There's one night every fall when the fire pit and the sky do the same thing at the same time. On Sunday, October 25, 2026, the Hunter's Moon comes up over the eastern ridges of Hocking Hills within minutes of the 6:36 p.m. sunset — full, orange, and this year a supermoon. Light the fire as it clears the trees and you have the best evening the region offers.
The moon, briefly
The Hunter's Moon is the first full moon after the Harvest Moon, named for the season when the fields were cleared, the game was fat, and the early-rising moon gave hunters light past dusk. In 2026 it reaches full at 12:12 a.m. Eastern on Monday, October 26, which makes Sunday evening the show. It's a supermoon — near the moon's closest approach, a bit larger and brighter than average. And like every autumn full moon it rises only a little later each night, so Saturday the 24th and Monday the 26th are near-identical backups if Sunday clouds over. Our regional site has the full moon guide.
The sequence
| Time | What |
|---|---|
| 5:30 p.m. | Rake the leaves back from the pit. Stack the wood. Fill the bucket. Set the chairs facing east. |
| 6:15 p.m. | Starter and kindling in the pit, unlit. Drinks poured. Everyone outside. |
| 6:36 p.m. | Sunset. Watch the eastern ridge; the moon clears it within minutes, big and orange. |
| 6:45 p.m. | Light the fire as the moon comes up. (Ohio's fall burn restriction lifts at 6 p.m.; you're legal.) |
| 7:30 p.m. | Coals. S'mores, or a skillet on the grate. The moon is high enough to light the yard. |
| 9:00 p.m. | Let it burn down. Hot tub with the lights off; the hollow is silver. |
| Before bed | Water, stir, water. Cold to the touch. |
Why the fire is different under a full moon
A new-moon fire is the only light for a mile; you sit inside a small orange room with the dark pressing in. A full-moon fire is the opposite — the whole hollow is lit in silver, the trees have shadows, you can see the ridge across the valley, and the fire becomes the warm spot in a cold bright landscape instead of the only thing you can see. Keep it modest. A low bed of hardwood coals is the right fire for a night when the sky is doing the work; a roaring blaze washes out the moon the same way porch lights wash out the stars. Turn the porch lights off, too.
The wood for the night
- Oak for the long, even burn — the fire you light at 6:45 is still a bed of coals at 9:30.
- Hickory for heat on a night that will drop into the 30s.
- Cherry or apple for the smell, if you want the evening to have one. Sweet smoke, no sparks.
- Not pine, not green anything, not the cardboard. Softwood pops and throws sparks; on a leaf-covered October night that's a problem, and on a full-moon night it's a distraction. Firewood types has the full breakdown.
Seasoned wood lights in minutes with a starter, which matters when you're trying to have the fire going as the moon clears the trees rather than fifteen minutes after. Every delivery comes with kindling and a starter for that reason.
The view
You need an eastern horizon. Ridge-top cabins with open decks get the moonrise over the next ridge; creek-bottom cabins in the hollows see the moon late and already high. If you're in a hollow, the fix is a fifteen-minute detour: watch the rise from an open pull-off along SR 664 or from John Glenn Astronomy Park a mile from the Old Man's Cave visitor center, then drive back and light the fire. Our cabins site sorts cabins with the moonrise view. And if you want to be on a trail at sunset, the hiking site's sunset-to-moonrise walk gets you back to the car as the moon appears — park trails close at dusk, so that's the legal version.
Book the weekend, not the night
October 23–25 is the peak of the gorge color at Old Man's Cave and Cedar Falls, the Circleville Pumpkin Show is on through Saturday, and the moon is Sunday. It's the fullest weekend of the fall. Stay through Monday if you can; the Sunday-night fire with the crowd already gone home is the quiet version, and Monday morning's fog hike is the reward.
Order the moonrise fire
Oak, hickory, cherry — with kindling and a starter, stacked at your cabin by the 23rd.
Text us to order →Frequently Asked Questions
When is the Hunter's Moon in 2026?
Full at 12:12 a.m. EDT on Monday, October 26, 2026, so the evening of Sunday, October 25 is when to watch. It's a supermoon, and it rises within minutes of the 6:36 p.m. sunset.
Can I have a fire pit fire on the evening of October 25?
Yes. Ohio's fall open-burning restriction runs 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; an evening fire with clean seasoned firewood, attended and put out before bed, is fine. Rake leaves back from the pit first and keep the fire modest so it doesn't wash out the moon.
What firewood is best for a long evening fire?
Seasoned oak for a long, even burn, hickory for heat on a cold night, and cherry or apple for a sweet-smelling smoke. Avoid softwoods and green wood, which pop and throw sparks.