Climate
Enjoy the park any time of year. When the spring blossoms appear, Northeast Ohio temperatures typically range from 40 to 60 degrees fahrenheit. The warmer summers tend to be sunny and somewhat humid with temperatures in the 70s and 80s fahrenheit occasionally into the 90s. Northeast Ohio autumns provide breathtaking landscapes of the changing color of leaves and temperatures from the 40s to the 60s. During the winter months, downhill ski the slopes or cross-country ski the trails, but dress for temperatures below 30 degrees fahrenheit with windchill factors occasionally driving the experience below 0 fahrenheit. Average precipitation is fairly steady year round from 2.5 to 3.5 inches per month.
Flora and fauna
More than 3,000 species of plants are known to occur in Ohio. Among many other flora, the park boasts maple, oak, birch, beech and hemlock trees. In the autumn, the vibrant colors of the changing leaves are breathtaking, even when viewed from interstate highways. Native wildflowers are abundant and provide a colorful milieu, especially in the spring. Look for Ohio spiderwort, wild hyacinth, trillium, showy orchid, pink ladyâs-slipper, purple wood-sorrel, violets, wild blue phlox and Indian paintbrush among more than 250 species that grow in Ohio. The park is also home to a variety of wildlife, such as beaver, deer and dozens of bird species including wood duck and heron.
Understand
It is the only national park in Ohio. According to the US National Park Service, the Cuyahoga Valley is the 5th most frequently visited park 3,217,935 recreational visits in 2002 in the National Park System.
Though it is a short distance from urban environments, the park is worlds away. The winding Cuyahogaâthe "Crooked River"-was named by Mohawk Native American tribeâgives way to rolling floodplain, steep valley walls and ravines, and lush upland forests. Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a refuge for flora and fauna, and provides both recreation and solitude for Northeast Ohio's residents and visitors.
Landscape
The park encompasses 51 mi² 134 km² and 33,000 acres along the banks of the Cuyahoga River, spanning from the major metropolitan areas of Cleveland and Akron and into the hills of the Allegheney Mountain range. The diverse landscape, including sandstone ledges, 70 waterfalls most notably Brandywine Falls, rolling hills and river gorges, can be viewed from 186 miles of trails.
History
The park has a rich cultural legacy as well. Exhibiting a historical view of the heart of the industrial revolution, visitor centers provide background on the remains of the Ohio & Erie Canal, which traveled through the valley connecting the St. Lawrence Seaway and the East Coast to the Gulf of Mexico via the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sustainable farming ventures help preserve the valley's agricultural heritage. The park offers an array of displays of 19th and early 20th Century sustainable farming while catering to contemporary interests with art exhibits, outdoor concerts and scenic railroad tours. It includes compatible use sites not owned by the federal government, including several Metroparks in Cuyahoga and Summit Counties, Blossom Music Center, and the Hale Farm & Village. In the mid 1980s, the park hosted the National Folk Festival.