The Great Outdoors: Cleveland

Huntington Beach in Bay Village is one of the few public beaches in the greater Cleveland area.

Looking to get active? Cleveland has ample opportunities to enjoy outdoor recreational activities

Cleveland Metroparks

Deemed the “Emerald Necklace around Cleveland,” the Cleveland Metroparks are a continuous system of parks and nature preserves around the greater Cleveland area. Well over 20,000 acres, the Metroparks offer a wide variety of outdoor activities including fishing, hiking, biking and horseback riding. The parks also feature several public golf courses. In addition to outdoor activities, the Metroparks offer various envrionmental centers and nature facilities to help further visitors’ education of the parks. The parks are home to Squire Castle, a gatekeeper’s house that resembles a medieval castle.

Huntington Reservation and Beach

Located less than 40 minutes from campus, Huntington Reservation is a great place to catch some sun with friends and get a little sand between your toes. Part of the Cleveland Metroparks since 1927, Huntington Reservation is located in Bay Village on the shores of Lake Erie. Picnic areas high above the beach offer visitors opportunities to enjoy the striking and ever-changing lake views. Breakwalls allow anglers to fish in Lake Erie during every season. The reservation is also home to three Cleveland Metroparks affiliates: Lake Erie Nature and Science Center, Huntington Playhouse and Baycrafters. During swimming season, Huntington Beach is a popular spot for older kids and families to catch a few rays and to catch up with friends. It is a great spot for a short hike, and its generally level terrain is gentle on the feet. One of the oldest reservations in the Cleveland Metroparks, it sports the Huntington Water Tower, a well-known landmark that was once used as a pump house. English immigrant John Huntington, the previous owner and reservation namesake, built the pump to irrigate his grapes.

Cleveland Metroparks Zoo

The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is a great place to visit. The seventh oldest zoo in the United States, it covers 165 acres and is split up into six different areas: the RainForest, the African Savanna, Northern Trek, the Australian Adventure, and the Primates, Cats, and Aquatics House. The RainForest is one of the most popular exhibits at the zoo. It is contained in a two-story building with over two acres of total floor space, making it one of the largest tropical indoor environments in the world. The RainForest boasts more than 6,000 plants and over 600 animals from the tropical regions of Asia, Africa and the Americas. The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo holds the largest collection of primates in North America and features Monkey Island, a cement island where a large population of Colobus Monkeys are kept in free-range conditions which means there are no cages or walls.
Only a 25-minute drive from campus, admission is $10 and the zoo is open every day from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Some upcoming events include “EarthFest 2008: Party for the Planet” on April 20 that will offer zoo visitors an opportunity to learn about the many environmental issues that face our community while enjoying the backdrop of activities, entertainment and animal exhibits at the zoo. Also, admission is free for those registered in the walk or bike for the Earth, or those who ride the FREE RTA Clean-Air bus from Public Square. International Migratory Bird Day on May 10 allows you to migrate to various stations around the zoo learning about a bird’s journey between its summer and winter homes. There is also a gift shop if you want to pick up some souvenirs to remember your experience.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Ohio’s only national park, the Cuyahoga Valley National Park encompasses a vast tract of land between Cleveland and Akron. The park protects much of the land from development and is home to various terrains including dense forests, rolling hills and rivers. One of the most popular features of the park, the Towpath Trail, allows hikers and walkers a chance to trek on a 20-mile journey. Portions of the trail follow the former Ohio and Erie Canal which carried freight traffic during the mid 19th century. First established by the federal government in 1974, Cuyahoga Valley National Park is well over 30,000 acres and is owned and operated by the National Park Service.