Cuyahoga Valley National Park

We have been traveling to Cleveland regularly for about 5 years now for appointments at Cleveland Clinic for Makenzie. We try to find some fun things to do while we are there each time so it is a little more fun for Makenzie and all of us. This time, one of the things that we did was to go check out Cuyahoga Valley National Park just outside of Cleveland. It is a beautifully preserved valley that surrounds the Cuyahoga River and part of the old Erie Canal. There are hiking and biking trails, skiing during the winter, a train as well as a living farm interpretation area that is open during the summer.

We started our day by dropping by the south end visitor center in Beaver Mills. Beaver Mills is an old settlement where many of the Keel Boats were made for the Canals during the early 1800's. The visitor center has a small interpretation area that talks about the history as well as how they were made. The north end visitor center that we had stopped at one other time talks about the Erie Canal and how it was built. They are both worth a short stop to see. We spent some time talking to the ranger who told us about all the wonderful activities they have at the park. They also have many hiking trails there. 



We decided to do two things in the short time we had available. We first went to Brandywine Falls and walked down to the overlook to view them. It was so pretty there. They had fresh snow on the ground and the sun was brightly shining. Makenzie really enjoyed our "walk in the woods". We then followed River Road and Canal Road the length of about half of the park. It was pretty to see. 

We enjoyed our day there and took some pictures. If you are in the Cleveland or Akron area it is definitely worth your time to drop by and see this unique area that lies so close to a major metropolitan area. Here is a link to the park's home page. Cuyahoga Valley National Park. We will be returning there in the future as our time allows.