Strouds Run State Park
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Strouds_Run_-_Dow_Lake_2
Strouds Run State Park is an Ohio state park located primarily in Canaan Township, Athens County, Ohio, with a small part in Ames Township of Athens County. It comprises 2,606 acres (11 km²), and includes Dow Lake, a human-made lake. The park is almost entirely within the Strouds Run watershed, although it does not include the entire watershed. The park is literally on the fringes of the city of Athens, Ohio, with park boundaries coinciding with city limits in several places. The park is contiguous with the city's 210 acre (0.8 km²) Strouds Ridge Preserve Project, which includes the Riddle State Nature Preserve.
Facilities include a campground (pit toilets, no shower), swimming beach, boat dock, boat and canoe rentals, shooting range, picnic grounds and shelters, and hiking trails. Hunting is permitted in season.
Significant areas of the park are pine plantations from the mid-twentieth century, when the land was purchased, originally as the Athens State Forest. However, most of the area is mature hardwood forest. The park features many bluffs and rock outcrops of sandstone. Several large beaver ponds are within the park boundaries.
The lake is used by Ohio University for aquatic sports such as crew.