Wednesday, July 24, 2024
Cuyahoga National Park - The Waterfalls
The benefits of going to the Visitor's Center and tapping into the knowledge of Park Rangers is always important in visiting National Parks. In the case of Cuyahoga it is crucial. This park more than any other we have ever been to interacts with the MetroPark System. Without that bit of information it is nearly impossible to find some of the best parts of this park. On this day we visited three waterfalls, two of them were within Cleveland MetroParks. The first place we went was Viaduct Park in the Tinker Creek Gorge. Once parked the walk down to the falls was hard to find. We first used a set of stairs to climb on what must have been a railroad bridge at one time. It was a dead end. Once we figured out the proper path it was a relatively easy walk down to the falls with a mixture of paved paths and stairs. The water was low so the falls weren't very full yet they were still beautiful.
There were remnants of an old power plant that were part of the viewing platform.
There were different sets of stairs and what appeared to be an older cave that was blocked off. The lack of signage here made it difficult to interpret much of what we saw. When we came back to the parking lot there were several groups of people who, well, appeared a bit sketchy. There were warnings everywhere about leaving valuables in your car. While we did see several other families who were there to find the waterfalls I was not sure that enjoying the beauty of nature was the goal of all groups present. The way to the waterfall was not very well marked other than a large sign telling us that by the order of police we could not go into the water. If I was alone I likely would not have stopped here.
Our next stop was Bridal Veil Falls. This falls is marked on the Cuyahoga National Park Map AND is also actually located within the MetroPark system. Once you cross the park road, the hike to this one is a short distance on a packed dirt path with several staircases. We met a couple from Michigan who were also visiting the National Park. This falls is a long, slightly curved rock face with a creek flowing over it.
I am sure when the water is really flowing this is a beautiful place. While only a couple miles from the first falls this one felt safe. The path to get to the falls was fairly easy and we saw some wildlife along the way.
The third falls we visited was Brandywine Falls which is clearly marked on the National Park Map. This falls was accessible from several points. There were a lot of stairs which at times were steep, almost ladder-like. The C&O Canal Tow Path is very near these falls which makes the parking lot very popular. We visited in the early afternoon on a Wednesday and it was nearly full. There were many signs indicating that if it was full to park elsewhere which I am sure are used on weekends.
The falls were lovely even with the light flow. This would be a fun falls to visit in many seasons as I am sure they change dramatically as the volume of water and seasons change.
The limestone here also forms small caves that had various ferns and other plants growing in them.
The Cuyahoga Valley Railroad runs for about 15 miles through the bottom half of the National Park. You can access the train from various stops along the track. Many use it as a way to hike or bike one way through the park and then take the train back to their cars. We didn't have our bikes with us on this trip so we opted to do a simple round trip from the Akron station.
We enjoyed the ride and chatting with fellow passengers and the volunteer working in our car along the way.
As our visit ended we scratched off our 22nd National Park off of our list.
Each National Park has its own personality. This one is much closer to an urban center than most of the others we have visited giving it a decidedly different feel. It was unusual to access different parts of the park via interstate instead of a park road. While we enjoyed our visit this park is not one I would put on my list to visit again.
