Winter adventure

Find cold-weather fun in Mansfield area

We’re on top of a snowy mountain, poised to plummet 1,100 feet down on a rubber inner tube.

With a push, we’re off and rushing toward the bottom, laughing all the way.

It’s Ohio, where the weather can fluctuate like the wind. Today it’s sunny and 50 degrees. But here, at the family-owned Snow Trails resort, we’re surrounded by snow.

Winter is no reason to hibernate in Columbus. We ventured to the Mansfield area, about 45 minutes north of Columbus, for a weekend adventure. We slid down the slippery slope, sought out waterfalls in a hemlock-filled forest and took a spin around a whimsical carrousel in a historic downtown.

Weather in these parts doesn’t hinder the experience. It only enhances it.

Snow Trails

Feel adrenaline of racing down a hill at this resort and lodge, which opened in 1961 and features skiing, snowboarding and tubing. If it’s not snowing, the owners of Snow Trails create it and spread it around using high-powered machines on the slopes.

Snow Trails offers six tubing lanes and a carpeted conveyor belt to transport you up the hill. Go Glow Tubing after dark Thursday through Sunday, when you can slide under a series of illuminated arches.

Warm up by a fire pit and grab some snacks indoors. No experience is needed, and all ages are welcomed, they told us. It’s fun to slide solo or grab onto your mates to form a chain.

We paid $25 per person for two hours of tubing, which was plenty of time. The cost included the use of a tube and transportation on the conveyor belt. Arrive early to avoid evening crowds.

Snow Trails is located at 3100 Possum Run Rd., Mansfield, and is open December through March. Learn more and make a reservation.

Mohican State Park

We pulled into the Mohican Lodge and Conference Center just in time for some games in the lively lobby before dinner. Mike taught Max how to play pool while Rosie and I played ping pong. Others played board games or sat in chairs that formed a circle around a fireplace.

The lodge is rustic and could use a facelift in some places. But what it lacked in style, it made up in its outdoor surroundings.

It’s situated in the 1,110-acre Mohican State Park, which is adjacent to the 4,525-acre Mohican-Memorial State Forest. Peaks and valleys formed here 12,000 years ago by glaciers define what is known today as the Clear Fork Gorge. This land was once explored by the Delaware Indians and frequented by John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, a pioneer who introduced apple trees to Ohio and neighboring states.

Mike and I set out on our own to explore the outdoors. We started at Pleasant Hill Lake, where we walked on a bridge at the Pleasant Hill Dam. We then took a two-mile looping path to investigate two waterfalls that jutted from sandstone cliffs. The Little Lyons Falls is visible from an overhead bridge. It drops 25 feet into a narrow gorge. The 80-foot Big Lyons Falls is more impressive and viewed beneath in a recess cave. We also visited a covered bridge that spans the Clear Fork River.

Mohican Lodge and Conference Center is located at 1098 Ashland County Rd., 3006, Perrysville, Ohio. Learn more.

Richland Carrousel Park

To a child, the only thrill greater than seeing an old-fashioned carousel is climbing aboard one of its shiny, majestic creatures. One of the best places for children of all ages to do just that in Ohio is in Mansfield.

The city pays homage to the amusement-park ride in its downtown Carrousel District, which features several blocks of unique shops and restaurants in beautifully restored Victorian buildings. There are restaurants on every block, seemingly. We enjoyed some good burgers and a couple pints of Guinness at Uncle John’s Place on Main Street.

At the heart of the area is the Richland Carrousel Park, where guests can ride an old-fashioned roundabout for $1. It has 52 animal figures, each carved and painted in a 1900s style by Carousel Works in Mansfield. Among the menagerie are 30 horses, several bears and ostriches, a zebra and a goat. The company also restored the rounding boards, mirrors and mural frames, which depict past and present attractions in Mansfield.

The ride is housed in a heated pavilion that contains the carousel and a gift shop featuring musical figurines and other playful items.

The Richland Carrousel Park is located at 75 N. Main St., Mansfield. It’s open seven days a week, except major holidays. Learn more.