Hiking with Doc

20201128 – Cuyahoga Valley National Park – Brecksville Reservation

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Date: 11/28/2020 – Distance: 7.4 mi – Elapsed Time: 4.5 hr – Ascent: 755 ft – Descent: 738 ft – Difficulty: Difficult

Brecksville Reservation is actually a Cleveland Metro Park completely within the Cuyahoga Valley National Park on the north west side. At over 3000 acres it’s Cleveland’s largest park and has many miles of trails and lots of deep ravines. The main features are Deer Lick Cave, Chippewa Creek Gorge, and numerous picnic areas. It’s a beautiful section of CVNP.

I started on the north side at the Harriet Keeler Memorial Picnic Area.
Map of the area.
Some historical photos.
The 1930s era Nature Center has lots of information about what you might see here.
Some tall Red Pines here.
Harriet Keeler was a teacher and nature writer with great influence on this area and beyond.
I was heading to the Deer Lick Cave Trail(red on the map), but I had to take a couple other trails to get to where I could pick it up.
Coming into the Meadows Picnic Area where I would pick up the Red Trail.
This trail entrance is right on the south side of the road which comes into the picnic area across from the first shelter.
Looking toward the entrance. Those conical trees are Dawn Redwoods. They lose their needles every year.
I’m finally on the Red Trail heading south toward Deer Lick Cave.
3ft diameter.
The trail is well maintained, even though it’s also shared with a bridle trail(yellow).
Coming into another ravine.
Cool retaining wall.
Red Trail turns right here before the creek.
The turn.
It crosses the creek on a bridge. It’s actually a convergence of two creeks with some shale.
Climbing again out of the ravine.
Here you can see the shale sandstone layers.
The ravines are beautiful here.
Intersecting Meadows Drive. Trail follows the road to the left about 100 yards.
You can see where the trail continues on the other side of the road.
This is a coyote area. Don’t be afraid but be aware especially during the mating season from Jan-Jun when they get territorial.
Be extra aware of falling branches around these dead ash trees.
The trail skirts the edge of Sleepy Hollow Golf Course. There are more Dawn Redwoods there.
More tall Red Pines.
Into another ravine.
Still some fall color.
I believe these are cherries(too sour even for the deer).
This is still a horse trail.
Way up this ravine, at the edge of the golf course, it looks like a cave. Not Deer Lick, but I’m getting close.
The Buckeye Trail joins near Deer Lick Cave.
The Buckeye Trail is always marked in this light blue blaze.
Follow the blue blazes here to get to the cave.
You pass this small cave right before Deer Lick Cave.
The ravine cuts fairly deep here and you see lots of rock.
Coming up on Deer Lick Cave.
At the cave looking back. There is a nice overlook up on the hill.
Deer Lick Cave.
The overlook.
Cave from the overlook.
Continuing on the Red Trail but the Buckeye Trail is still sharing the trail.
This ravine is deep. On the lower left there are some people.
The bridle trail goes left here and the Red Trail Narrows straight.
I needed a potty break so I crossed Valley Parkway toward the Oak Grove Picnic Area. Plus there was another trail(Orange) that I wanted to check out.
Oak Grove Picnic Shelter.
Here’s where I am on the overall map.
This connector trail near the Oak Grove entrance leads to the Orange Trail.
This is on a little spur off the Orange Trail. It’s called My Mountain Overlook.
The pictures don’t do it justice.
This knife edge ridge is about a tenth of a mile long to get to the overlook and is kind of scary as it drops off steeply on both sides.
But what a place.
I think it’s Partridge Berry but the leaves are larger than I’m used to seeing.
After the overlook, the Orange Trail descends to Chippewa Creek Drive.
Chippewa Creek Drive just west of where the creek crossing is.
This creek crossing will flood during a hard rain.
North side of the Chippewa Creek Drive creek crossing you get a good view looking west up into Chippewa Creek Gorge.
This bridge for the Multiuse Trail seems better than the road.
I headed west and was looking for the Green Trail which is the Hemlock Trail which follows the Chippewa Creek Gorge toward the town of Brecksville.
The lower creek is hardwoods.
And you can get right down to Chippewa Creek.
This suspension bridge crosses a side creek.
The Privet still has color and blueberry looking fruit, but poisonous.
The Hemlock Trail follows Chippewa Creek for awhile.
The ferns provide year round green color.
Don’t leave your trash behind.
The Hemlock Trail climbs up to the southern rim of the Chippewa Creek Valley.
I thought it was cool how this root was a circle.
This is why the trail is called the Hemlock Trail.
And it gets steep.
There is whitewater down there.
You can hear it rushing.
Getting steeper.
There is a zip line here.
This is a new trail which isn’t open yet and is supposed to go into the gorge.
See the creek?
This little shelter overlooks the gorge toward a waterfall.
See the bridge in the distance? There is a waterfall there.
Those people shouldn’t be down there.
It’s dangerous down there.
Some history of the gorge.
Here’s where I am on the overall map.
The falls are right under the Brecksville Road bridge.
Chippewa Creek Falls.
Chippewa Creek Falls.
I headed back to that little shelter and took a right which took be back toward the Harriet Keeler Area.
The Harriet Keeler Memorial I was at earlier.
They have some prairie here.
Goldenrod seed heads.
Sometimes they do a controlled burn to keep the prairie true.
This is not a native Ohio rock.

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