Marie and I had scouted out the end point for this day after the previous day's hiking because it was in downtown Akron and we wanted to be sure she knew where to actually find me after hiking. Good thing we did this. The blocks right where I was planning to end at a park at Lock 1 were all under renovation. The trail was closed and diverted to sidewalks. However, the worst of that was going to be the following day.
My day began with nice trail through O'Neill Woods. The blazing and description left a little to be desired and I walked in a loop nearly back to where I began, but noticed I was mostly walking north, so turned around and backtracked. This time I found the turn to continue south. Can't complain much in cool woods though. We got me out early to avoid the heat of the day.
Just a short distance past the woods we had the next reason to be somewhat thankful that Marie was doing car instead of walking. The NPS volunteer on the train ride had been interested in our hike, and he said he'd heard that Buckeye hikers were not being allowed through the culvert under the Cleveland-Akron sewer pipe.
Let me go down a bunny trail and tell you about this pipe. It's huge, and it's partially buried along most of its 40 mile length. Here is a section looking like a surfacing submarine beside the trail.
Anyway, a long stretch of the pipe was being uncovered and repaired, and it turned out to be at the place where the trail I wanted used that culvert, and they had closed it for the duration. Period.
I think this picture from that exact corner says it all. Hiker down.
So I hiked as close as I could, then Marie picked me up and took me around by road to the corner where I entered Sand Run Metropark. That park was beautiful (and hilly), and it was to be my last miles that weren't towpath trail, so I savored them. This little waterfall was interesting with clay from the night's rain making it look milky.
While walking through Sand Run, I crossed the Portage Path and saw one of the markers!
Coming into Akron there were lots of interpretive panels with historic information. This high trestle was the first steel bridge to cross the Cuyahoga Valley, built in 1915.
There were quite a few small parks, or at least plantings along the way. This is the only really barren concrete jungle type of pathway and it didn't last very long. I wouldn't want to do a lot of this, but it has a sort of unique beauty.
The trail (not a detour) is on city sidewalks for about three blocks and passes this mural which was actually being painted as I walked by.
I found Marie without any problems at all, and since there was only the one car to deal with we bustled off to check out the next day's end point too. We are good at car adventures.
Total miles to this point: 105.3
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1 comment:
Milky waterfall? Sounds interesting. Willy Wonka said his company was the only one to aerate chocolate in a waterfall. Now that would have a different look to it.
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