Vermilion River (Ohio)

Vermilion River
The Vermilion River at the community of Birmingham in Erie County
Country	United States
Basin features
Main source	Bailey Lakes, Ohio
River mouth	Lake Erie at Vermilion, Ohio
Basin size	268 sq mi (690 km2)
Physical characteristics
Length	66.9 miles (107.7 km)

The Vermilion River is a river in northern Ohio in the United States. It is 66.9 miles (107.7 km) long and is a tributary of Lake Erie, draining an area of 268 square miles (690 km²). The name alludes to the reddish clay that is the predominant local soil along its route. The river is commonly muddy after rains.

The river receives returns of stocked steelhead trout from the ODNR each fall through spring. This is the western most river, in Ohio, that the ODNR stocks yearly with steelhead trout. During the end of spring the fish return to lake Erie for the summer and will return to the river in the fall. The river is also home to smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, rock bass, channel catfish, bullhead, longnose gar, various suckers, bluegill, sunfish, carp, crappie, freshwater drum, various minnows and darters, crayfish, and a variety of aquatic insects.

The Vermilion River flows from Mud Lake in the town of Bailey Lakes in Ashland County and follows a generally northward course through Huron, Erie and Lorain counties, past the towns of Savannah and Wakeman. It enters Lake Erie in Erie County at the city of Vermilion.

A short distance before the river enters Lake Erie, near State Route 2, it passes through a deep gorge. The Vermilion rest area along the northern (westbound) side of Route 2 features a short nature trail leading to an overview of the gorge. A major archaeological site, known as the Franks Site, sits atop the gorge walls; it was once a large village of the Erie tribe.