Self-Guided Tour and trail maps are available in the Administration/Education Building. They sometimes are found in a holder near the trail map sign. It reads in part as follows: “This 230-acre facility was acquired from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1982. This hatchery has 63 ponds, 13 indoor rearing troughs, 25 acres of wetlands, and 50 wooded acres with 2.5 miles of nature trails. Water is supplied by Buckeye Lake (5,000 gallons per minute capacity) through a 1.5-mile section of the old Ohio Erie Canal. As one of the Division of Wildlife’s “Watchable Wildlife Areas,” the hatchery attracts bird watchers and wildlife enthusiasts.”

To get to the hatchery driving from Columbus, take OH-37 south off I-70, after two miles turn left on OH-79 and go another two miles and turn left on Canal Road; the hatchery is one mile on the right.

To get to the hatchery from the east take I -70 and get off at the Buckeye Lake Newark exit. (Exit 129A), turn right, north, and about .1 mile turn left onto Business OH-79. This turn is shortly after you cross over a river. Drive about .8 mile and look for a brown sign on your left, Fish Hatchery. The street is Cumberland and when it veers left, it becomes Canal Drive. Follow this road and drive under I-70. The entrance to the hatchery will be on your left. (It is the second road on the left.)

Driving from Hebron, take Business OH-79 south from US-40, about .1 mile and you will see a brown sign, Fish Hatchery. The street is Cumberland and when it veers left, it becomes Canal Drive. Follow this road and drive under I-70. The entrance to the hatchery will be on your left. (It is the second road on the left.)

Open all year during daylight hours. Wetland area is closed in the fall on Saturday and Sunday mornings for the Youth Waterfowl Hunt. Dates vary and signs are posted.

The large paved parking lot at the hatchery headquarters is accessed off of Canal Road and is best for birding the containment ponds. However, there is also a small gravel parking area (Coordinates: 39.94244, –82.50832) much closer to the wetlands area. To get to this parking area, turn east on Duck Run Road, which parallels I-70. The entrance to this parking area is well marked. The bald eagles’ nest is only visible from the wetland area–follow signs toward Duck Blind #4, but look east onto private land across the tilled fields. The nest is in a large sycamore tree and is seen reasonably well with binoculars. Shorebirds are usually best found along the edges of the containment ponds, some of which are drained during shorebird migration. Waterfowl can be either in the wetlands or in the containment ponds.

Winter
Red-headed Woodpeckers, Yellow-rumped Warblers, sparrows.
Spring
Shorebirds, waterfowl, all Ohio species of swallows, spring warblers, orioles, Red-headed Woodpeckers.
Summer
Nesting Red-headed Woodpeckers, nesting Spotted Sandpipers, nesting Green Herons.
Fall
Shorebirds, waterfowl, fall warblers, Red-headed Woodpeckers.

The Hebron State Fish Hatchery covers 230 acres. The main activity is the propagation of native sports fish. An extensive list of bird species has been recorded at the hatchery and checklists are often available at a kiosk there.