Deer Creek State Park

To get there,take I-71 southwest from Columbus about 16 miles to the Mt Sterling exit; follow Ohio 56 into Mt. Sterling to the junction with Ohio 207, turn east on 207 and proceed five miles to the lake.

This 1,277-acre lake is located amidst parkland totaling over 7,000 acres. Most parts of the lake are easily reached by a network of all weather access roads. Shorebirds can be found in spring in wet meadows, on the sand beach near the dam and on muddy points of land. In late summer, mudflats appear first in inlets and at the upper end, which can be reached from Ohio 207. Trails through a marsh and a meadow are located near the park office near Dawson Yankeetown Road.

Common Loons, Horned Grebes, Canada Geese, and rafts of ducks are common sights in March and November; Tundra Swans and Double-crested Cormorants are sometimes seen. Great Blue Herons are present most of the year; Green-backed Herons can be found during the warm months and, rarely, an American Bittern is discovered hiding in grassy margins or marshy areas. Notable landbirds that have been seen in the vicinity include the Rough-legged Hawk, Bald Eagle, Great Horned and Barred owls, Whip-poor-will, Pileated Woodpecker, Willow Flycatcher, Cliff Swallow, Loggerhead Shrike,Mourning Warbler, Summer Tanager, and Henslow's Sparrow.

In recent years, flocks of Sandhill Cranes sometimes stop over in their fall migration, usually in November.