Spring Spree for All

Summit County, Ohio Metroparks hosts two Spree for All challenges each year; one in the spring and one in the fall. I participated for the first time in this spring's event and have submitted my request for a lanyard and pin.

The Spree for all is accessible to everyone - walkers, strollers, wheelchairs and even cans can navigate the trails. Some are paved, most of the ones that I did are wide, flat, gravel paths. They're all beautiful and fun to do.

The "Spree for all" trails are often a portion of a larger trail, such as along the Ohio & Erie towpath, and have turnaround signs for the 1/4, 1/2 and 1 mile walks. I went ahead and walked the whole path or trail where it was available, and if that felt too easy for me then went on to another, more challenging trail.

Alder Pond

I started early in May at Goodyear Heights Metro Park. The designated trail there is around Alder Pond. Along the edge of the pond, a cattail marsh provides a wildlife habitat. The pond supports sphagnum moss and yellow birch trees, muskrats, nesting Canada geese and Mallards. Late spring is a great time to view snapping tirtles, some up to 20 pounds, basking in the sun. The park's woods are home to owls and other wildlife. Sounds of the street do introde on the edges of the park, but it's still bucolic and relaxing.

For a good energetic walk I like the Piney Woods trail, a more challenging 2-mile trail through the woods and up and down some fairly steep hills. Some days you even see a few deer. The trial is named for all the pines once planted in the, but they are now giving way to other species including black cherry, oak and tulip trees.

The payoff at the end.

Next I checked out Gorge Metro Park. Now, this is a challenging walk. The designated Spree for All path here is paved and leads to the dam and resulting falls with its picturesque backdrop, but I walked the whole 1.8 miles of muddy, root infested, rocky, ankle-twisting trail and had a great time! I want to go back and take the spur that leads to Mary Campbell cave, where a 12-year old girl was held hostage by Indians from 1759-1764. Fans of geology and rocks would love this trail.

Gorge trail.

The Gorge was cut when glacial debris blocked the former route of the Cuyahoga River (near present-day downtown Akron) and caused the river to find a new course. Today, the rushing water flows over a shale riverbed, between ledges made of sharon conglomerate sandstone. Oak, black gum, tulip and yellow birch trees are common in the woods that cover the valley walls. The trail winds up and down and shows the different layers of sediment in the Gorge.

Close to work in Akron is the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, which has several trail heads each about a mile or two long. I walked from the Mustill Store and Memorial Parkway trailheads. Portions of several of the original locsk remain, and at one stretch the path was built straight through an old lock. The hinges for the doors are still there.

The O&E Canal was built in 1827 and can be directly attributed with the growth of Akron. In a single mile between Akron and the Little Cuyahoga river 15 locks (or "steps") were used.  This canal helped make it possible to ship goods from the Great Lakes to the gulf of Mexico via the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. The canal was abandoned after the flood of 1913. the section through Akron is a little over 9 miles long and stretches from the Cuyahoga River to the Little Cuyahoga River.

Finally, I went to Cascade Valley Park in Cuyahoga Falls and walked the Overlook trail. Since that's a very eash 1/2 mile loop to the cliffs overlooking the Cuyahoga River, I also walked the Oxbow loop connected to it. I enjoyed it very much, but didn't read about it first so I wasn't prepared for the 115 steps that took me back UP to my car! Whew! The views are awesome and even though the actual overlook is closed off, some intrepid hikers have managed to overcome the barriers. I thought I handled the height pretty well myself, but got a bit queasy close to the edge.

The fish in the river here are prey for belted kingfishers and great blue or green-backed herons. Beautiful white trillium grows in the floodplain woods each spring beside wild ginger and several types of violets. Summer and fall wildflowers also flourish, illuminating the landscape.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable spring. I've been to a few other trails and parks in the area, and will post about them soon.