site.
The Ohio State Park Campground was very clean. But the equestrian trails did have trash laying around.
Additional Notes:
The trailer pads in the main camping areas are blacktop. The pads in the Horse Campground are stone.
The sites are fairly level.
The roads in the campground are a decent width. However, there were a lot of vehicles parked on the side of the road because they were not supposed to park in the grass. This made it a little tight.
Roads are blacktop.
The campground was well-kept.
Each campsite had a picnic table and fire ring.
There were 3 shower houses located throughout the main campground. The equestrian campground had a bathroom.
The beach area can be reached by walking the hiking trails. However, it would be a long walk. Especially since the trails are hard to navigate.
Most of the camp sites have very little shade.
Dillon State Park / Campground in Nashport Ohio
Make a Reservation at:
What You Can Expect at Dillon State Park Campground
Please note that Ohio Campground trail rules and regulations can change at any time. The following information was in effect for Dillon State Park Campground as of February 2022.
Flush toilets.
There are mountain bike trails at Dillon State Park Campground.
We didn't see many birds. However, eBird says it is a birding hotspot.
We saw one small footbridge.
Concealed carry is permitted.
Dogs are allowed in campground and on trails. They are not permitted on the beach.
Trail surfaces are mostly natural. The trails have some elevation changes. The trails are moderate.
Campground roads and pads are blacktop.
Each lot has a picnic table and fire ring.
There are playgrounds located near all the bathhouses. There is also a large playground located at the beach area.
There were very few benches.
A lot of shade on the trails. Very little shade in the campground.
There is 1 large shelter house located near the beach.
The natural trails are grassy, and they can be muddy. The trails are marked; however, the markings make little sense. We ran into other hikers that had no clue how to follow the trail maps.
There are dumpsters located throughout the campground.
Dillon Dam
There are ADA parking spots available throughout the park. There are 2 ADA complaint campsites and at least 1 ADA compliant cottages. Call and ask for "Accessible" when making reservations.
