The banks of the State Scenic Kokosing River combine abundant wildlife and tranquil beauty with stories of the past. Sycamore trees have long been fixtures along rivers, with white branches rising from roots that tolerate wet ground, and the first Knox County settlers, arriving by canoe, encountered mammoth sycamores up to 15 feet across, some with hollowed bases large enough to shelter families or livestock. A sycamore along the river trail continues to evoke that history, while the surrounding forest benefits people by filtering pollutants, moderating floods, and preventing bank erosion. The Kokosing Gap Trail was once a railroad that connected Knox County with cities across the nation, and it still offers views of the river and historic features including a pre-1900 trestle and a steam engine farther east.