Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Ever feel like you’ve hit a brick wall? After the past few days, that’s exactly how Grammi and I felt about the five or six-hour drive to our next destination. Emotionally spent and facing the daunting task of towing our travel trailer with an untested repair, we lingered until noon before coming up with a new plan: drive for a couple of hours, test the trailer, then find a Harvest Host to spend the night. This way, we would reduce the drive time for the next day and ease back into our journey. Perfect, that’s a plan I can handle. We made the necessary calls to delay our campground reservations and arranged for a stop at a Harvest Host two hours up the road.

For those who don’t know, Harvest Host is a membership-based network of farms, museums, golf courses, wineries, breweries, and more that allow overnight stays with the expectation that you will patronize their business.

Our chosen stop was Valley Vineyards Winery and Brewery in Morrow, Ohio. The drive went smoothly, and the trailer towed like a dream, giving me the confidence to continue our summer adventures.

Inside Valley Vineyards, the food options were limited to pizzas and burgers, but the wide selection of beer and wine was enough to please anyone. We ordered drinks and a pizza at the counter, then settled into a cozy corner table in the dining room. Soon, a young man came in with a guitar and set up on a stage. Were we about to have a private concert? As he started playing, people trickled in and the room came alive. He was good—really good. We ordered more drinks, sang along to the music, and requested some of our favorite tunes, which he played flawlessly. It was just the kind of reset we needed.

The next morning, we hit the highway again. Our destination: Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio, the first of four national parks we have planned for this summer. This national park does not offer RV campsites, but we discovered a nearby municipal park with campsites in the city of Stow. Silver Springs Park in Stow, Ohio, will be our home base for the next four nights while we explore Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Stretching between Cleveland and Akron while following the Cuyahoga River, Cuyahoga Valley National Park is unique. It’s an urban park interwoven with surrounding communities, featuring a dense road network serving both public and private interests. With no entrance gates, there were times I wasn’t even sure if we were still in the park. One moment we would drive through a forest, then a small town, past rolling hills and homes with mailboxes, and back into the forest. Because the park is free and nestled in the midst of suburbia, it is one of the most visited national parks, frequented mostly by locals.

With three days to explore, we were determined to hit all the highlights and experience the park and its surrounding areas. Our first stop was the Visitor Center, where a ranger gave us the lowdown on the best places to visit. Here are the highlights of our adventure:

Cuyahoga Valley Farmers Market

On Saturday, we went to the Cuyahoga Valley Farmers Market, open every Saturday from 9 AM to 12 PM during the summer. Grammi loves farmers’ markets, so this was a must-see.

Set on a grassy field, pop-up tents with white roofs formed rows where vendors sold their wares. In the center, a musician played a medley of tunes, creating a festive atmosphere. The aroma from the food trucks was enticing. Grammi and I checked out every vendor and made a few purchases before heading down the road.

Tents in a Row

Everett Covered Bridge

Ohio once had over 2,000 covered bridges in the 1800s. Everett Covered Bridge is the last remaining covered bridge in Summit County, a historic reminder of the days when wooden bridges were prevalent. The picturesque red structure is a popular destination for visitors, and we found it fascinating.

Peninsula

Peninsula, a bustling little village on the Cuyahoga River in the middle of the national park, has shops, restaurants, bicycle rentals, and a train depot. First settled in 1818, it thrived as a sawmill and grain mill town powered by the river. The Ohio and Erie Canal, and later the Valley Railroad in 1880, brought prosperity.

In Peninsula, we browsed shops, popped into the train depot, and had lunch at the Winking Lizard Tavern. I highly recommend the adult grilled cheese sandwich—it’s a winner!

Winking Lizard Tavern

Try the Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Brandywine Falls

Brandywine Falls, one of the park’s most iconic landmarks, did not disappoint. The hike to the falls is relatively easy, if you don’t mind a few stairs. The 65-foot waterfall is breathtaking, and the boardwalk provides great vantage points for photos. We sat on a bench overlooking the falls. We watched a constant flow of people walk up, take a photo, then walk away. We stayed awhile and listened to the sound of rushing water and felt the cool mist on our faces.

Bridal Veil Falls

We ventured to Bridal Veil Falls. This smaller, enchanting waterfall creates a delicate, lace-like cascade over rocks. The surrounding forest area is perfect for a peaceful walk to relax and enjoy nature. Easy access allowed us to wade in the cool water above the falls.

Great Falls

I’m not sure if this waterfall is in the national park, but it is still worth seeing. We found it in Viaduct Park in the town of Bedford. There is a paved path down to the falls. It’s not a tall waterfall, but it is wide, cascading over a series of ledges. There is evidence of a past structure, possibly an old bridge or mill.

The Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail

The Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail, stretching over 87 miles, follows the historic route of the Ohio & Erie Canal. While the mule teams that once pulled boats along the canal are long gone, thousands of people now hike and bike the towpath each year.

One of our favorite adventures at Cuyahoga Valley National Park was riding our bicycles on the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath. We began by taking our bikes to the Peninsula train depot, where they were loaded onto a train. After a scenic seven-mile train ride through the national park, we disembarked with our bicycles.

The ride back to Peninsula was a wonderful experience. Scenic views of the Cuyahoga River, charming lock structures, and plenty of spots to pause and take in the beauty made for a delightful afternoon. We stopped at a picnic table at the Hunt Farm Visitor Information Center to enjoy our brown bag lunch. Later, we paused at the Beaver Marsh to look for wildlife.

The Beaver Marsh

Beaver Marsh is a beautiful and ecologically significant wetland located within Cuyahoga Valley National Park. It was a wetland in the late 1800s when the Ohio & Erie Canal ran through it. Over time, the land was drained and used for various purposes, most recently a junkyard. In the 1980s, the area underwent a major transformation. Volunteers from the Sierra Club and the National Park Service worked together to clean up the marsh and restore it to its natural state. Beavers, which had been absent from the area for over a century, returned and played a crucial role in the restoration by building dams, creating a wetland habitat. Grammi and I paused here during our Towpath Trail bike ride to see a variety of marsh birds and a giant snapping turtle.

The Canal Exploration Center

The Canal Exploration Center was once a rest stop on the Ohio and Erie Canal. The Gleason family ran a store and a tavern in this building during the mid-1800s. Inside, interactive exhibits tell the story of the canal’s impact on the region’s development. Boats brought consumer goods to the area and left with raw materials produced by the local economy. Life for the people who lived near the canal improved.

Fascinating was Lock 38, located in front of the Exploration Center. A study of the wooden gates revealed how the locks worked to raise and lower the water level.

There were a few places at the park on our list that we didn’t get to but will save for next time:

• The Ledges Trail: Known for its dramatic rock formations and beautiful vistas.
• Blue Hen Falls: Another picturesque waterfall that promises a serene hiking experience.
• Szalay’s Sweet Corn Farm and Market: A local favorite for hot corn-on-the-cob, fresh produce, and homemade goodies. Unfortunately, it wasn’t open for the season yet.

A Local Concert

On Saturday night, we enjoyed some local festivities and went to a concert in the park sponsored by the City of Stow. We set our folding chairs on the grass lawn to watch and listen to a local band. I’m not going to say they were a great band, but they were good enough to get your toes tapping. A few folks even got up to dance. There were food trucks, and before we left, we got something to go for dinner. This was just another way we found to spend an evening while traveling and living on the road. Hmm…someone should write a song about that.

Until next time… happy days and safe travels.