Can You Take Rocks, Fossils or Plants Home From Hocking Hills?

Almost never. In Hocking Hills State Park and the state nature preserves, the rule is to leave rocks, fossils, plants and fungi where you find them. The state forest is the one place with a few exceptions, and they are narrower than most people assume. Here is how it breaks down by land type, and what makes a better souvenir.

The answer depends on whose land you are on

Hocking Hills is a patchwork of ODNR properties, and each type has its own collecting rule. Check which one you are standing on before you pocket anything. The table below summarizes the rules as written in October 2026.

If you are not sure which land you are on, assume the strictest column.

State park: the collector's permit rule

The state park rule on collecting (Ohio Administrative Code 1501:46-3-27) says you may not collect plants, animals, fungi or geologic materials from land the division administers without a collector's permit from the chief. The exceptions are licensed hunters and anglers taking game or fish, and areas the chief has posted as nature study areas. A separate rule on geological features (1501:46-3-11) makes it illegal to damage, alter or take earth, sand, stone, rocks, ice or cave features, with exceptions only where the chief has authorized fossil or geologic collecting and posted that authorization at the area's headquarters.

That covers the souvenir pieces of sandstone people pick up near Old Man's Cave or Ash Cave. A fist-sized fragment still counts as "stone," and the written rule has no size threshold or "loose pieces are fine" exception.

Nature preserves: the strictest rule

Conkle's Hollow, Rockbridge and the other state nature preserves are managed under 1501:17-3-02. It bars collecting, removing, damaging or disturbing plants and plant material, rocks, fossils, minerals, soil, sand, gravel, ice, animals or any other substance. The only collecting route described is for research, with a written application and approval from the division chief. A casual visitor has no pathway here.

Preserves also prohibit pets and require staying on marked trails. Our preserve guide covers the rest of the preserve rules.

State forest: the one place with exceptions

Hocking State Forest follows the Division of Forestry rules. Two matter here.

• The general ban (1501:3-2-05). Cutting, removing or damaging trees, shrubs and other plants and picking wildflowers are prohibited. So is harassing or collecting native wild animals, apart from licensed hunting and fishing, and digging or removing rock, sand, gravel or other minerals without written permission.
• The exception (1501:3-2-06). Berries, nuts, fruits, cones, seeds and mushrooms may be gathered and removed, as long as they are not endangered or threatened species. The exception does not cover seed orchards, wilderness areas, designated nature preserves or posted areas.

A third rule (1501:3-2-19) bars removing, damaging or disturbing objects of paleontological, archaeological, geological or historical interest without written permission from the chief. That is the rule that applies to a fossil or an arrowhead you spot on forest ground.

ODNR's forest page repeats the practical version: berries, nuts and mushrooms may be gathered, except in posted areas. Our mushroom foraging guide and morel guide go into species and safety, and both follow the same land-type split.

What about antlers and bones?

I could not find antlers named in any of the rules above. The park rule covers animals and the preserve rule covers "any other substance," which suggests the safest reading is to leave shed antlers, bones and feathers alone. If you spot something unusual on a hike, take a photo, note the location and ask the park office whether collecting is allowed there. Do not treat silence in the rule text as permission.

Why the rules are this strict here

Black Hand sandstone is soft. Our Leave No Trace guide notes that it can be carved with a key and that damage lasts a very long time. The gorges also host plant communities that depend on shade and moisture. When millions of visits pass through a few miles of trail, small removals add up, and rules written for one visitor have to work for all of them. Our geology guide explains why the rock erodes the way it does.

Better souvenirs

• Photograph it. A close-up of a fern, a bark pattern or a rock texture takes seconds and leaves no mark. A free photo-logging app can help identify what you found.
• Sketch or write it down. A trail notebook of what bloomed, what flowed and what you heard makes a better keepsake than a pebble.
• Buy local. Gift shops, visitor centers and local makers sell the region's work. Ask what is made locally.
• Pick up litter. Carrying out someone else's trash is the one souvenir that helps.

Bottom line

In the park and preserves, take only photographs. In the state forest, nuts, berries, seeds, cones and mushrooms are the exception, as long as the area is not posted. Fossils, rock and historic items need written permission everywhere. When in doubt, leave it.

Hiking with kids? Make "look but leave" the game. Our fall trail photo scavenger hunt turns finding things into a photo challenge, and everything stays where it belongs.