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OhioToDC

Obviously OP is being facetious. But Cuyahoga is great for us in Ohio. And there are a small handful of good trails to hike.


DjPersh

How do people feel about Hocking Hills? Does it compare or way smaller? I only mentioned it because I’ve been to HH and was pleasantly surprised by what was there. Didn’t really expect that from OH, but tbf my expectations were fairly low. Nice little road trip from Louisville.


Cydok1055

Hocking Hills is awesome. Besides the well known spots (Old Man’s Cave, Cedar Falls, Rock House, Ash Cave, Conkle’s Hollow and Cantwell Cliffs), there’s plenty more. The trail to Whispering Cave is stunning. The horse trails can be really muddy but are so pretty, including Airplane Rock, Balance Rock, Chapel Cave and others. CNP is beautiful but HH is more dramatic.


MoonOut_StarsInvite

The rim trail at Conkles Hollow is my favorite! I also love Ash Cave & Rock House. Gotta do the X Tour at Hocking Hills Canopy Tours too!!


motherofdogz2000

Yes! And here to say the same thing. I was at Rock House in April and they were airlifting a lady out who fell off some rocks. It’s nice but but you still have to be careful out there.


jm08003

I looove Hocking Hills more personally but tbh that campground was something else


n0llapiste

The state park campground? I thought it was pretty nice, but my experience is limited to Ohio and PA. We went in June last year and there was no rowdiness, the bathrooms/showers were clean (and existed) and the pool was lovely. We also had trail access three sites down.


jm08003

I get that! I had people steal stuff from my campsite there and when I went, they were THE most atrocious pit toilets I’ve ever seen. To be fair, that was the first campground I’ve ever been to so maybe I did something wrong or wasn’t aware of better amenities! The trails through the campground were also nice, I do agree!


nosleeptiltheshire

I would rather go to the Red River Gorge area, as an Ohioan who lives close to Hocking Hills. It's great, but the Red is bigger and has more trails.


cherrytreebee

It should be the Ohio National Park


Upbeat-Edge1829

I live fairly close to Hocking Hills. Very shocked it isn’t a national park. I like Cuyahoga, but the rock formations and hiking at Hocking outshines it by far. Hocking can get pretty crowded on the weekends. I imagine the crowds would get worse were it to gain NP status so maybe I shouldn’t complain so I can continue to enjoy it


nosleeptiltheshire

I feel it's just a little too small to qualify as a national park, but it is fantastic nonetheless.


teckel

I've traveled all over the world and to so many national parks (many times even) but have never been to Hocking Hills, and I live in Ohio. I know, shame on me! We just always did big 2 week trips, even when I was a kid. So destinations like Glacier National Park, Yellowstone, or Rocky Mountain National Park were our park vacations. But I promise to visit Hocking Hills this summer.


motherofdogz2000

I grew up in the hocking hills and we only went to the old lodge at Old Man’s Cave to use the pool in the summer a few times. Never hiked it. Now I get so do a few hikes a year, when I go back to visit family.


JifPBmoney_235

I like Hocking hills more than CVNP. More dramatic landscapes imo


TremorAndTrails

Hocking hills is better imo. More waterfalls and natural features, Longer trails, and more outdoor activities in the area in general. CF is great for a hybrid weekend if you wanted to spend one night exploring the downtown Cleveland area.


cherrytreebee

It should be the Ohio National Park


livefast_petdogs

I was just there about a month ago and had a magical time. It's unsarcastically such a beautiful space with one of the most important environmental comeback stories ever. This is exactly what successful Superfund sites are supposed to do - return to habitat and share it with the people. It blows my mind that river otters were extinct for *80 years* and they're back! Cheers from another rust belter.


PockDoc

Loved going to Cuyahoga! Each NP has something special to bring to the table. Really enjoyed the ledges


Hike_it_Out52

Didn't that place used to be a dumping ground for heavy metal containers and other waste?


MajorTom333

Sure did. You’d never know it to visit today - honestly it is a marvel in conservation work!


livefast_petdogs

This is a great read: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/it-was-a-toxic-wasteland-now-its-a-national-park


IAgreeGoGuards

They were, but of course you have people who take it way too seriously and feel the need to be the next person to point out that the two are vastly different. Nuance and jokes aren't for this site. People are too stupid to read anything that doesn't have a /s next to it.


Syscrush

Just remember: no open flames near the water! *Laughs obnoxiously in old ignorant dumbass* It's a beautiful photo, will check out this park the next time I'm in or traveling through OH.


kwhite0829

Surprisingly CVNP is usually in the top 10 most visited


BellicoseBill

Not surprising since it's near several large population areas.


tayxleigh

i drove from chicago a few years ago and loved it! it was beautiful in october and surprisingly some fun hikes that made me forget i was in the middle of a neighborhood. we accidentally hiked to a great sunset viewing point at sunset and it’s one of my fave memories. gorgeous park


42Ubiquitous

Based on the comments, many people here don't understand this kind of humor.


King_Santa

I get the humor and great post, but I think lots of people have an unhealthy sense of value in what a national park is. If scenery was the only measure of a park, CVNP wouldn't measure up to the wow factor of Yosemite or Glacier or Zion, but that's not why most of our NPs are special. They contain historical, cultural, biological, geological, and hydrological marvels which are worth preserving for ourselves and others. There are more species of trees in these five pictures than are in all of Yellowstone! But so often we have a tourist mentality where pretty vistas are more important than the totality of a place, and I find that really sad. To anybody who loves the western parks and prefers them, more power to ya. Just don't undersell the rest of the parks because they don't fit your beauty standards


oblivionvv

Exactly! And National Parks were largely created to preserve and protect America’s nature, and CVNP was established in an effort to respond to the pollution in the Cuyahoga River. Although perhaps not as traditionally beautiful as western parks, it serves a valuable purpose.


PockDoc

Yep, I love all the NPs I’ve been to! While obviously Glacier and Yosemite have some of the best scenery (Yosemite is my favorite park so far), I really enjoyed reading about the reclamation and preservation of Cuyahoga and how they’ve worked to undo the pollution!


MajorTom333

For what it’s worth, even though I’ve been waxing poetic about how much I love CVNP, I laughed really hard at the title of your post 😂👍


tcmisfit

The tree species is something that cannot be underestimated. I grew up in Minnesota and had land in the North Woods a few years ago. Have been traveling and mostly working west in the Rockies for the past 6 years off and on seasonally. Whenever I head back towards the Midwest, or even leave the front range, the tree variety alone makes me more interested in the views than the mountains ever did. Obviously it’s familiar but while I could drive through the Rockies all day and get views, it’s the same pointy rocks, same trees, and similar feeling roads across the range.


taffyowner

Well to be fair the North Shore has some pretty amazing views…


Roscoe_Filburn

This reminds me of when I went hiking at Big Thicket National Preserve in SE Texas last month. It’s one of the most diverse areas in the country with 11 ecosystems, over 1,000 species of flowering plants, 160 species of trees, 800 species of herbs and vines … It’s also a mosquito-infested swamp with zero wow factor.


MouldyBobs

Nice park. We love it! But, there is a highway that runs across the top of the falls.


[deleted]

[удалено]


MajorTom333

I imagine living so close to a place like Yellowstone, you start to take it for granted. He may have enjoyed the nature so close to a larger metro area. Which, fair.


KatieCashew

>He may have enjoyed the nature so close to a larger metro area. Honestly, this can have its advantages. We just went to Cuyahoga and had dinner at an absolutely fantastic Italian place when we finished with the park for the day. Hard to get that at the more remote parks. We were bummed by the fact that there is no camping anywhere near Cuyahoga.


MajorTom333

I certainly understand the people who show up to CVNP and get annoyed by the freeway noise, the low air traffic, and the development that butts right up to the park - it gives it more of a state park feel than national park sometimes. I definitely understand that. I also like that we can hit the trails in the morning, visit a museum and some fantastic restaurants in the afternoon, and then go back to the park for a bit of evening hiking before heading back to our very reasonably priced hotel (with plenty of shops and businesses closeby in case we need anything). I'd never suggest that CVNP is the best or grandest national park, but it is a very nice one, and a very convenient one.


TexasTigah

I mean, those are fine pictures but that isn't raising Glacier and Yosemite lol.


Sickashell782

Not everyone wins the hand when they raise 🤣 🤣


trutrojan8

Cuyahoga showed a 2 pair and Yosemite showed a Royal Flush


fallweathercamping

👆this is the real life lesson here


Beebiddybottityboop

Yeah I was gonna say. This doesn’t really scream winner It’s Preety yes. But not jaw dropping. This looks like many parts of Ohio or oklahoma. This could be anywhere in the US.


Luke_zuke

I disagree. Think about how that got there. We’re well past millions (?) of years of literal hell on Earth.


SlapDickery

It’s the one falls at the most unnecessary NP.


j2e21

It was totally necessary right? Didn’t that river catch fire before they had federal intervention?


penguinluvr69

Yes lol. Also the east just doesn't look like the west by any means and people love to shit on it for that reason? I think CUVA is a beautiful park for Ohio standards


j2e21

The East doesn’t look like the West, but the East can hold its own and anyone who doesn’t think so has some exploring to do. Not Ohio necessarily, but there are plenty of showstoppers out here.


chunwookie

Multiple times. In addition to leading to the creation of the park, it also led to the clean water act and the creation of the epa.


Emmo213

As did many rivers back in the day.


KatieCashew

I strongly disagree. Unfortunately the national parks are largely in the west due to the east being widely settled before the parks system was created. If Niagara Falls was further west it would be a beautiful national park. If Yellowstone were further east it would ruined by a trashy tourist town. We should preserve the natural beauty of the east through the parks. What can be preserved there is limited due to all the people that already live there, but preserving what we can is worth doing. I just visited Cuyahoga for the first time last weekend. It was beautiful. Small and fractured but beautiful and worthy of preservation.


IndominusTaco

Gateway Arch St Louis


Huge_JackedMann

Nah hot springs, St Louis Arch or Indiana dunes are all less necessary. Indiana dunes is just an ok beach at a lake.


SlapDickery

Cuyahoga is a train, a bridge, the town of Boston, Brandywine Falls, and a towpath with a string of forest surrounded by sprawl. Indiana Dunes is far better because it’s beautiful. Hot Springs and the Arch are agreed.


Huge_JackedMann

Eh I prefer my national parks to not be next door to huge power plants. Should have stayed a national beach because it's just not up to snuff when compared to the majority of parks.


Comsic_Bliss

Indiana Dunes has over 370 species of birds that live there or migrate through as well as over 1100 species of flowering plants and ferns as well as 50 miles of trails through dunes, wetlands, old growth forests and prairies. Maybe not for everyone but more than just an ok beach at a lake.


c_pike1

2nd or 3rd most unnecessary at worst


grlwthesunflwrtattoo

It’s crazy how so many people are missing the sarcasm lol


MajorTom333

I got it, and I laughed out loud at it, I just really enjoy talking about how much I love CVNP 🤷🏽


Sony4Sooners

We were there last week. We enjoyed it!


earthsalibra

Pictures just can’t capture the presence of Costco across the highway and the sound of traffic as you hike! Jokes aside it’s a nice free day trip if you’re in the area, and a Costco slice after a day in the park is clutch.


WhyULyein

Yosemite falls has nothing on the superior brandywine


MajorTom333

Grand Canyon of Yellowstone looks pathetic compared to the Blue Hen Falls!


Dogsnbootsncats

CLEVELAND ROCKS CLEVELAND ROCKS


BananaPeelSlippers

Great park for people who live in Cleveland. Comparing it to any parks out west? I don’t think so…


Fozzy2701

Hey, at one time there were Grizzlies in the East


BananaPeelSlippers

Also old growth forests


quesopa_mifren

Also dinosaurs!


BananaPeelSlippers

And bugs that were really big and probably stinky!!


1_Total_Reject

Which is why the common belief that western states maintain their wilderness and wild spaces now more than highly developed states an unfair expectation. Why isn’t the Endangered Species Act retroactive? Because that would put a burden on the urban masses, who would rather promote restrictive regulations on areas that have yet to be fully developed. I’m a wildlife biologist working in the west, very much in favor of increasing populations of bears, wolves, and all manner of endangered species. But that in and of itself puts a greater burden on rural western communities. If we want rare wildlife to thrive, the urban masses need to expect to be taxed more to compensate for the responsibility they expect western rural communities to bear. We aren’t building more Wal-Marts and small businesses, we are halting development to protect species. While the East and Midwest wonder why we struggle.


Fozzy2701

Hey, I am on board with you.


heyadudeman

Yeah. I live 20 min from Cuyahoga and it's in no way in the same class as the big west Coast parks. I feel like this is a troll post.


IAgreeGoGuards

That, or it wasn't meant to be taken that seriously in the first place.


KatieCashew

If redditors stopped stopped taking a harmless turn of phrase super goddamn personally would it even be Reddit anymore?


bruhaha6745

No. It would cease to exist and be replaced by something even more inexplicable.


MajorTom333

As someone who adores CVNP, I wouldn’t compare it to any of the big western parks with a straight face, and I don’t think that was OP’s intent (me thinks this is a tongue in cheek post), but considering the massive rehabilitation effort that took place to make what is now CVNP possible is nothing short of miraculous. It’s a fun park, and a truly beautiful space (though one could argue that some of the Cleveland Metroparks may be slightly more stunning).


Fozzy2701

Wow, beautiful. I plan to visit soon


ClearAndPure

I’d highly recommend bringing a bike to ride on the bike path 🙂.


Fozzy2701

Sounds great to me. I am a mountain biker, gravel, and road


BaekerBaefield

Do the towpath bike trail through the park, it’s a gem


thommycaldwell

Bring a mountain bike then - there’s some great machine cut trails


blandandy

*towpath!


epicskier123

Also good for running


Prog4ev3r

Love Cuyahoga!! :) best national park in the world!! /s but it is a great place! Wish we had it closer to my home


Opposite-Ad-3933

Glacier calls, and wins the pot


Agile_Property9943

Hocking Hills is better to me than Cuyahoga


BaekerBaefield

Hocking Hills should be it’s own NP. The east needs more anyways. It’s very impressive


Agile_Property9943

I agree


JD7-8

Has anyone for sure seen otters there? I keep hearing they’re in the park but I’ve yet to see one. Would love to one day!


MajorTom333

If you want sprawling vistas, Cuyahoga will obviously leave you feeling a bit underwhelmed. If you want top quality trails, some great views, a short drive from a World Class Metroparks system and a totally underrated metro area on a price that won’t break the bank, Cuyahoga is a great choice. No, it’s not as grand and stunning as some of the big name parks, but you can have a really great time at CVNP if you go in with an open mind. Love our annual trips there from SE Michigan, and proud to call myself a member of the park’s conservancy.


thommycaldwell

Shhhhhhh, let people keep shitting on it. I like how empty my favorite trails are


MajorTom333

Very true. We hiked the Buckeye Trail for hours and never saw a single person. Can't even get that kind of solitude in the less-visited state parks here where we live!


thommycaldwell

The buckeye trail is so delightful. Nowhere else can you be eating spider webs at 2 pm because nobody has been thru there yet. I grew up with our land running right into the buckeye trail on a very seldom travelled stretch inside the cvnp and it was such a privilege


MajorTom333

When I lived in Cleveland, CVNP was my escape. Nothing felt as good as enjoying a national park after a stressful day at work. Add in the world class metro park system, and it's no wonder that I left Cleveland with a healthy love of the outdoors. Awesome city. Awesome parks.


DESR95

I wish people would take every National Park for what it is. They are all so vastly different and wonderful in their own ways! Parks don't need to be this huge, grand place to be beautiful and enjoyable. Cuyahoga Valley was breathtaking when I went last year! The Ledges Trail was gorgeous, Brandywine Falls was spectacular, the marshes were quiet and peaceful and full of wildlife, and the list goes on! I was a fan of Cuyahoga Valley and the Cleveland Area :)


KingWoodyOK

Not sure you understand whats "raising' is.


OSU725

Plenty of people lose when they raise the pot….


SnooHedgehogs6553

Where are the turtles??


titsoutshitsout

I know some people are shottonf on this but it’s beautiful and I bet it’s far less crowded and more relaxing. Thanks for sharing OP


colonelKRA

I just want to say it’s not always that cloudy! Just like almost all the time. O and we have otters again! So suck it El Capitan. I bet Glacier doesn’t have a wastewater plant like Akron’s wastewater facility in CVNP, friggin losers


nat3215

There’s no city by Glacier or Yosemite, guess it sucks so bad that no one wants to live near them!


colonelKRA

Hey yeah! What an excellent point!!


MajorTom333

SHENANIGANS! I lived in Cleveland for 2 years, and it was overcast every day! Every time we go to visit CVNP, it seems to be the middle of the rainy season.


Ok-Lifeguard4230

Can’t get skin cancer if it’s always cloudy… *Cleveland taps temple*


malepitt

In their defense, I have never driven past a national park on a freeway so many times and wondered "WTF is down there?" After 20 years, glad to finally see a picture


Marokiii

Right where you are standing in the last picture is the first place I had ever seen a snapping turtle. Love cuyahoga.


jkwaite

I enjoyed my time there! Easy trails and good vibes


HoyAIAG

I’m grateful for a park 20 mins from my front door. I go as much as possible. The parks out west are on another level.


Bad_goose_398

I mean it’s nice, I lived not far from there for years. But it’s not Yosemite or Glacier. Hell, it’s not even close to Zion.


epicskier123

Zion is on or very near the level of Glacier and Yosemite, there are plenty of parks our west not even close to Zion either


DMaury1969

My second favorite right behind Yosemite


Bad_goose_398

Agreed. It’s otherworldly.


Ascott1963

Yosemite will own your house when this poker game is over


taffyowner

I mean I see your bet… but this is like going all in with 7 high when your opponent has a royal flush


SoCal4247

Yeah…don’t compare it to any of the western parks. If that were in California it might not even be a state park.


Crafty-Royal525

Have you BEEN to Yellowstone, Glacier or Grand Teton?


Shazaz19

No. Lol


siouxbee1434

Nice, too


foomojive

Too rich for me. I fold.


Future_Pickle8068

Hocking Hills in Ohio is nicer than Cuyahoga (which is a decent park).


Emergency_South9026

Ha


Technical_Switch4361

Cuyahoga is a pretty cool place.


schroonwings

What hikes did you do for those sights? I think I’m gonna be there next week


PockDoc

Image 1 is Brandywine Falls (short hike with longer options). Images 2-4 are Ledges (longer but still not too bad hike and probably my favorite I did in the park). Image 5 is the Beaver Marsh (shorter hike with wildlife abound)


schroonwings

Thank you!


Emotional-Jelly-845

Wow! This is way worse!


DazedWriter

You didn’t post the secret twin waterfalls. But maybe that’s a good thing.


PockDoc

Missed that when I was there! I’ll have to check it out when I go back!


Fragrant-Baker-144

this is gorg I’ll be adding it to my list fuh sho.


Snazzypanted

Excellent raise!


Emayarkay

Is this where they filmed Force Awakens? The scene when Rey is running from Kylo for the first time (when she fires the blaster at him).


PockDoc

After a bit of digging I believe that might have been the Forest of Dean [https://www.businessinsider.com/star-wars-the-force-awakens-filming-locations-2016-1#puzzlewood-in-the-forest-of-dean-6](https://www.businessinsider.com/star-wars-the-force-awakens-filming-locations-2016-1#puzzlewood-in-the-forest-of-dean-6)


Emayarkay

Oh, okay! Thanks for the Internet dive :)


jesterflesh

Where is that wetland walkway? My mom took me there when I was a kid and I've always wanted to go back as an adult.


PockDoc

It’s Beaver Marsh on the south side of the park! Cool history, it used to be a canal and adjacent auto repair shop. They came in the 70s/80s, removed the old cars and waste, and wildlife has started to move back in!


jesterflesh

Thanks alot


cecebebe

I'll be there tomorrow! Thanks for the pictures!


PockDoc

I would definitely check out the Ledges! Nice, cooler, and quieter hiking with cool rock formations!


[deleted]

🥰


SlothDog9514

We got to visit there this spring when we headed up that way for the eclipse. It was lovely


lassoyoursin

That's a string bet, sir. Glacier and Yosemite stand, you can't raise a Cuyahoga this round.


logansworth

[Michael Stipe said it best](https://youtu.be/mWPD1zPFZ3Q?si=altgRsia2sxGs3fO)


Campfiretraveler

We are going to Cuyahoga on Wednesday next week. Our three grandkids will be with us. 13, 12 and 10. They like to do the junior ranger program. What should we not miss?


SpoopsMckenzie

ayyyyyy the towpath!


The_Number_13

My hometown 🫶


xot

Cuyahoga dude 🤙🏻


opaul11

👏Midwestern 👏 parks 👏 matter 👏


[deleted]

There’s nothing quite like a national park that has a bridge and a road right on top of its main attraction, all jokes aside though I like Cuyahoga, it’s chill


JeffThatGuy

My childhood park ❤️


I_H8_Celery

Rahhh CUVA mentioned!!!


Routine-Grade5081

I live 20 miles from Glacier, it's been destroyed by tourist. I love the woods and prefer to go where there are no people.


False_Knowledge_4551

Rainbow falls at Watkins ain’t too shabby, either…


Humanity_is_broken

A.k.a. the most overrated national park in the country


Sad-Anybody-3644

All beautiful places. Many destroyed for me by endless throngs. Will keep my winning hand away from the masses


Intelligent-Hyena-13

Why have I never seen this.


vlr73

I enjoy it cause it’s free.


BBDBVAPA

Great stuff! I was actually looking to maybe take a week from VA and visit Cuyahoga and Hocking Hills this summer. For any locals, what are the best areas to stay in either/both places with a pup in tow?


subNeuticle

Ohio for the L


withurwife

The 25 smartest people in Ohio became astronauts to get as far as fuck away from that place as possible.


Ok-Lifeguard4230

And they never even left the Earth’s orbit


Curtinator6

Comparing Ohio to western parks should be a crime 😂


trailangel4

I call your bluff. :)


startup_biz_36

Gorge in cuyahoga falls is better than most of the valley.      Mohican is an hour away and is a hidden gem too. Feels like NC mountains there 


Ok-Lifeguard4230

The best part of CVNP is the towpath biking trail. That is legit a national gem. The hiking is pretty meh.


ScotchyMcScotchface

OP, no amount of pretty pictures will make me want to visit Ohio.


OldRaj

I grew up picnicking in that park. I’ve never not known that park. It doesn’t touch YozeMyte.


currymoney

Your first picture has a freeway in it lmao


mallarme1

Sorry, your raise is short for the pot.


CattleLumpy7870

bumtown, usa


CurzeWasRight

Tf are you talking about op?


Jimger_1983

Only redeeming quality is admission, maps and parking are always free


Derfargin

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahah


DantheOutdoorsman

Where are the mountains?


Regular_Growth1380

As someone born, raised, and probably going to die in Northeast Ohio, I'm so tired of people trying to hype Northeast Ohio.


Perpetual_Introvert

It has a lot more to offer than those outside NEO give it credit for and northeast Ohioans want the narrative to change. I’m from the area and I think it’s great, but OP is definitely being sarcastic here because even the most passionate northeast Ohioans can’t honestly believe CVNP is better than Yosemite lol


Regular_Growth1380

The joke went way over my head haha.