Two Hours at Cuyahoga Valley National Park

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After a fun- and family-filled few days at Hocking Hills, we had a new destination today: Cuyahoga Valley National Park. We set out from Hocking Hills around 9am. The drive was very windy at first as we were driving through all of the hills. Joanna started to feel car sick, so we stopped at a random gas station in Columbus and hung out there until she began to rally. The drive was all interstate after Columbus, so she fared much better from that point on.

Driving from Columbus to the Cleveland area was an easy drive north, and the drive had plenty of trees to keep it feeling forested and interesting. Cuyahoga Valley National Park is just south of Cleveland, and the entrance is basically in the suburbs. In fact, it appeared to us that some people's houses were located within the borders of the national park. Perhaps they were grandfathered in?

We started out at the Brandywine Gorge Falls Trailhead. The parking area wasn't particularly big, and I'd read that it's a good idea to get there early before it fills up. We arrived mid-day. There weren't many spots available, but there were a few, and we parked without any problem. The area is filled with native plants and wildflowers that were flowering. There's a nice bathroom, and there are two trail entrances. We checked out the trail map by the bathroom. The 1.5-mile hike we wanted to do was a loop, so we could start at either entrance and finish at the other. Most people were starting at the entrance near the bathrooms, but that means they'd see the falls at the very end of their hike. We decided to go the other way to see the falls right away.

Our entrance was close to the cars, and we started out on a boardwalk. We took the stairs down to see the falls, which were impressive and beautiful. We worked our way back up to the boardwalk and started our hike. We walked by the ruins of the old power plant, and then it turned to a path that led us out near a road. It was sunny with a few trees that people were picnicking under. We then returned to the forest for most of the remainder of the hike. There were a few places where you could get up close to the Brandywine Creek, and we crossed a bridge over the creek, too. There were a few sets of stairs in the hike, and the ground was uneven and had tree roots at times, but, with those exceptions, it's a fairly easy hike. We came to a few forks in the trail during our hike. I guess the Brandywine Gorge Trail merges with the Stanford Trail at a few points. Thankfully, they're labeled. We made sure to follow the signs for Brandywine Falls to keep on our loop and had no issue, although once we pulled out Andrew's phone to confirm we were on the right path (we were!).

At the end of our hike, we set out for the visitor's center, where we got our cancelation stamps. We liked our visit at the national park. It's pretty, and it's easy to visit. I'm not sure that I would plan a vacation to Cuyahoga National Park, but it's worth stopping for a few hours if you're in the area! Oddly enough, we thought that Hocking Hills State Park was more interesting and beautiful to see, but we're glad we did both!

After getting our cancelation stamps, we got back on the road to drive to Erie, Pennsylvania, for the night. Erie is less than a two hour drive from Cuyahoga State Park, and it's right on Lake Erie. I don't know Lake Erie geography well but have learned more for this trip. Basically on the northwest part of the lake, you have Detroit. On the southwest part of the lake, you have Toledo. Then, along the southern part of the lake from Toledo, there is Sandusky, then Cleveland, then Erie. Buffalo is on the eastern part of the lake. We probably could have made it to Buffalo, but I didn't want to be pressed for time at the national park, so we pre-booked our hotel in Erie.

Like all of the Great Lakes, Lake Erie is enormous, and you can't see to the other side of it. Our hotel is right on the lake, and there is a peninsula of land that stretches out in front of us, giving us the illusion that it's a much smaller lake than it is! We've enjoyed our time at the hotel. It's very peaceful with sailboats and even riverboats out on the water. There are a lot of people out walking their dogs or taking a jog along the lake. The downtown area is charming. I wish we had more time to explore Erie, as it seems to be a really nice, small city, but we have plans to get to Niagara Falls tomorrow. I have a feeling we will enjoy that, too! Pictures of Erie are included below!

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Photos

Brandywine Gorge Falls
Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Lake Erie View
The land across the water is just a peninsula. The lake extends far beyond there, and you can't see the other side to Canada.