Can You Fly a Drone on Hocking Hills Trails? Know the Rules First

Short answer: not casually, and not at all over the nature preserves. Ohio's rules treat state park land, state forest land and state nature preserves differently, but none of them is a "launch and see" situation. If you want aerial footage of a Hocking Hills gorge, you need permission first, and in some places there is no permission to get.

The short version, by type of land

"Hocking Hills" is not one landowner. The trails most visitors walk sit on three kinds of ODNR land, and each has its own rule. Here is how they line up as of October 2026.

The regional visitor FAQ at hockinghills.com puts it in one line for ordinary visitors: drones are prohibited. That is the safe working assumption for any trail you are about to walk.

What the park rule actually covers

The state park rule (Ohio Administrative Code 1501:46-13-11) is broader than people expect. It defines unmanned aircraft as drones, model aircraft and similar craft that can fly without a person aboard, as long as they have at least one of a few traits: a motor, radio control, fuel or flame, or the ability to stay up at 100 feet or higher for more than a minute. A small battery-powered camera drone is squarely inside the definition. Only simple toys powered by muscle, elastic, springs or a burst of air or water are carved out.

Three more parts matter to photographers:

• Recording needs permission too. Using an unmanned craft to film or photograph public activities, natural formations, historic or cultural features or park facilities requires the chief's permission. A gorge wall counts as a natural formation.
• Federal rules still apply. The rule tells operators to follow current FAA requirements, including limits on flying over people and moving vehicles. State permission would not replace those.
• Some places are off limits regardless. The rule bars flying over open-air gatherings, beaches, boats and roadways on division-managed land, and bars using a craft to harass people or wildlife.

The rule text carries an effective date of January 1, 2025, and ODNR lists a routine review date of November 1, 2026. Wording can change at review, so recheck before a planned shoot.

Why Conkle's Hollow and the other preserves are different

State nature preserves fall under a separate rule (1501:17-11-03), and it is stricter. It makes it unlawful to launch, land or operate unmanned aircraft in the airspace over or within any state nature preserve or natural area. It also bars using one to photograph or record natural formations or other features of preserve land. The version I read describes a flat prohibition, not a permission process, so do not plan around getting a yes.

This matters because several of the best-known sights sit inside preserves. Conkle's Hollow, with cliffs that run over 200 feet above the gorge mouth, is the obvious drone fantasy and the one place where the answer is firmly no. Our Conkle's Hollow rim guide covers what you can do there on foot instead.

What "permission" means in practice

For state park and state forest land, the rule points to the division chief or an authorized agent. In practice, start with the park office. The Hocking Hills State Park office lists (740) 385-6842, with office hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Hocking State Forest has its own administrative office and manager contacts on its ODNR page.

A few habits will help if you ask:

1. Ask in advance, and be specific about the date, location, purpose and whether the footage is personal or paid work.
2. Keep expectations realistic. A request for a busy gorge on an October Saturday is the kind that may be refused, since the trails are narrow and crowded.
3. Get any approval in writing and carry it, since a ranger who meets you on the trail may not know about it.

I did not find a published fee schedule or a standard application form for aerial photography, so ask the office what they require rather than assuming.

Why the rules exist

The rule text names people and wildlife, but the gorge setting explains the rest. Sound carries oddly in these hollows, so a buzzing aircraft would likely be heard well beyond where it is flying. Our Leave No Trace guide makes the case that quiet is part of what visitors come for. Add narrow stairs, wet rock and crowds in a few hundred yards of trail, and a drone becomes a distraction for both pilot and hikers.

There is also a safety angle that has nothing to do with the aircraft. Pilots watch the screen, not their footing. Near unfenced edges that is a bad habit, and our safety guide explains that the park's cliff risk concentrates around stepping off the trail for a better view.

What to shoot instead

You can get strong high-angle images without leaving the ground:

• Use the natural overlooks. The rim trails exist for exactly this view. At Cantwell Cliffs, Lookout Point on the east Rim Trail looks across to the cliff and rock shelter. At Conkle's Hollow, the rim loop gives the top-down view. Stay on the marked trail.
• Go wide and low. A wide lens from the gorge floor makes the walls look taller than any hovering camera would.
• Chase the light, not the angle. Our sunrise and sunset guide and foggy morning guide cover when the gorges look best on camera.
• Plan the season. Frozen falls and peak color are more distinctive than another bird's-eye shot. See photographing frozen waterfalls for winter, and photographing fall foliage for October.

Bottom line

Treat every Hocking Hills trail as a no-drone zone. If you have a real project, ask the park office first for state park or state forest land, and skip the nature preserves entirely. The best photographs here come from patience at the right overlook.