Hocking Hills Ziplining: Who says people can’t fly?

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Canopy zipline tours are a lot of fun, and Hocking Hills ziplining may be as close as a person can get to flying!

On a trip to the Hocking Hills in Ohio, I enjoyed a fun outing with the Hocking Hills Canopy Tours.

While there are several Hocking Hills ziplining options, this company has a strong safety record and offers a really fun trip! Whether taking “traditional” canopy zipline tours or trying the more adventerous Super Zip, Hocking Hills Canopy Tours has what it takes.

Hocking Hills Canopy Tours review, with words that say "Who says people can't fly?"

Hocking Hills Ziplining: What to expect

Hocking Hills Canopy Tours, established in 2007, is the first canopy ziplining company in Ohio.

Nestled in the treetops of the rolling foothills in Southeastern Ohio’s coal country, the company is dedicated to preserving the area’s natural beauty and educating guests about trees, wildlife and the rivers in the area.

One of my guides, CJ, threw in a history lesson too!

Hocking Hills Canopy Tours Options

The Original Tour: This Hocking Hills ziplining tour kicks off with a 1.5 mile scenic drive to the beginning of the course. Three hours later, you will have enjoyed 10 zip line “flights,” crossed 5 adventure sky bridges and rappeled back to solid ground. For many, the mix of zip lining, sky bridges and rappelling make this the perfect outdoor experience.

The X Tour: This Hocking Hills ziplining tours offers thrill seekers more flight time. This course uses a combination of tree platforms and tower platforms to send adventurers “flying” over — and into — some of the Hocking Hills’ natural features. The first few zip lines on the course are fairly tame, zipping through pine trees and across fields to acclimate riders to the experience, but then it revs up big time!

On my canopy zipline tour, we zipped over a stream into a cave. Can you imagine flying into a rock wall?

Don’t worry! The expert crew keeps you safe.

This tour takes riders over the Hocking River twice — on the final zip, riders fly above the river for several hundred feet, soaring above the kayakers on the river. Super cool!

Collage of photos from the Hocking Hills Canopy Tours X-Tour. Shows people standing on a platform, walking out of a cave and posing silly for the camera
Left: Standing on a platform high in the canopy. Top right: Leaving the cave after zipping in. Bottom right: A group and their guides celebrating the end of the tour

The SuperZip: This Hocking Hills ziplining tour is even more incredible than the final run on the X-treme Zipline! I

almost chickened out, but there was a little kid on the platform riding for the third time.

And, well, I’m just too competitive to let a 10 year old show me up!

Besides, she said it’s the “funnest thing on the planet.”

The hardest part about the Super Zip, besides staring face down at the ground 80 feet below, is getting harnessed in. That contraption is quite elaborate…. Of course, that means it’s also quite secure!

After getting strapped in, riders lie in the contraption face down. Then, the tour operator trips the safety lever releasing riders to fly more than a quarter mile to the finish platform. The rush of that ride was incredible.

When considering canopy zipline tours, there are safety guidelines. Minimum weights are required simply because riders who don’t weigh enough won’t create enough momentum to fly through the course. Maximum height and weight is set for harness safety.

For younger kids too light for the regular canopy zipline tours, Hocking Hills Canopy Tours has designed their own course! Judging by the squeals and laughs I heard, the kids love it!

Called the Dragonfly Tour, this Hocking Hills ziplining adventure course includes eight kid-sized zip lines, three sky bridges and a sky tunnel.

The course uses a “continuous-belay” safety system, the first of its kind in the industry. This technology means there are no transfers from one zip line to another. Kids’ safety harnesses are attached from start to finish.

Dragonfly Tour collage of photos at Hocking Hills Canopy Tours
Dragonfly: Top Left: Kids on the bridge. Top Right: Ready for take-off. Bottom Left: Flying! Bottom Right: A guide watches her bird fly into the nest.

Special rules for the Dragonfly Tour include:

  • • Kids must weigh between 35 and 140 pounds,
  • • The course is designed for ages 5 to 12,
  • • A responsible adult must be on the ground at the Dragonfly at all times,
  • • Kids must wear close toed shoes
  • • Hocking Hills Canopy Tours reserves the right to refuse a rider for medical, safety or other reasons.
Specialty tours and adventures

Hocking Hills ziplining offers nighttime zip tours where participants have head lamps and glow necklaces for a different way to experience the thrill.

They also offer sunrise and sunset tours so guests can see the forest when animals are most active.

Plan your visit to Hocking Hills Canopy Tours

While most canopy ziplining tours run 2.5-3 hours, the prices and tour times vary by experience.

For the complete schedule and to book your Hocking Hills ziplining tour, head over to their website.

And when someone says people can’t fly, you can tell them they’re wrong! They just need to try a canopy zipline tour!

Me smiling in my gear at the Hocking Hills ziplining tour
Look, that’s me smiling!