Please note that some of our links are affiliate links, which means at no additional cost to you, we will earn a commission if you click through & make a purchase. Happy clicking!
Burr Oak State Park in Glouster offers a dog-friendly weekend getaway in the heart of Ohio.
Hazel approves of the dog-friendly new cabins and lakeview trails, plus the opportunities to play disc golf, ride horseback, or go fishing and boating.
A few notes for visiting Burr Oak State Park:
- Location: Glouster, OH
- Dog-Friendly: Yes
- Best For: Lake activities, including swimming, boating, and fishing
- Time Needed: Full Day to Weekend
- Entry Fee: None
- Accommodations: 38 Guest Rooms in the Lodge (not dog-friendly) and 30 Cabins (some dog-friendly)
- Best Time to Visit: Spring and Summer
Burr Oak State Park's History and Location
Burr Oak State Park is located in Glouster, Ohio, about 3 hours southwest of Pittsburgh.
This area is packed with industrial sites. On our drive in, we passed many coal mines, gas compressor stations, and even nuclear cooling towers.
The Army Corps of Engineers constructed Tom Jenkins Dam at the park as a part of the area’s flood control plan in 1950. The lake that was created provided a recreation area for the people who were fueling the industrial growth at the time. The area became a state park in 1952.
The full-service lodge opened in 1967 and underwent renovations in 2013.
Burr Oak State Park Accommodations - Including Dog-Friendly Options!
Burr Oak State Park has a full-service lodge with 38 guest rooms, restaurant, game courts (including mini-golf), and indoor swimming pool.
Unfortunately, the lodge doesn’t allow dogs- so we spent the weekend in the cabin area.
Fortunately, Burr Oak does have dog-friendly cabins. We stayed in Cabin 16 at the end of the pet loop.
I usually ‘star’ our cabin or spot, but in this case, the front desk person had already circled it on the cabin map:
Cabin 16 is close to the road and has two parking spaces out front. The front porch is narrow, but the screened-in back porch is enormous and overlooks the woods toward the lake.
And the inside was quite new and very clean:
Between the fire ring, grill, fresh linens, strong air conditioning, and cable television for the World Cup games, Cabin 16 had everything we needed for a comfortable weekend stay.
Hiking at Burr Oak State Park
Burr Oak State Park has about 40 miles of hiking trails. Part of the Buckeye Trail, about 13 miles, and the Burr Oak Backpack Trail around the lake of about 22 miles, make up a bulk of that mileage.
This map on a sign near the Nature Center provides an overview:
…however, we hiked off the bottom of this version!
Here’s what we covered from Cabin 16:
From our cabin, we walked down past the Nature Center to Chipmunk Trail.
This connected with the Lakeview Trail and Burr Oak Backpack Trail.
This is where things got a little hairy for us!
We had set out on a cloudy day with some chance of showers. Our goal was to get to the dam, turn around, and come back.
As we approached the dam, it started to sprinkle. That quickly turned into an all-out monsoon! Lesson learned: our cheap emergency ponchos in my day pack weren’t up to the job. We’ve since upgraded to sturdier hiking ponchos that actually keeps us dry.
We hurried back a few LONG miles to the Nature Center in a steady downpour.
Hazel does not love to be wet, and the poncho I had in my backpack had a large hole in the neck – so you can guess this was not a highlight of the trip!
As you can see above, there is part of the hike to the dam we did not complete. So once it cleared up, we drove to the dam and walked around. Not much to see, as it was an earthen dam – just a large grassy embankment, really.
We also drove over to the swimming beach and walked around a bit there. Not much to report, as the area had been recently flooded and still needed a little clean up.
The Nature Center at Burr Oak State Park
One bright spot was that the wonderful (and knowledgeable!) naturalist at the Nature Center let us dry off on the porch and bring Hazel inside.
The park naturalist introduced us to Myrtle, their resident snapping turtle. Hazel gave her a low growl, but seemed to appreciate the chance to see one up close (not too close, though!).
Myrtle was estimated to be about 30 years old. She had previously belonged to a science teacher before being donated to the park.
We also got to meet Tigger, the gray ratsnake. Tigger has his own jungle gym to slither and climb on for exercise!
Tigger was very calm, and we got to pet his smooth scales. You can learn what other reptiles and amphibians you might meet in Ohio with a solid field guide.
Getting to meet Myrtle and Tigger and learning more about their behaviors made up for being completely drenched on our hike!
Hazel wore her favorite go-to Voyager Step-In Air Dog Harness all weekend. It’s lightweight, breathable, and thankfully dries quickly!
Burr Oak Nature and Wildlife
During our trip, Burr Oak State Park wildlife included deer, chipmunks, squirrels, and birds.
The naturalist said there had been a bear sighting earlier in the summer, but we didn’t see any of those!
Mushroom activity was at a HIGH for this season at Burr Oak. Here are some of the gems we spotted:
We aren’t mushroom experts, so we always use a field guide to help identify interesting finds (while leaving them exactly where we found them!).
We also spotted this interesting plant- called a Downy Rattlesnake Plantain:
Dog-Friendly PIT STOPS on Your Way To and From Burr Oak State Park
Before we pulled into the park, we made a stop at Little Fish Brewing.
This location near Burr Oak State Park had an outside area with a canopy and picnic tables that were open-air and dog-friendly. Hazel appreciated the break from the drive and ability to get in some original sniffs. She also liked the brie appetizer and piece of smashburger we shared!
We had one amusing interaction when I asked for onions on our smashburger. The response was a firm “no” because the cook insisted there were already onions inside the burger.
On the way home, we stopped in Athens at the Ohio University campus.
We thoroughly enjoyed the coffee and biscuit from Fluff Bakery, and they even gave Hazel a chicken sausage stick of her own to enjoy!
We had a great morning walking through campus before getting back on the road to head home.
Hazel's Thoughts on Burr Oak State Park
Pros:
- New dog-friendly cabin with screened in porch
- Sniffing around the Lodge, cabin, and Nature Center grounds
- Nature Center visit and meeting Myrtle and Tigger!
Cons:
- Rain
- More rain
- Did we mention rain?
If you’re visiting Burr Oak, don’t trust the forecast as much as we did! Afternoon storms rolled in quickly during our visit, so we’d recommend packing a quality rain jacket for your dog, too, even if a slight chance of showers is predicted.
Who Will Love Burr Oak State Park? The Wrap Up!
Burr Oak State Park wasn’t quite the weekend we were hoping for.
The weather certainly didn’t help—our main hiking day was a rain out, which immediately put Hazel in a less-than-adventurous mood. Even setting the rain aside, we found the trail selection more limited than we’ve experienced at some of our favorite state park destinations.
One unexpected highlight was the Nature Center, which ended up being one of the most memorable parts of the trip.
Travelers looking for a quiet lakeside lodge and a relaxing weekend may enjoy Burr Oak more than avid hikers looking for a destination packed with trail options.
If you’ve followed Road Trip Tails for a while, you know we try to pick destinations based on hiking opportunities and dog-friendly outdoor adventures. Compared with some of our favorite parks, Burr Oak offered fewer opportunities for the type of exploring we enjoy most.
That said, the comfortable dog-friendly cabins, scenic lake views, and welcoming Nature Center may make it a great fit for visitors seeking a quieter, more relaxed state park experience.
