Coshocton+County+Birding+Drive

=Ohio Birding Drives= Ohio Birding Drives are routes for birding trips which can be accomplished in one day, stopping to walk and bird at various eBird hotspots. For each birding drive, a Google map is provided with the route and suggested stops at eBird hotspots. You may save the link to the Google map on your smartphone or tablet, or print a copy on paper to take with you. Links are provided with information about each eBird hotspot. Follow those links for more information about birding each location.
 * =Birding in Ohio=

Coshocton County
=Coshocton County Birding Drive= Click on the hotspot names below to view the page about that hotspot in a new tab or window. You can click on the thumbnail maps below to view a larger version in a new window or tab.

Coshocton County is one of Ohio's "under-birded" counties (fewer than 1000 eBird checklists). This Birding Drive explores eBird hotspots in the county. When you submit checklists here you help to add to the data about birds in this region of Ohio.

@Willis Creek Pond
Township Highway 145 Coshocton, Ohio 43812

Willis Creek Pond is on Township Highway 145 southwest of Coshocton and 4 miles south of Plainfield. From Plainfield take OH-93 south for 3 miles. Turn right on Township Highway 145. Willis Creek Pond is 1 mile ahead on the right side of the road.

@Simco Wildlife Area
Coshocton, Ohio 43812

From Willis Creek Pond, drive west on Township Highway 145 for 3.8 miles. Township Hwy 145 turns slightly left and becomes Tyson Road. Turn right onto OH-83 and drive north for 4 miles. Turn right onto township Highway 280. Drive 1.4 miles to Simco Wildlife Area.

Simco Wildlife Area lies in the southeastern corner of Coshocton County, approximately 3 miles south of the town of Coshocton. Access to the area may be gained from OH-83 and Township Road 280, which runs east-west through the area.

Over 97 percent of the land (837.4 acres) is forested. The remaining three percent (20.5 acres) is wetlands and ponds. The land comprising Simco has undergone many changes. Originally most of the area was forestland. In the late 1960s, it was strip mined. Today most of the land has reverted to forestland. From Simco Wildlife Area webpage

Lake Park
23253 OH-83 North Coshocton, Ohio 43812

From Simco Wildlife Area, return to OH-83 via Township Highway 280. Turn right on OH-83 and follow OH-83 for 10 miles. Lake Park will be on OH-83 on the left.

Lake Park offers a paved walking and bicycle "Towpath" which follows the original path of the Ohio Erie Canal towpath, connecting Lake Park with the historic Roscoe Village and the Monticello III canal boat ride. Walkers enjoy shaded paths along the original canal and cross the Walhonding River on a rebuilt Aqueduct Footbridge. From Lake Park website

The next two stops on this birding drive are in the Woodbury Wildlife Area. Woodbury lies in east-central Ohio approximately five miles west of Coshocton. Access to the area may be gained from a number of state routes including OH-16, OH-36, OH-60, and OH-541. OH-541, which runs east-west through the center of the area, provides good access to a series of county and township roads.

There are tips for birding Woodbury Wildlife Area From Ohio Ornithological Society website.

@Woodbury Wildlife Area--County Road 286
From Lake Park, return to OH-83 and go south to the intersection with US-36. Turn right onto US-36 west. Continue straight onto OH-16 and drive 5.5 miles to County Road 286. Turn right onto County Road 286.

Start a new eBird checklist for this road. County Road 286 traverses the Woodbury Wildlife Area for the next 3 miles. The road is lightly used. Bird from your vehicle stopping on the side of the road when you find interesting birds to watch. Close your 286 checklist as you leave Country Road 286.

@Woodbury Wildlife Area--Township Highway 302
The next location on this birding drive is County Road 302, which is about a 5 mile drive through the wildlife area. You may also want to bird the roads along the way, although they are somewhat busier. At the end of County Road 286, turn left onto County Road 6 and drive 2.4 miles to County Road 297. Turn right onto County Road 297 and drive 2.2 miles north to OH-541. Turn right on OH-541 and then almost immediately turn left onto Township Highway 302.

Begin a new eBird checklist for this road. Bird Township Highway 302 from your vehicle from OH-541 to County Road 58, a little over a mile. Ten warbler species have been recorded in this mile during migration and Henslow's and Grasshopper Sparrows have been reported along this section.

This birding drive has sampled just two roads in the Woodbury Wildlife Area. You can easily spend a whole day exploring the whole area if you have more time.

@Mohawk Dam
36805 OH-715 Scenic Warsaw, Ohio 43844

From the intersection of County Road 58 and Township Highway 302, head northwest on County Road 58 for 1.4 miles. Turn right onto County Road 17 and drive 1 mile. Turn right onto OH-60 north and drive 2.4 miles. Turn left onto US-36 west and follow US-36 for 3.1 miles. Make a slight right onto OH-715 west and drive 3.3 miles to Mohawk Dam.

Mohawk Dam is approximately 15 miles west of Coshocton, Ohio and 25 miles east of Mount Vernon, Ohio. Access to the dam is via US-36 (which connects Mount Vernon and Coshocton), then OH-715 which travels directly across the crest of the dam. This is a dry dam -- which means there is no permanent pool; however, water is present when impounded during flood control operations. The Walhonding River is popular for canoeing and fishing. Picnicking and camping facilities are available along the river. Roscoe Village, a restored and historical canal town, is located near Coshocton. From Mohawk Dam webpage

@Kokosing River--Township Road 423 Access
Walhonding, Ohio 43843

From the Mohawk Dam, head west on OH-715 for 3.2 miles. Turn right on Township Road 423 and drive .4 miles to the Mohican river access.

The road ends on both sides of the river, no bridge. Access river left. The Mohican River joins the Kokosing on river left at this last trail site to form the Walhonding River. Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District lands are open to the public for walking, hunting and fishing. This area floods readily in high water. From Kokosing River Water Trail pamphlet

Mohican River Wildlife Area (Coshocton County)
Gann, Ohio 43014

From the Township Road 423 Access, return to OH-715 on Township Road 423 and turn left. Go .2 miles and turn right onto township Highway 366. Drive 1.8 miles and turn right onto Township Road 364. Go 1.1 miles and turn left on County Road 368. The section of the Mohican River Wildlife Area in Coshocton County lies along this county road.

The 474-acre Mohican River Wildlife Area, in east-central Ohio, consists of two separate units approximately 5.5 miles apart on the lower reaches of the Mohican River. The 121-acre upstream unit is at the village of Brinkhaven and is readily accessible from OH-62. The lower unit, 353 acres in size, lies about one mile south of the village of Cavallo on Tiverton Township Road 368.

A mixture of woods, reverting old fields, and cropland occupies the river valley bottomlands and hillsides of these two units. The upland woods are predominantly oak-hickory. Elm, ash, silver maple, and sycamore are common species bordering the Mohican River. Index of Ohio's trees from the Division of Forestry. The stretch of Mohican River which flows through the wildlife area averages over 100 feet wide and is comprised of relatively long, moderately deep pools with occasional riffles. From Mohican River Wildlife Area webpage

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