Wayne National Forest - Wildcat Hollow Trail and Trailhead (dispersed camping)

public land records

Agency-confirmed — The managing agency's own record names this as a campsite and puts it at these coordinates. About as good as it gets short of standing here.

Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/wayne/recreation/wildcat-hollow (read 2026-09-25, 'Last updated February 25, 2026'). USFS: 'Dispersed camping is allowed at the Wildcat Hollow Trail and Trailhead. When parking, help prevent damage to the grassy areas by staying on the gravel surface.' 'Open 24 hours/day.' Fee: 'No fees are required for this site.' Restrooms: vault toilet(s). Water: 'Potable water is not available at this site.' Trail: 17.2-mile loop plus a 5-mile loop. Fire: 'You can build a campfire as long as you have a 10-foot clearance around it and put a ring around it with rocks. Fires must be extinguished before leaving camp. No bon fires are allowed. No standing or green trees may be cut. Check the bulletin boards to ensure no fire bans are in effect.' Coordinate is the page's own 'Latitude: 39.572303 Longitude: -82.032666' (the page's DMS 39 34'22" / 82 01'58" agrees). STAY LIMIT: the Wayne publishes none on this page or on https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/wayne/recreation/camping-cabins; I did not borrow a 14-day figure from other forests. Census TIGER puts the pin in Morgan County although USFS files it under Athens Ranger District - Athens Area. Pin is the trailhead; trail-side camping is anywhere along the loop, so there is no single site. || REVIEW 2026-09-26 (nightshift-verified, fire 2510): Re-read 2026-09-26: Wayne NF https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/wayne/recreation/wildcat-hollow re-read (still 'Last updated February 25, 2026'): 'Dispersed camping is allowed at the Wildcat Hollow Trail and Trailhead. When parking, help prevent damage to the grassy areas by staying on the gravel surface.' 'Open 24 hours/day'. 'No fees are required for this site'. Vault toilet. 'Potable water is not available at this site.' Page lat/lon 39.572303,-82.032666 = this pin. APPROVED: every recorded claim holds word for word, on the agency's own point. camp_type changed backcountry -> drive: the page allows camping AT the trailhead, with parking on the gravel, so this pin is drive-up. Trail-side camping along the 17.2-mile loop is the hike-in option. Nearest published pin: #7650 Burr Oak Cove CG (fee), 3.2 km. Wayne alerts: the fire order bans fireworks and engines without spark arrestors. The occupancy order 09-14-24-03 caps a stay at 14 days in any 30. That is the stay limit fire 2420 could not find; it is on the alert page https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/wayne/alerts/forest-wide-restriction-occupancy-and-use (camp_type before this review: backcountry)

On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.