Cuyahoga Valley National Park: Having Fun the Natural Way
By Carol J. Spears
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Residents of Northeast Ohio have a rare national treasure on their doorsteps: Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP). This protected sliver of green space between Cleveland and Akron contains everything needed to enrich the whole, human self. For the mind, there is an array of educational programs, exhibits and written material to discover the precious natural world and human history of the valley. Available for the body is a host of recreational challenges from easy to strenuous, away from the artificial confines of an indoor gym. (Remember the freedom of actually playing outside?) And for the spirit there is the music of the many small creeks and clear songs of the birds that provides the surround-sound backdrop for meditation, rejoicing and rekindling one's awareness of our connection to all earthly life.

Congress created the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area in 1975, setting aside 33,000 acres situated in between the rapidly expanding urban centers of Akron and Cleveland; it had a name change in 2000 to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. As described in the establishing federal law, it was created for “…the purpose of preserving and protecting for public use and enjoyment the historic, scenic, natural and recreational values of the Cuyahoga River and the adjacent lands of the Cuyahoga Valley…” Extending 22 miles along the valley corridor of the Cuyahoga River, its steep and rough topography saved the valley from full-scale development up to the time of its national-park service management. The park is a shining example of close collaboration between the federal government and a multitude of local governments, private individuals, cottage industries and non-profits.

Experiencing the natural world while hiking through the more than 125 miles of trails in Cuyahoga Valley National Park is like nibbling from a sampler plate of all the different natural habitats in Northeast Ohio with specific groupings of plants and corresponding physical parameters, e.g. soil type, moisture, temp-erature. The riparian (waterway) habitat close to the river supports floodplain-tolerant species of plants and animals. There a naturally oc-curring beaver marsh is home to great blue herons and redwing blackbirds. Marching up the precipitous valley slopes are the beech-maple forests, which are tolerant of moist soils. Spread atop the valley are the oak-hickory woods that are home to the accompanying spectrum of wildlife living in well-drained, drier conditions. In sporadic sections of sandstone outcroppings are the relict populations of hemlock, a conifer that relies on the cool, moist microclimate created by the sandstone mimicking its ancient, post-glacial habitat. Wonderfully diverse old farm fields delight the senses with their combination of meadows edged with young forests and spotty ponds and a multitude of colors, smells, sounds and textures.

For more than 12,000 years successions of people have made the Cuyahoga River valley their home, leaving behind personal stories, dreams and bits and pieces of their lives. Historians have recreated the tales of the Native Americans, early-European explorers, homestead settlers, canal-era workers and farmers who once populated this area. National Park Service ranger interpreters share these stories to help park visitors gain a sense of, and appreciation for, these diverse individuals who have walked through the valley over the past many thousands of years.

And what fun things can you do in Ohio's only national park? Hiking, biking, jogging, horseback-riding (no stable rentals), golfing, skiing downhill and cross-country, picnicking, kite flying, bird watching, star gazing, wildflower viewing, open-space games of your own imagination or organized in softball, football, croquet – are all available for you to enjoy. The embrace of the earth and sky also inspires artwork, poetry, journaling, meditating, dancing, laughing, breathing deeply, thinking and reverence.

Mary Pat Doorley, CVNP spokesperson, says, “The Park hosts many different types of public programs this summer, including free outdoor concerts at Howe Meadow featuring Zydeco-Cajun-New Orleans, bluegrass and Celtic music, as well as African drumming. Cuyahoga Valley National Park is available for people to come to renew mind, body and soul. It is a place where you can grow as a person through individual reflection while hiking on a trail, visiting the beaver marsh at sunrise or biking on the towpath under the light of the moon.”
Make this summer the time that you discover a treasure that is in your own backyard – Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
For more information about Cuyahoga National Park, its summer programs and its schedules, visit www.nps.gov/cuva or www.dayinthevalley.com, or call (216) 524-1497 or (800) 445-9667.

Carol J. Spears has worked for the National Park Service since 1980. Currently, she is the Site Manager at James A. Garfield National Historic Site and First Ladies National Historic Site. She also is a holistic practitioner of Reiki energy healing and therapeutic harp music. Carol can be contacted at (440) 639-9958.

Take Only Memories, Leave Only Footprints
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The outdoors is an exceptional place to be. However, as sojourners you must realize that everything you do can impact the natural environment. For example, although your apple core is biodegradable, it was not originally along the trail where you have stopped for a snack. Another low-impact consideration is the importance of staying on marked trails or, in some desert locations, hiking in each other's footprints.

In 1990, the U.S. Forest Service and the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) united to create an educational curriculum called Leave No Trace (LNT). The program also partners with federal land-management agencies, outdoor educators, conservation groups, manufacturers, outdoor retailers, user groups and individuals who share a commitment to preserve and protect public lands. Outdoor educators, land managers and outfitters trained in LNT, as well as books you can read on your own, provide helpful guidance on the dos and don'ts of the outdoors so that you can have a clear conscience that you are enjoying yourself while also not harming the natural world.

For more information about Leave No Trace, visit www.lnt.org or call (800) 332-4100.