cuyahoga national park.
Cuyahoga National Park is a perfect weekend trip, especially if you live in the Midwest. This urban park is only about forty minutes south of Cleveland. Logan, Charlie, and I ventured to Cuyahoga when I was 8 months pregnant and had a great weekend getaway. We visited on a warm November weekend, right when the leaves were changing color and starting to fall. The weather was cool, we dressed in layers, but it was a perfect time of year to visit.
You really only need one day in the park, though we decided to take our time and spend the night. What’s great about Cuyahoga is the entire park is dog friendly, unlike most other National Parks. Cuyahoga is very unique in that it’s in an urban area. When driving through the park, you’ll drive past neighborhoods and highways - unfortunately, you can hear the sounds of city life on some of the hikes. Cuyahoga is not the most serene park we’ve been too, and it’s probably one we won’t visit regularly, however, if living in the Midwest, Cuyahoga is a great weekend trip, especially with kids or pets. If nothing else, Cuyahoga is simply fun to pronounce!
Where We Hiked: Our GPS was a great navigation tool while in Cuyahoga. Simply search Blue Hen Falls in your maps and you will be taken to a parking lot near the Visitor Center. Once you park, you need to cross the street and you will see the large hill that starts the trail. Blue Hen Falls is a three mile round trip, moderate hike that is fairly steep. If Charlie can do it - you can do it! Keep in mind, I did this hike eight months pregnant, it’s steep for the Midwest but not compared to other parks! When you are near the waterfall, the trail kind of just stops. You will see a service facility and road. You need to walk down the road, cross the street, and you will see the trail again. Once you make it here, the falls are less than five minutes away!
When you are near the waterfall, the trail kind of just stops. You will see a service facility and road. You need to walk down the road, cross the street, and you will see the trail again. Once you make it here, the falls are less than five minutes away!
Blue Hen Falls, November 2021
Near the Blue Hen Falls parking lot, you will see a covered bridge, a visitor center and bathrooms. Take advantage of the public restrooms here, they were the only ones we found within the park.
Cuyahoga National Park, November 2021
Next, we drove to Brandywine Falls. The waterfall does not require any hiking, it’s located right off the parking lot. There is a large lot to park near the trailhead. The trail is paved but there are steps involved. Walk less than a quarter mile and you will see this urban waterfall. This was our last stop of the day before we headed to dinner. In total, you will only want to spend twenty minutes or so here, it’s just a quick stop!
The next morning, we drove to Beaver Marsh. The drive to the marsh took us through farmland and we drove past several barns and forest preserves. On Saturdays in the summer, several of the barns host famer’s markets and have fresh food for lunch. There is a large parking lot near the trail to the marsh and outhouse bathrooms. We walked down the trail until we arrived at the marsh. We saw many birds, (Charlie loved it!) but no beavers, unfortunately. We walked past the marsh and enjoyed the quietness and peacefulness of the trail. The trail goes on for several miles so eventually we turned around.
The last hike we did was the Ledges Trail. Again, the trail had a very large parking lot. The trail itself was 2 miles round trip and extremely dog friendly. There were large rocks we could climb on and canyons we could explore. If you choose to do this trail, make sure to go off trail and explore the gaps between the boulders and fallen trees. This was a really fun and easy hike!
Ledges Trail, 2021
Where We Ate: Once we arrived at the park, we had lunch at Fishers Cafe. Remember, the park is in an urban area so it’s easy to find food! Fishers was less than five minutes from the Blue Hen Falls parking lot. Though it was November, we sat outside on the large patio and enjoyed lunch before starting our hikes.
As we were headed to our hotel in Macedonia, OH, we stumbled upon the town of Hudson. This small town made us feel like we were in a quaint southern town as most of the buildings were colonial style and built with red brick. Hudson had a small little downtown with restaurants and shopping. We had a great dinner at 3 Palms Pizzeria, I highly recommend it!
After finishing at the park, we headed back towards the city of Cuyahoga Falls. We parked the car and stumbled upon Burntwood Tavern. This restaurant had fantastic food and was right on the river. There was a huge patio with rapids literally right below! I don’t know if it’s because I was pregnant or not but all of the food we had on this trip was so, so good!
Breweries: About fifteen minutes south of the park is Cuyahoga Falls, the city. This city has a cute little downtown right along the river and many local restaurants. We sat outside with Charlie at the Hi Ho Brewery. The Brewery was packed - definitely a local hangout spot! I was pregnant at the time but Logan said the beer was great. They had a large dog friendly patio with fire pits.
Where We Stayed: We booked our hotel on our drive to the park! We stayed at La Quinta in Macedonia, OH. Fun fact, all La Quinta’s are dog friendly! Macedonia is a great place to stay if planning on going to the park as it was only about a 15-minute drive north of the park.
Best Time to Visit: Spring, Summer, Fall