I recently have developed a bit of an obsession with National Parks, probably because in a few weeks I will be traveling to Utah and going to all five National Parks there. I’ve been to a few National Parks before, like Petrified Forest National Park, or Mammoth Cave National Park (which I visited on this road trip visiting Unique Kentucky). With the amount of traveling that I’ve done, it’s kind of crazy that I haven’t yet visited the one National Park that is in Ohio, so this week was the time to right that wrong, and thus I finally visited Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
From Columbus, the drive to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, located between Akron and Cleveland, was about two hours. This trip my friend Adam, who accompanied me on the trip to Unique Kentucky, went along. One of the best parts- Cuyahoga Valley National Park is completely dog friendly! So we were able to bring our pups, Oliver and Hank, along with us.
Boston Mills Visitor Center
Our first stop once we arrived was Boston Mill to grab a map to get our bearing. Boston Mill is the main visitor center, and is located in a former store, dating around 1836. The visitor center is where you can get information about the park, buy souvenirs, or see the exhibits about the creation of the park.
Boston used to be a little town, so the remains of some of the buildings are still here. Because of it’s location next to the Cuyahoga River, this town had boat yards, a lumber mill, a brickyard and a warehouse. They were able to ship their wares by use of canal transport. The park still celebrates it’s canal history- hosting demonstrations in the summer. You can also bike or hike along the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail.
Cuyahoga Scenic Railroad
When canals became obsolete, the railroad arrived. (Another place I recently visited, Blackhand Gorge State Nature Preserve, also has a rich history with canals and railroads, and I wrote a lot about the history in my blog). Speaking of trains, another thing you can do while visiting the park is catch a train ride. The Cuyahoga Scenic Railroad runs in the summer, though it is currently closed because of COVID-19. If you do get a chance to visit when the train is running, it is a two and a half hour round trip through the park, and there are three boarding stations. There are coach, first class, and upper dome seats, ranging from $15-$28 for adults, and $10-$23 for children. Visit their site before you go if you are interested in a train ride.
Cuyahoga Valley was originally a National Recreation Area, designated as such in 1974. Then, in 2000, it became a National Park. It is the only National Recreation Area that became a National Park.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park is 32,572-acres, and something that is markedly very different from the other National Parks is that it has small towns within its borders, which includes many city roads and highways. It also has four Cleveland Metroparks, 11 Summit Metroparks and other public attractions. It is very easy to forget that you’re in a National Park- there is no entry fee or gate that you have to go through to enter. Despite these things, it’s no less beautiful.
Brandywine Falls
Our first stop after leaving the visitor center was Brandywine Falls. It is about a 10 minute drive to get there, but there was a large parking lot once we arrived, and bathroom facilities. You could also take a 5 mile hike from the visitor center to Brandywine Falls.
This area is very busy, because the waterfall is probably the main attraction at Cuyahoga Valley National Park. There are several hiking and biking paths that begin from this parking area. We headed right to the boardwalk to see the waterfall, just a short walk away.
The boardwalk allows you a head-on view of the 60 foot waterfall, and it’s incredibly impressive.
The waterfall was once used to supply power to the mills. First at this spot there was a sawmill, and later grist and woolen mills, starting in 1814. The Village of Brandywine grew here because of the mills, and was one of the earliest communities in the area.
Brandywine Gorge Trail
After viewing the waterfall we took the Brandywine Gorge Trail. This 1.5 mile trail leads hikers into the woods surrounding the falls, and over the creek that flows from the falls.
We passed a lot of people who were wading in the water, and there were several who continued along the creek as far as the falls (which is forbidden). Adam and I stuck to the path, which leads up and over the falls.
Once out of the woods, you are exposed to the sun, but pass by a bed & breakfast, the Inn at Brandywine Falls. This house was first owned by James Wallace. Jame was the son of George Wallace, the person who created the first mill.
Continuing on the path, you pass the remains of some of the mills, and get to see the falls from the back. No wonder what the angle, it truly is spectacular.
The Ledges
It is 6 miles from Brandywine Falls to the Ledges, our second destination of the day. The falls were beautiful, but the Ledges was absolutely my favorite part of the day.
Once you park, you pass the Ledges Shelter, and take a path about a quarter mile down. Then, take a right to continue on the Ledges Trail, which is a loop.
Pretty quickly we were walking atop the ledges. There are huge crevasses that look down into the slot canyons. It was beautiful, but be careful! There are no barriers and Adam’s dog Hank almost jumped right off the edge.
After walking along the top, you come to part of the trail where you go left or right. We chose left, because I was so excited to see the ledges up close.
I loved the rock formations, the moss that was growing on the rocks, and the shade from the evergreen trees.
I wanted to explore more up-close, so went to Ice Box Cave. The cave, which is aptly named because of how much cooler it felt, has been closed to the public for about 7 years, because there are bats are dying and they are trying to save them.
This part was so fun- climbing over rocks, exploring the little canyons. There was no one else around, and it felt so cool (literally) during the hot summer day.
Continuing on our hike, the rock walls continue on for about a half mile, and then you come to steps that you can take up to find some picnic tables.
Haskell Run Trail
The ledges trail is about 1.8 miles long, but connects to other trails. These include the Forest Point trail, Pine Grove Trail, and the Haskell Run trail, which we took.
We ended up on the Haskell Run trail because we were seeing signs pointing to ‘happy days’, and that sounded fun. This part of the hike was through the woods, though we did come to a cemetery with some very old gravestones.
The “Happy Days” signs we were seeing ended up leading us to the Happy Days Lodge. After arriving here, we were a little confused about where to continue. After making a few wrong turns and turning back, Adam used a trail app to lead us to an opening in some tall grass that led us back to the Haskell Run trail.
Before long we were back to the ledges, and back to admiring the beauty of it. I loved the trees that were growing from the rocks. I kept asking science teacher Adam how it was possible. How can the trees have exposed roots like this and not fall over?
I also loved the colors on the rocks: blue, green and orange. Adam is a physics teacher so he wasn’t able to give me the answers. I looked up some information about the geology and history of the area, but it’s too much to explain here. To sum it up, Ice Age, sedimentary rock, shale, and voilà- Cuyahoga National Park.
Luckily, you don’t need to understand the science behind it to appreciate the beauty.
And Oliver very much enjoyed it too!
This hike also leads to the Ledge’s Overlook, the most popular overlook in the park. From here you can get unobstructed views across the valley.
Missing Mountain Brewing Company
If you have read my other blogs, you know I love to follow up a hiking trip with a cold refreshment. This time, having the dogs with us, we had to make sure we found a patio that allowed dogs. We found that at Missing Mountain Brewing Company, in Cuyahoga Falls, about 15 minutes away.
Opened in 2018 and located right on the Cuyahoga River, Missing Mountain Brewing Company offered lots of outside seating, and it was beautiful!
Missing Mountain also offers wine, liquors, and meads, and they have a decent food selection. There are mostly sandwiches and salads, but they also had cauliflower crust pizza- which I ordered. Adam chose a cuban sandwich.
I hope you enjoyed my blog about Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Hopefully you’ll get to visit soon. It was so stunning, with great hiking and biking options. The dogs were thoroughly pooped afterwards, but it was so great to be able to bring them along.
Leave me a comment and let me know if you have any suggestion for more Ohio road trips. Until next time!
-Catching Katie
Not sure if you have your Natl Park Passport book, but they also have a “Bark Ranger” tag/patch/program for dogs as well! My parents got their dog one yesterday at Hopewell. I get my passport stamped for the parks, as well as the memorials, monuments, etc. LOVED all the Natl Park places to go in Ohio!
The Ohio Historical Sites are great places to check out too and they have a passport as well.
I don’t have a book, I thought about it this last time. In two weeks I’m going to all the national parks in Utah, so I’ll have to start. I love historical monuments too! Do you have one you like best?
[…] Park. Check out my blog for other National Park trips, like Petrified Forest in Arizona, or Cuyahoga Valley in Ohio. And stay tuned for upcoming blogs about the other National Parks we visited on our […]