Cuyahoga Valley

Cuyahoga Valley Where the Sidewalk Ends The Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area (CVN R A) preserves 12,950 hectares (32,000 acres) of pastoral valley along 35 kilometers (22 miles) of the Cuyahoga River between the cities of Cleveland and Akron, Ohio. Rather than a distant and forbidding wilderness, this park is nearby, welcoming, and comfortably familiar, sort of "just down the street and around the block, where the sidewalk ends" for millions of urban Americans. It is easily accessible, yet offers a sharp contrast to its urban surroundings. In a gradually changing environment where fewer and fewer places allow us time and space to rediscover the beauty and meaning of nature, the peace of the countryside, or the substance of our past, the need to protect landscapes that refresh the spirit and restore our perceptions has become one of the most basic requirements of environmental and recreational planning. The Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area preserves such a place, a landscape where recreation can be a process of perceiving and appreciating the roots of our contemporary existence. It is also a place of active recreation where you can refresh body and spirit. It is an educational place, where nature and history study opportunities abound. And it is a place of settings—for artistic events, social gatherings, solitude and creativity. As urban growth continues, as gasoline prices rise, and as living density increases around it, CVNRA will grow in importance and service to people of all cultures and backgrounds. Sculpted by glaciers, streams, and the persistent forces of weather, the Cuyahoga River Valley landscape is an enchanting diversity of river floodplain, steep and gentle valley walls forested by deciduous and evergreen woods, numerous tributaries and their ravines, and upland plateaus, it is home to a wide variety of wildlife and plants, amazingly numerous given their close proximity to major metropolitan and industrial areas. The big animals—the bear, the wolf, the puma—are no longer here. Nor are the vast virgin forests once so characteristic of this region. The Cuyahoga Valley is now a harmonious blend of human and natural history. The bison have been replaced by cows and horses. Forests have been broken up by rolling farmland. Freshwater ponds dot the landscape, and pastures and National Recreation Area Ohio National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior meadows in various stages of succession are interwoven with wooded hills. Remains of the old Ohio and Erie Canal, replaced by railroad and highway, blend into the river and valley scene. Cuyahoga as the major transportation artery and opened up Ohio and the Midwest to commerce and industrialization. The city of Akron was a product of the canal. In 1880, the railroad replaced the canal as the major transportation route for commerce, industry, and travel. Running through the valley, it led to the eventual demise of the canal but caused the growth of the cities. The central and dominant feature of the valley is the Cuyahoga River, named centuries ago by the Indians whose word for it was "ka-ih-ogh-ha," meaning crooked. And crooked it is, throughout its 145 kilometers (90 miles). It rises in Geauga County just 48 kilometers (30 miles) east of its mouth in Cleveland. It flows in a great U, the base being the escarpment on which sits the city of Akron, Ohio. And as it flows, it twists and turns. Not long, nor wide, nor deep, the Cuyahoga has a history that makes it important beyond its size. For centuries the river and its valley have provided a vital transportation route, home, and livelihood for wildlife and man. Prehistoric peoples left behind a legacy of archeological sites throughout the valley. It was neutral ground to many historic Indian tribes, so that all might travel on it from the cold waters of the Great Lakes to the short portage across the watershed divide to reach the Tuscarawas River, connecting to the waters of the Ohio River and the warm South. The river was labelled on New World maps of the 17th century. The Moravian village of Pilgerruh, the first but short-lived white settlement in the valley, was located near the confluence of Tinkers Creek and the river in 1786 just 10 years before Moses Cleaveland and surveyors from Connecticut laid out the Western Reserve for settlement. By treaty between the young United States and Indian tribes, land west of the river was Indian territory until 1805. Early traders and settlers found the river as important as the Indians before them had. Farmers down to the present day have found the valley soil productive and easy to work, and the upper slopes good for orchards. Now the CVNRA preserves farmlands where people can buy corn, pumpkins, and other fresh produce, and where they can watch cattle grazing or sheep being sheared. As the cities grew, the Cuyahoga Valley began taking on a different kind of significance, a place to escape from the less beneficial aspects of the urban environment. Both Cleveland and Akron established metropolitan parks in the valley. Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and inner city organizations established camps here. The Cleveland Symphony Orchestra eventually came to create a summer home at Blossom Music Center. Continuing urbanization, spreading development, population growth, highway improvements and migration to the suburbs became increasing threats to the greenscape, history, and recreational opportunities of the valley. Efforts by private citizens and local and state government to save it grew and gained momentum in the 1960s and early 1970s. These efforts finally crossed paths with major, new National Park Service directions to bring parks to the people by establishing urban recreation areas. In December 1974, Congress created the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area as an urban park of the National Park System. Here the National Park Service is preserving inherent values, retrieving natural landscapes and processes, and restoring historic sites throughout the park where commercialism and development have already intruded. Perhaps one of its most important values is as a symbol and signal of a new relationship between man and his environment. In 1827, the Ohio and Erie Canal was opened between Cleveland and Akron. It paralleled and was partly watered by the river. It replaced the Springtime trillium Summer fishing Fall's harvest Winter tobogganing The Seasons The Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area is a place of diversity. Its character and appearance change from place to place, and it has changed with the events of history. CVNRA also undergoes miraculous changes with the seasons, from spring's wildflowers, through the wide variety of summer activities and spectacular fall color, to winter's beauty and sports. separation from road and car. Through the woodlands, emerging to ford a stream, come horseback riders on bridle paths. snow-laden trees. On extra-cold, sunny mornings hoarfrost sparkles on trees and weeds along the open river. Now the buttons of the sycamore tree and the seed cups of the tulip poplar are stiff against the clear sky. Deer often cross the highway at noon instead of at dawn or dusk. The tracks of a ruffed grouse or raccoon may be seen near one's own footprints in the snow. Spring comes noisily and dramatically to the Cuyahoga Valley as streams filled with melted snow tumble to the river. It comes with a wedge of geese flying northward, a pair of young squirrels experimenting with jumps between bouncing branches, and a green skunk cabbage cone pushing up through mud. Spring brings the triumphant call of the red-winged blackbird in the meadows and the shrill chorus of spring peepers from the ponds and marshes. Willow trees become fountains of pale yellow green; a rosy tint halos the maples. As the air warms and the woods dry, violets spread a purple carpet; tiny spring-beauties nestle among last year's matted leaves; and stalwart trilliums brighten sun-dappled hillsides. Spring is the time to walk the Daffodil Trail when thousands of flowers bloom over a six-week period in the shadow of great, gray beeches. Spring is the time to fly a kite on the wide open hilltops of Kendall Hills and spring is the time to just look and see and wonder at the ever-quickening changes that come to the valley and spread up its slopes. Summer is playtime in the valley. Joggers and cyclists and antique car buffs go back and forth over the flat valley roads along the river. Wanderers find a coolness on the trails of the Virginia Kendall unit of the park, especially at Icebox Cave. Canoeists flash their paddles on the winding river. Families stroll along the towpath of the old canal enjoying the A Management Mosaic The National Park Service manages the CVNRA in cooperation with others who own property within its boundary. While private lands needed for public use are being purchased, much public land has already been donated by the State of Ohio; and while other public lands may he transferred in the future, several other compatible public and private ownerships will continue. This is a continuation of a tradition of public and private cooperation that has deep roots in this valley. The daffodil trail welcomes spring. A craftsman demonstrates his art. Golfers rise to the challenge. Music under summer moonlight makes lasting memories. Summer may dawn early as you join a naturalist for a morning bird walk. Dusk may come late if you picnic on the lawn before a concert at Blossom Music Center. Or w ou me1' s^end the rjav in solitude. Fall is when the woodlands glow with color. Scarlet are the hillsides where the spreading maples stand; rusty are the sturdy oaks. Those splashes of bright yellow are tulip trees. October in the Cuyahoga Valley is truly a spectacle of color. It is a time when you can walk or bicycle the trails, enjoying the rustle of freshly fallen leaves and the crisp cool air and marveling at a bird's nest unseen last summer. Fall is for roadside wonders, too. The browning cattail marks the marsh; the purplish New England aster marks the drylands. Blue chicory shines in the scrubbiest places while yellow goldenrod, white Queen Anne's lace, and golden evening primrose all take turns decorating the landscape. It's time for the last-of-season corn—succulent ears that the Indians introduced to the earliest settlers in the valley. Fall is the smile of fat pumpkins and the clamor of katydid and cricket. Fall brings dense fogs in the valley and crisp stars over the hilltop. It is a pleasurable time for settling in for the long sleep of winter. Through the northern end of the park, cold breezes ripple the waters of the canal. Creeks are rimmed with ever-changing patterns and levels of ice. On open hillsides, any flat object passes for a sled. Saucers, plastic mats, inner tubes, and traditional sleds with runners are all part of the colorful family mix. Flatter areas invite the cross-country skier and showshoer. Fires stoked in winter shelters by park rangers send out their smoky fragrance, a smell of winter, and the promise of warmth. Christmas at Hale Farm is celebrated with the burning of a yule log while carols are sung outdoors. In the old brick homestead, decorations speak of those pioneers who knew the winters of long ago. And soon the air begins to warm and the elusive smell of spring is in the air once again as the cycle of the seasons adds to the miracle and magic of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area. Winter is for the vigorous folk who sled, ski, and toboggan. It is also a time for the photographer as snows define trails and trees while blanketing other natural features. Cardinals add touches of bright red to branches of Youth and scout camps remain independently operated. Commercial recreation enterprises such as ski areas and golf courses continue. The Western Reserve Historical Society maintains its ownership of Hale Farm and Village, as does the Musical Arts Association at Blossom Music Center, and Kent State University at PorthouseTheater. Cleveland Metroparks and the Akron Metropolitan Park District administer several of their units within CVNRA. All of these operations have natural preservation, history, cultural arts, and outdoor recreation purposes similar to and compatible with the National Park Service and help it accomplish its job here. These partners are an important part of the rich diversity of cultural and recreational features of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area and will continue to contribute to its character and the wide range of attractions. Wintertime brings skiing. Steaming through the valley. horsepower puns this plow. Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area is administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. For further information write to the superintendent, whose address is P.O. Box 1 5 8 , Peninsula, O H 44264. Cuyahoga Valley Fall brings tours of schoolchildren. Look at this rock I found." Biking is a popular sport. Keeping each line separate could be difficult. Beside all the fixed programs and facilities, you will continually discover new places to go and things to do throughout the park. Nature walks, campfire programs, arts and crafts, stories, dramatic and musical presentations, and special recreational events change with the seasons. Inquire at the visitor centers or ask rangers for the latest developments and programs. Perhaps more important than all the facilities and events Park and Area Map A local resident watches the passing parade. is how each person creatively finds a way to relax and keep in touch with friends, self, nature, and the past. With its diversity of resources and changing landscapes the park offers a vast array of opportunities. Let your imagination be your guide and always keep in mind that much of the land within the boundaries has yet to be acquired. Some will remain in private ownership through scenic easement. We ask that you They've got the whole world in their hands. "Anyone for frisbee?' respect the rights and privacy of others. If in doubt about ownership, please ask a park ranger or stop in at a visitor center. Remember also that every place is home to some living thing. Please tread carefully and with respect wherever you go—down the street and around the block, where the sidewalk ends. A Guide Getting Around the Park You can move around and through the park in any number of ways, including scenic drives on back country roads, canoeing the river, riding horseback, jogging and skiing. The National Park Service is also experimenting with mass transit and shuttle services to reduce automobile congestion and hazards to pedestrians and wildlife. There are three ways to move about the CVNR A that deserve special notice, however, because they run the length of the park. who want the safety and beauty of a trail for bicycles and pedestrians only should explore the Bike-Hike Trail that runs from Metropark Bedford 32 kilometers (20 miles) south to Kent, Ohio, often touching CVNR A s eastern boundary. Maintained by Cleveland Metroparks and the Akron Metropolitan Park District, this level, surfaced trail follows the former Penn Central railroad bed. Nearly all road crossings provide access. The trail is also good for cross-country skiing in winter. Bicycling is popular on many small, quiet park roads, and especially on Riverview and Akron-Peninsula Roads since they stay in the valley and have few hills. Bicyclists should be very cautious, however, since many of the roads also experience fast automobile traffic. Those A variety of hiking trails explores various portions of the CVNRA. The trails meander over the valley's rural roads, paths, and canal towpath. Details and information of all hiking, skiing, and bicycle trails can be obtained at the various visitor centers. Running the full length of the park and beyond is the historic Cuyahoga Valley Line (fee charged). On summer and autumn weekends, visitors can ride a passenger train pulled by a steam locomotive, and enjoy yet another historic and scenic perspective of the Cuyahoga Valley. This train is owned and operated by private, nonprofit organizations. Ohio and Erie Canal District to Pinery Narrows and Metropark Bedford At the Canal Visitor Center you will find National Park Service rangers to help you with information on the CVNRA and the National Park System. You will also find exhibits, publications, and programs on the history and natural history of the park as well as a schedule of special activities and events. The visitor center is located on Canal Road and is open year-round, seven days a week to answer your questions. At the junction of Hillside and Canal Roads, you will find the Locktender's House. This was an important canal complex, for here, tradition has it, lived the locktender who operated and maintained the adjacent Twelve-Mile Lock, so-called because it is that far from Lake Erie. The house has had a checkered career and has been at various times a hotel, saloon, dance hall, grocery store, and a blacksmith shop. Eventually it will house the National Park Service's museum of the Ohio and Erie Canal, remains of which run 32 kilometers (20 miles) through the heart of the park and comprise one of CVNRA s most important historic resources. All canal features are on the National Register of Historic Places. Metropark Bedford is owned and operated by the Cleveland Metroparks system. The Gorge Parkway winds through this unit and provides an overlook into Tinker's Creek Gorge, a National Landmark. The park contains a marked hiking trail and numerous footpaths, bridle paths, Circle Emerald Riding Stables (fee charged), olayfield and picnic areas and shelters, and the Shawnee Hills Golf Course Driving Range (fee charged). Sledding and cross-country skiing are permitted in winter. Astorhurst Golf Course (fee charged) is nearby and reached off Dunham Road. An early engineering achievement, the Tinkers Creek Aqueduct, was necessary to carry canal water across Tinkers Creek. When the canal was in operation boats floated across this water-filled bridge. Wilson's Mill, the last operating mill on the canal, was originally built in 1853 and known as Alexander's Mill. During the 19th century sawmills and gristmills were common and frequent enterprises along the canal because of the dependable water supply. Although now powered electrically, the mill was originally waterpowered via a horizontal, interior turbine rather than the traditional overshot wheel we are accustomed to seeing. Adjacent to the mill is Fourteen-Mile Lock. along side-by-side reminding the hiker or skier of the evolution of valley transportation systems so vital to the development of Ohio and the Midwest. With imagination your mind wanders over the succession of Indians and French traders plying the river in canoes, family canal boats usurping the river trade, and hooting steam trains eventually overrunning and heralding the end of the slower, more romantic canal days. Emerging once again to the fast-paced network of highways, you are reminded of how roads finally led to the end of railroad supremacy and to the hustle-bustle of the modern world. You may choose to turn around and go back into the nostalgic and tranquil time capsule that is Pinery Narrows. Built in the 1820s, the scenic, red brick Frazee-Hynton House on the hill overlooking the canal was one of the earliest structures in the Cuyahoga Valley. In its day it witnessed both stagecoach and canal traffic. From the Frazee-Hynton House south to the beautiful Ohio 82 bridge, you will find the Pinery Narrows. No road penetrates this quiet and narrowest section of the Cuyahoga Valley, but the 4-kilometer (2/2-mile) trail along the canal towpath does. Here you can get away from it all and let your mind wander back into history. From Ohio 82 north the old Ohio and Erie Canal still is watered. Through the scenic Pinery Narrows the canal, towpath, the river, and the railroad tracks meander Metropark Brecksville to Peninsula Metropark Brecksville, owned and operated by the Cleveland Metroparks, covers an extensive area on the west side of the valley and the uplands. Here you will find hiking trails, bridle paths, stables, playfields, picnic areas, shelters. In the winter Brecksville sets aside special areas for sledding, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. At the Trailside Interpretive Center you can get information on the natural history of the area and meet Metropark naturalists. The Sleepy Hollow Golf Course (fee charged) is located within Metropark Brecksville. South of Metropark Brecksville, at the junction of Riverview and Vaughn Roads, you will discover the quaint remnants of the company town of Jaite. Both the town and nearby papermill, built in 1906, are on the National Register of Historic Places. The company store and houses you see were built for millworkers. The mill itself, on the river a short distance away, is privately owned and continues making paper products in the structure its first employees helped to build. The two downhill ski areas (fee charged) within CVNRA are located in the central section of the park: Brandywine Ski Center oft Highland Road and Boston Mills Ski Area on Riverview Road. These commercial downhill ski areas use snowmakers to prolong the season for experts and beginners. Classes are available and equipment may be bought or rented. Both are developing summer activities to make their facilities of yearround benefit to park visitors. Just east of Boston Mills Ski Area is the historic Ohio and Erie Canal village of Boston Mills. The town grew up with the canal, and together they shared the ups and downs of boom and bust cycles. Jim Brown (1800-65), a famous counterfeiter, lived in and operated from the village. From Ohio 82 south the canal is abandoned and unwatered but you can plainly see the grassy remnant of the canal running through the town alongside the old inn and beside the Cuyahoga River. Much of the property within Boston Mills is privately owned, so please respect property and privacy. The center of the village of Peninsula, although not a part of CVNRA, is surrounded by the park. Its history, architecture, shops and restaurants are a favorite haunt of visitors seeking food or other services, outdoor equipment such as rental bicycles or skis, or a place to browse in arts and crafts shops. Peninsula, once larger than Cleveland, began as a canal town and had its heyday of hotels, bars, and boatbuilding during the canal's active years from 1827 until the railroad came through in 1880. With its restored buildings, the town today is listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. Virginia Kendall With woods and meadows laced with trails connecting piayrieids, picnic areas and sheiiers, caves, and sandstone rock ledges, Virginia Kendall Park is the National Park Service's first operational unit in the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreational Area. We encourage you to make a stop early in your visit to the Happy Days Visitor Center on Ohio 303, east of Peninsula and west of Ohio 8. National Park Service rangers are on duty seven days a week to provide you with information on things to see and do in the park, or to help you plan your visits to other National Park areas across the nation. The rustic Happy Days building which was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s as a day camp for inner-city children, now houses exhibits and a publications sales counter. This building also is the setting for films, slide shows, ranger-ied activities, and special events designed io help you understand and use all park resources. Connected by trails and roads to Happy Days are three other CCC structures. Near the Ledges Shelter are open playfields and a network of trails leading to major geological features, such as rock ledges with hanging gardens and Icebox Cave. The Octagon Shelter is adjacent to open playfields and picnic areas. Many special events are staged here. At Kendall Lake fishing and nature walks are important summer activities. In the winter tobogganing,ice skating, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing are the predominant activities, with Kendall Lake Shelter serving as a winter activity center. Adjacent to Kendall Lake is Kendall Hills. One of the park's major sledding and cross-country skiing areas in winier, the railing hiiis are open recreation areas for flying kites, throwing frisbees, playing field games, and having picnics at other times of the year. Brandywine Golf Course (fee charged) is just south of Peninsula on the Akron-Peninsula Road. Furnace Run to Everett Furnace Run Metropolitan Park is owned and operated by the Akron Metropolitan Park District. The park lies in the valley of a small stream named Furnace Run on the western uplands of the Cuyahoga Valley. Near Brushwood Lake where you can ice skate in winter is a shelter and a picnic area. A number of trails radiate into the park from this point. Sledding and cross-country skiing are also available in winter. Off Brush Road is the Daffodil Trail where every spring thousands of blooming daffodils give a special exuberance to the season. A few kilometers south of Peninsula is Deep Lock Quarry Metropolitan Park, operated by the Akron Metropoli- tan Park District. It contains the remains of the deepest lock on the Ohio and Erie Canal and abandoned sandstone quarries, stones from which have been used as building materials throughout the area for more than a century. The park is an excellent place to watch the spring warbler migrations and to begin a hike north to Peninsula or south to Everett. South of Deep Lock Quarry near the confluence of Furnace Run and the Cuyahoga River you will discover the remains of the old rural village of Everett. The National Park Service hopes to restore Everett and develop it into a living community of artists and craftsmen who will help visitors perceive and experience the Cuyahoga Valley in still different ways. Spanning Furnace Run, near its confluence with the Cuyahoga River, is the site of the last covered bridge in Summit County. The bridge, which was a favorite place for artists and photographers, was washed out in a storm in 1975. Plans are underway to restore it. Hale Farm and Blossom Music Center to O'Neil Woods and Hampton Hills Hale Farm and Village is owned and operated by the Western Reserve Historical Society (fee charged). The farm portion is centered around the 1826 brick farmstead of Jonathan Hale, one of the earliest settlers in the Western Reserve which was land retained, or reserved, by Connecticut for settlement by its citizens. The restoration of Hale Farm is intended to recreate an early Ohio way of life. Across the road from the farm is the Western Reserve Village (fee charged). This is a collection of historic buildings from all over the region that were threatened with destruction and moved here so that they would be preserved. These rescued buildings now reflect the components of a typical village around a green of bygone days. Blacksmiths, potters, spinners, weavers, candlemakers, and glassblowers demonstrate these and other traditional crafts. Also, special events are conducted nearly every weekend from spring through early fall. Popular and classical music fills the warm evening air at Blossom Music Center (fee charged), summer home of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra. A natural grass amphitheater is the setting for traditional picnics before the concert and romantic evenings under the stars. This unit is owned and operated by the Musical Arts Association. Adjacent to Blossom is Kent State University's Porthouse Theater (fee charged) where summer stock includes Shakespeare, Broadway musicals, opera, and other popular drama. the creek. Many of the old farm fields, now untended, are reverting to woodlands. Across the valley to the east lies Hampton Hills Metropolitan Park, a unit of the Akron Metropolitan Park District. Besides a picnic area and playfields, it has a ballfield and hiking trails following Adam's Run. Wildflowers grow in profusion on the stream's banks among the sycamores and black walnuts. O'Neil Woods Metropolitan Park is administered by the Akron Metropolitan Park District. The park has a picnic area, meadows, piayfield and a trail that follows bubbling Yellow Creek for a portion of its distance. Large sycamores and bittersweet cover the bottom lands along GPO 1981-341-578/75