July 1, 2012 -- To Ohio

A fairly uneventful day-- we headed out on the interstate towards Ohio. 4+ hours later, we arrived at our hotel in Hudson, OH. After a mid-afternoon break at the hotel, and a glass of wine, we decided to head out to check out the area, and pick up some literature for Cuyahoga National Park, which we will visit tomorrow.

Cuyahoga Valley NP preserves and reclaims the rural landscape along the Cuyahoga River between Akron and Cleveland in Northeast Ohio. Actual park development began in the 1910s and 1920s with the establishment of Cleveland and Akron metropolitan park districts. In 1929 the estate of Cleveland businessman Hayward Kendall donated 430 acres and a trust fund to the state of Ohio. Kendall's will stipulated that the "property should be perpetually used for park purposes". It became Virginia Kendall park, in honor of his mother. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps built much of the park's infrastructure.

Although regional parks safeguarded certain places, by the 1960s local people feared that urban sprawl would overwhelm the Cuyahoga Valley's natural beauty. Active citizens joined forces with state and national government staff to find a long term solution. Finally, on December 27, 1974, President Gerald Ford signed the bill establishing the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area. It wasn't until 2000 that the name of the park was changed to Cuyahoga Valley National Park to make it more recognizable as a unit of the national park system.

A 1920s-1930s gas station still in operation, located next door to the park Visitor Center

There are many trails for hiking and biking throughout the park. The Towpath Trail follows the historic route of the Ohio & Erie Canal. Before the canal was built, Ohio was a sparsely settled wilderness where travel was difficult and getting crops to market was nearly impossible. The canal, built between 1825 and 1832, provided a successful transportation route from Cleveland, on Lake Erie, to Portsmouth, on the Ohio River. The canal opened up Ohio to the rest of the settled eastern United States.

The park Visitor Center

After stopping at the visitor center to get this and trail info from the helpful ranger there, we stopped back at our room for another glass of wine, and then went to dinner.

Tomorrow, we will explore. Can't wait!