Things to Do in Chillicothe: Home to UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Hopewell Earthworks are Native American burial and ceremonial sites. The full extent and purpose of these earthworks are unknown. Not only is it a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site, but also a National Park. Most people think of Cuyahoga Valley National Park, which is an hour outside of Cleveland, OH, and the Cleveland Metroparks. This is about a 3-hour drive from Cleveland and about an hour drive from Athens, OH. This is well worth your time as it is located in the first Ohio capital and has plenty to do for a weekend or two of things to do.

The Hopewell Earthworks are an Ohio landmark and are very neat to see in person. Some of these earthworks are sadly not open to the public and cannot be seen. There are four nearby sites that you can visit; these four sites are part of the 8 sites designated as Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks under the UNESCO World Heritage Site designation. We are going to cover three organizations that span the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks Management and Designation.

The World Heritage Site designation is by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). These sites get designated because they are of "outstanding universal value" and should form part of the common heritage of humankind according to UNESCO. There are 8 sites under the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, which combines these 8 sites under one World Heritage Site designation. These sites are:

It is important to note that only 5 of the 8 sites are run by the National Park Service and are at Chillicothe, OH, with only 4 of those 5 sites being open to the public. The other sites being Great Circle Earthworks, Octagon Earthworks in Licking County, and Fort Ancient Earthworks in Warren County.

Spruce Hill Earthworks is another site managed by the National Park Service and is closed to the public and is not a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is like the two worst conditions for this site: not open to the public and not a World Heritage Site. The other site not open to the public is the High Bank Earthworks, but it is a World Heritage Site; you just can't visit it. Here are the four sites you can visit in Chillicothe, OH.

If you only go visit one site in Chillicothe, make sure it is this one. You can fully see the earthworks, which is a collection of obviously human-made mounds all in different shapes and sizes. This is where the visitor center is located as well, and you can ask for information and even join a morning tour that starts at 10:00 AM.

Once you have your sunscreen and umbrella, you can walk all around the mounds, and at the other side opposite of the visitor center, there is a trail that can lead you back to the Visitor Center and is in the shade, so it is a nice walk back, especially after being like an ant under a magnifying glass.

I did not make the tour on time, and I likely would not have done it. The mounds are super cool to see, and we got there at 11 and the tour was still going on. I could not have stayed out there that long looking at the same mounds for an hour, no way. Not only that, when I was out there, I swear the tour guide at that time spent like ten minutes talking in front of the flat section of the mound area as I was waiting to go read the sign that was currently surrounded by the tour group. The tour then went to the largest and center mound, and he apparently said everything he needed to say when everyone was facing away from this mound, looking at the flattest part of the tour, because he spent less than a minute there.

I would say if you are really interested in how the mounds were made, what we think their purpose was, and likely some specific mound info outside of the signs, it could be worth it, but for me, I would not find it interesting enough to be out there that long. Not that mounds are not cool, but I really enjoyed reading the signs and then looking at the mounds and being on my way. I just don't think it takes over an hour to get what you came for.

The visitor center is nice and has additional information. If I am being honest, I felt the Park Ranger at the time was not the most helpful, and I had to push hard to get a park and trail map. The other thing is she told me there would be site-specific maps at each one, and there was not. I would get the park map, which has the addresses of all the sites, and then the specific site map of each site you plan on going to at the visitor center, and ask any questions you have at that visitor center.

This is the next closest earthwork to Mound City Group, and I would skip. I showed up, and there is no sign and literally nothing I could see, and I did not bring or get a park map because the Park Ranger said there would be a map at each site, but again there was not. So if I missed something, it is because there was no signage and the Park Ranger wouldn't or seemed hesitant to give me the maps. There did seem to be a sign in construction in the parking lot where you park, and then there is a trail, and I walked that trail and it was very short and it seemed to just be farmland. Now I know they recreate the earthworks by mowing these fields, but I did not see any of that, and I did not see any signs as I stated previously.

I came to Hopewell Mound Group feeling that I really dodged a bullet not taking that Mound City Group tour as it was crazy hot out, but I also felt disappointed in the Hopeton Earthworks site. I was ecstatic to see a sign and a trail, a paved trail mind you, at the parking lot of this site. This trail led me to two signs that overlook this field. From there you continue on that trail, which turns into a dirt trail, or walk into the field. I decided to continue the trail. With foresight, what I would do is get to the two signs, walk into the field until you feel content with the mowed grass imitation of the earthworks, and then walk back to your car.

What I did do was continue the trail. It was a nice trail, but some was unshaded and hot. It led up to an overlook, and I honestly could not see much of the imitation mow. It is there, but it was not visible from that vantage point. I have a photo of this viewpoint, but unless you just want to hike, I would skip, and if you want to see it, I would turn back now. I continued on this trail until it went all the way around the field to the other side, at which point the trail was through the field back to where those two signs were, but the entire time the sun has you pinned down. It was just crazy rough, and I would have skipped but I was already halfway there. I was not even bothering to read the signs anymore as I just wanted to get back to the car as I could feel myself getting burnt. This was a multi-mile trek and was just not worth it. Explore the field from the two signs and turn back when it gets too hot or you get the gist.

This is the final site that is available to the public, which is Seip Earthworks. I actually ran out of time to go visit this one as there was just so much to do in the first capital of Ohio. At this site, I read there was a reconstructed mound and more imitating mowing. I would go visit this one over Hopeton Earthworks any day, but it is a little further out, about 17 minutes away from Hopewell Mound Group.

These are the four sites you can go see, and it took me a half a day at least between driving and hiking to see 3 of the 4. I would say you could cut this down and spend most of your time at Mound City Group and spend however much time you want to spend at Hopewell Mound Group.

This Holographic Zoo is a hidden gem, literally. I drove to the address first to verify it existed; there is no website, and I could not find a number to call. This is Ohio's only holographic zoo and now has a website, but not at the time of visiting. I was only able to find it through Visit Chillicothe Ohio, and it only had an address.

After driving by and verifying that it existed, I decided to go later that day. I went with some people, and it was super fun, and if you have any kids, they would love it as it was pretty cool. It is a walking 3D movie with animals popping out at you and is very immersive. I had a blast here and would go again. It was a super fun time. It is tucked away or hidden in between two bigger buildings, so you could easily miss it. If you have kids, they would love it, and if you're traveling with friends, I am sure that you would have fun at the only holographic zoo in Ohio.

The tickets were $24.99 per person. I think it was worth it, and it is a smaller business with it being the only holographic zoo in Ohio. They had multiple new exhibits coming with Halloween themes and even space.

This is 100% a bias, but I feel that seeing Tecumseh! is a must. It has been continuously playing since 1973, and I still remember seeing it from when I was a kid. This is a kid-friendly show I would assume as I remember it from when I was a kid, but it does cover a deeper topic about the American Indian Wars. I found it enjoyable and a unique experience that you cannot just experience anywhere. Due to the uniqueness and long-standing tradition of Tecumseh!, it is a must in Chillicothe, OH.

The cheapest ticket you can get is $35. This puts you in the middle seating but in the upper half. This worked just fine for me and my party. There is also a $7.50 order fee as well when you order online, so this is a pricier event, with total cost being $42.50 for the ticket plus $8.50 spent per person on concessions, equaling $51. It was around $17 for two people with one lemonade, one popcorn, and one fry.

This was a lovely walk and tour. There are sprawling gardens and plenty to walk around and see. I walked through the Adena Mansion Gardens after taking the tour inside. The tour took you through the entire mansion, and each room had a very unique character to it. This was a $12 tour and lets you see the entire inside of the mansion. If you want to learn the history of the mansion and how it played into a bit of the history of the land, then it is 100% worth it. If you do not care as much, you could skip it as it gets into the weeds of the mansion and the owners. I would go walk around the mansion and the gardens and read some of the signs to see if you want to take the tour. The staff was very knowledgeable on the history of the mansion, so if you're interested, it is worth it.

This is free to go check out. I would have loved to spend more time here if I could. I was able to make it to the lookout just in time but had to run back to my car to make it to Tecumseh! in time. We saw a buck and a few deer; it was a well-maintained trail. The lookout was a cool area to see and very scenic. It was a nice rocky area that I wish I could have explored more of, but I only had a few moments to really take everything in before having to run back.

I would complete the overlook trail as it is a must at Buzzard's Roost Nature Preserve, and then if you are in the mood, complete some of their other trails. Either way, it was a lovely preserve and definitely worth stopping by, even after hiking through the field with no shade at Hopewell Culture National Park.

The downtown area is near The Pour House at Machinery Hall. It is E Second Street, and just walking down that street gives you plenty of food and shop options. It is also just a nice downtown area to just walk about and check out. The Ross County Courthouse had a nice aesthetic, but what took the cake in terms of aesthetics was the Adena Health System building, which is The Carlisle Building. This is one of the standout buildings and part of why walking downtown felt like you were exploring.

I only ate at two places, those being The Pour House at Machinery Hall, which I really loved, and then at Hometown Hibachi, which was okay.

I loved this restaurant and brewery. I had the High Noon, which was brewed by Pour House's own, and had a burger and fries, which were great. We even went and sat on their rooftop for a while; it was fairly scenic and a great vibe. I have a soft spot for rooftop spots, and this one was dead on for the rooftop vibe I am looking for. It felt very spacious and had a great rooftop design that looks nice. This is definitely worth a stop and would be the restaurant I go back to. The Machinery Hall Burger was $17, and the High Noon was $7. We got the Rosemary Grilled Chicken as well, which tasted super good, which was $25, making the total bill $53.09.

Hometown Hibachi had huge portions. It was $19.50 for steak and shrimp hibachi. It is what you expect for a hibachi place in the middle of Ohio. If you're really in the mood for hibachi, then go for it, and if not, there are plenty of restaurants around downtown.

This was an amazing location, and I was surprised by how much there was to do. I didn't even get to see it all. I could easily spend two weekends here and still discover new things. It's a great weekend spot with a chill downtown atmosphere, plus fantastic nature preserves and the National Park for hiking and getting outside.

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