60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Cleveland: Including Akron and Canton - Softcover

Stresing, Diane

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1634042468 ISBN 13: 9781634042468

Verlag: Menasha Ridge Press, 2024

Inhaltsangabe

Get outdoors with this guide to 60 of the best hiking trails within an hour or so from Cleveland, Ohio, leading you to scenic beauty.

The best way to experience Cleveland is by hiking it! Get outdoors with local author and hiking expert Diane Stresing. This full-color guide helps you locate and access the top hikes within 60 miles of CLE. The selected trails transport you to scenic overlooks, wildlife hot spots, and historical settings that renew your spirit and recharge your body.

Immerse yourself in history on the Fort Hill Loop Trail, featuring ancient Indigenous ceremonial grounds and the remains of a prehistoric “monster.” Combine your hike with a lighthouse tour at Fairport Harbor Lakefront Park. Enjoy the scenic hiking paths at Orchard Hills Park, a former golf course converted to a recreational park. Go birding at Bath Nature Preserve. With Diane as your guide, you’ll learn about the area and experience nature through 60 of The Land’s best hikes!

Whether you’re a local looking for new places to explore or a visitor to the area, 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Cleveland provides plenty of options for a couple hours or a full day of adventure, all within an hour or so from the city.

Inside you’ll find:

• A perfect blend of popular routes and hidden gems—all near home
• Expert tips about where to hike and what to expect when you get there
• Key at-a-glance information on distance, difficulty, scenery, traffic, hiking time, and more, so you can quickly and easily learn about each trail
• Detailed directions, GPS-based trail maps, and elevation profiles
• The author’s recommended hikes by category

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Diane Stresing grew up in Columbus, moved to the Cleveland area in 1989, and currently lives in Kent. A genuine Buckeye, Stresing received a BA in journalism from The Ohio State University. When she’s not hiking or biking in northeast Ohio, Diane writes marketing content and features for a variety of clients.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

Downtown Cleveland Highlights

• Distance & Configuration: 3.5-mile loop
• Difficulty: Easy
• Scenery: Landmark buildings (both old and new), our Great Lake, public art
• Exposure: Mostly exposed
• Traffic: Heavy
• Trail Surface: Asphalt
• Hiking Time: 1.5+ hours
• Driving Distance: 9 miles from I-77/I-480 exchange
• Access: 24/7; most shops and all roads and parkways open daily
• Maps: USGS Cleveland North and Cleveland South; street maps posted at Regional Transit Authority stops and map at Towpath Trailhead
• Facilities: Public restrooms and water at Tower City
• Wheelchair Access: Overlook to West Side Market, yes; Columbus Road Bridge, partially
• Contact: Terminal Tower/Tower City guest services: 216-306-0633; Erie Street Cemetery: 216-348-7217; see “Nearby Activities” on page 40 for additional contact information.
• Location: W. Sixth St., Cleveland

This hike is uniquely Cleveland—and it starts at a historical landmark turned shopping mall. Whether you have out-of-town guests who want to see the north coast, or you haven’t been downtown for a while, this mini-tour will put you in a Cleveland state of mind, with stops at stately Public Square, the anything-but-square Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, the Steamship William G. Mather, USS COD, and the home fields of the Browns and the Guardians.

Description

From Tower City’s lower lot, go inside Tower City Center, up the escalator, and wander north through the shopping center’s bright interior. When the Van Sweringen brothers planned the 52-story tower in the 1920s, they worked to sway both public opinion and political decisions to have it constructed to their desired specifications. Built to be the main tower in the Cleveland Union (railroad) Terminal, it was the tallest building outside of New York City from its opening in 1930 until 1967. Today, the tower cum mall-and-office space has far outlived the railroad line for which it was planned (though the Rapid Transit station is still active), yet the building remains a signature flourish on Cleveland’s skyline. For the past decade or so, like so many malls, it has struggled to keep tenants and to attract shoppers. What Tower City has that most malls don’t is the City of Cleveland—a city that will likely find a new way to use the fabulous building. (Stay tuned.)

Exit Tower City Center onto Euclid Avenue, emerging on Public Square. The Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, built in 1894, sits to your right, on the eastern side of Ontario Street. The monument to the almost 10,000 Cleveland-area soldiers who served in the Civil War is as impressive inside as it is from the outside. Go in to learn from the displays and knowledgeable docents.

Continue north across Public Square to the Old Stone Church. Established on the corner of Ontario Street and Rockwell Avenue in 1834, the church has been rebuilt a couple of times since. The building you see today dates to 1855. If your timing is good (don’t interrupt a wedding!), you may be able to go in to appreciate the church’s ornate interior. From the church, follow Ontario north, across St. Clair Avenue, continuing to Lakeside Avenue and the Cuyahoga County Courthouse. As you approach, crane your neck to take in six stately sculptures atop the building’s facade. Various artists created the marble figures in 1911; each honors an individual for their contributions to English law. Simon de Montfort (1208–1265), for example, sculpted by Herbert Adams, created a parliament with two houses, which became the precursor to the House of Commons. Below, bronze busts of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson, both by Karl Bitters, grace opposite sides of the main entrance steps.

With a nod to Hamilton and Jefferson, turn left in front of the courthouse and follow Lakeside Avenue southwest about a block; then turn right onto West Third Street. From the top of the hill, you’ll catch a glimpse of Lake Erie. Follow West Third downhill, passing the Port of Cleveland on your left, and wind around the 31-acre site of the Cleveland Browns Stadium. This may be a good place to get some landscaping ideas: The field is heated to extend the growing season of the grass, and the rest of the area features hardy, attractive, low-maintenance plants.

Follow West Third east as it bends right, heading south onto Erieside Avenue; the 171-foot-tall stadium now stands to your right. Several impressive sculptures dot this part of the walk. Turn left onto North Marginal Road, walking east past the Great Lakes Science Center and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Walk down to Voinivich Park, behind the Science Center, to marvel at the 618-foot-long William G. Mather steamship, a piece of history in striking visual contrast to the futuristic Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, designed by architect I. M. Pei. One of the six script Cleveland signs is neatly positioned with the skyline as its backdrop. It’s a great photo op! You’ll also notice signs advertising the Goodtime III. When in Cleveland, visiting the Mather, Goodtime, and nearby USS COD submarine offers a comprehensive education in the city’s unbreakable connection to the Great Lakes. Tours on any of the three are enjoyable, but the best choice for hikers is a walk-and-crawl-through tour of the USS COD. (See “Nearby Activities” on page 40.)

Continue your walk by turning right, going south on East Ninth Street. You’ll cross over busy OH 2, also known as the Shoreway, and begin to head uphill. Soon you’ll see the always-good-for-a-conversation-starter Free Stamp sculpture at Willard Park, on the north side of Lakeside Avenue. And just south of Lakeside, you’ll find the Galleria. The beautiful mall, modeled to honor Cleveland’s history of interior arcades, has struggled to maintain occupants, but the food court inside the Galleria remains popular with downtown workers and visitors.

Ahead and on your left, at the corner of East Ninth and Superior Avenue, is the Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist. Originally constructed from 1848 to 1852, the current church is part of a complete rebuilding that took place from 1946 to 1948.

From the church, continue south about 0.2 mile to the eastern corner of East Ninth and Euclid Avenue to find downtown Cleveland’s only grocery store. In 2015, Heinen’s opened inside the Cleveland Trust Building after restoring many of the historic features, including the oft-photographed rotunda, where shoppers can sit and enjoy wine, ice cream, and other forms of sustenance. Back outside on East Ninth, continue south across Prospect Avenue to reach Bolivar Road. Progressive Field (known for years as Jacobs Field), home of the Cleveland Guardians, is on your right. Take a few minutes here, between Bolivar and Eagle Avenue, to see some of the interesting sculptures designed for the new ballpark in 1994. Once you’ve peered inside the gates of Progressive Field, return to East Ninth and turn right, heading south again....

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Menasha Ridge Press
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2024
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1634042468
• ISBN 13: 9781634042468
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Auflage: 4
• Anzahl der Seiten: 312
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: gpsr@libri.de; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland