What is the area outside Akron like? (Cleveland, Lorain: 2015, hotel)

[traveltheworld1]

When driving towards the fellas, what do you pass? What's the nature like in the Akron area? What does the air smell like? Is the land barren/full of trees? I can't seem to find any images online.

Thank you!

[reed303]

First, who or what are the "fellas" ?

The nature is like any other Midwestern Ohio city. Open areas, wooded areas. All manner of woodland animals. Air smell can vary on how close you are to any industrial area. On the whole, its OK. Lots of wooded parks like Virginia Kendall, Sand Run, Cascade Valley, Cuyahoga River, Goodyear Heights, Perkins Woods.

Use Google StreetView and you can wander around town to your hearts content.

Start here: https://goo.gl/maps/86ZXU6BzyCE2

Also, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akron%2C_Ohio

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akron_metropolitan_area

[WRnative]

Originally Posted by traveltheworld1

When driving towards the fellas, what do you pass? What's the nature like in the Akron area? What does the air smell like? Is the land barren/full of trees? I can't seem to find any images online.

Thank you!

Downtown Akron is 12 miles from Blossom Music Center, located inside the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. CVNP has no admission charge.

https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/P...om-Facilities/

https://www.nps.gov/cuva/index.htm

The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad offers rail service access to the CVNP from Akron's Northside Station. The CVSR offers great bike service.

https://www.cvsr.com/take-the-train/directions/

Ohio is fortunate to have many great county nature preserve systems, a legacy of the region's progressive era following World War I, but actively supported even to this day. Summit County (of which Akron is the county seat) has a good metropark system, as do counties adjacent to Summit County, especially the Cleveland Metroparks system.

https://www.summitmetroparks.org/

Stan Hywett Hall & Gardens is perhaps the top attraction in Akron.

Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...5571&FORM=VIRE

Rural areas are close by Akron. E.g., downtown Akron is a 20-minute drive to the West Orchards Farm Market, one of the most popular in northeast Ohio.

West Orchards Farm Market - Fresh cherries, strawberries, apples, pears, peaches, plums and more.

Several state parks are located near Akron.

http://parks.ohiodnr.gov/findapark

There are several National Natural Landmarks nearby Akron.

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nnlandm...e.htm?State=OH

Akron is one hour from Walnut Creek, in the heart of Ohio Amish Country.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g...h.Country.html

Akron is one hour from Mentor Headlands Beach State Park, Ohio's largest natural sand beach, on Lake Erie, and also to nearby Holden Arboretum, one of the best in the country. It's also about 90 minutes from the Grand River Valley wine district, the best in Ohio.

http://parks.ohiodnr.gov/headlandsbeach

Murch Canopy Walk & Kalberer Emergent Tower | The Holden Arboretum

http://lakevisit.com/wineries.html

The Geneva-on-the-Lake State Park Lodge offers wine tours, even to non-guests. The adjacent Geneva State Park, 90 minutes from downtown Akron, offers lakefront camping.

https://www.thelodgeatgeneva.com/

Check out other natural attractions near Akron. E.g., the Mohican Region is less than 90 minutes from downtown Akron.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g...Day.Trips.html

Northeast Ohio, with Akron in its center, offers a plethora of biking opportunities.

https://www.ohiobikeways.net/akron.htm

https://www.ohiobikeways.net/neregionlist.htm

Summit County Metroparks, the CVNP, and the Cleveland Metroparks offer robust biking opportunities from Akron, even to Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland (a bike route continuously under improvement, especially through Cleveland), a great opportunity for serious bikers.

Downtown Akron is only about 39 miles from downtown Cleveland, and a very direct bike trail (Towpath Trail)/route connect the two downtown areas (see links below). From Steelyard Commons on the Towpath Trail in Cleveland, a biker can travel through the charming Tremont neighborhood, across the protected bike path on the north side of the Hope Memorial Bridge (featuring the Guardians of Traffic art deco statuary and a stunning view of the Cleveland Skyline, especially the historic Terminal Tower) and to Progressive Field, Cleveland's Public Square and large Mall (together over 30 acres of open space in the heart of downtown Cleveland), then to East 9th St., the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and then just north to Voinovich Bicentennial Park nestled between the North Harbor and Lake Erie.

https://www.ohiobikeways.net/erietowpath.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hope_Memorial_Bridge

https://www.clevelandpublicsquare.co...-in-the-square

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mall_%28Cleveland%29

http://coastal.ohiodnr.gov/cuyahoga/voinovich

http://www.downtowncleveland.com/pla...-around/biking

https://www.ohiobikeways.net/cleveland.htm

The U.S.S. Cod, Steamship Mather, and International Women's Air & Space Museum are short bike rides from the Rock Hall. Euclid Ave. connects downtown Cleveland with its tremendous University Circle cultural area and its has bikeways to make the trip easier.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g...Cleveland.html

Bikers could stay overnight at the Cleveland Hostel (check for bike storage) in Cleveland's great Ohio City Market District (check out the West Side Market in the above article), a block from the Hope Memorial Bridge. All of Cleveland RTA's buses and rail lines offer bike support, providing a quicker option between downtown Cleveland and University Circle.

http://www.ww.rtahealthline.com/racknroll

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...land_Ohio.html

Here's a great bike travel report of the Towpath Trail, including south from Akron. It also discusses the biker's path along the west side of the Cuyahoga River if a biker wants to avoid downtown Cleveland (which isn't too treacherous, especially outside of rush hours and especially more so on weekends/holidays). I suspect biking through downtown is safer than the route along the west side of the Cuyahoga described here.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/inde...canal_tow.html

[WRnative]

Originally Posted by WRnative

Here's a great bike travel report of the Towpath Trail, including south from Akron. It also discusses the biker's path along the west side of the Cuyahoga River if a biker wants to avoid downtown Cleveland (which isn't too treacherous, especially outside of rush hours and especially more so on weekends/holidays). I suspect biking through downtown is safer than the route along the west side of the Cuyahoga described here.

Biking the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail from Cleveland to New Philadelphia, Day 1 (photos, map) | cleveland.com

The above post was timed out, just as I wanted to note that Day 2 of the above linked article, linked at the bottom, describes Towpath attractions in Akron, including the cascade locks, and Canal Fulton and Zoar Village, the latter just over 35 miles south of downtown Akron, and an easy biking day trip from Akron.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/inde...nal_tow_1.html

The above bike travelogue's description (Day 1 link) of the Towpath Trail through Cleveland also is dated.

ODOT's new Towpath Trail segment below Inner Belt bridges heals urban scar (photos, video) | cleveland.com

Sokolowski's University Inn, just off the Towpath Trail as described in the above article, is a Polish American cafeteria and great refueling stop for bikers. Sokolowski's is Cleveland's only James Beard Foundation America's Classic restaurant.

https://www.jamesbeard.org/blog/thro...university-inn

From Sokolowski's, to bike downtown, just take Abbey Road west to the West Side Market (another great refueling stop when open) on Lorain Blvd. and head east across the Hope Memorial Bridge, using the protected bike way on the bridge's north side.

The following website describes the Towpath Trail's development from its Harvard Road Trailhead through Cleveland to Lake Erie. Note that Stage 1 (less than a mile) is the most difficult section of the route and that Stage 3 began construction in early 2017.

http://canalwaypartners.com/

Towpath Trail Groundbreaking Celebrated - Office of the Cuyahoga County Executive

Stage 1 is hoped to be completed before 2020.

http://www.cleveland.com/architectur...0000_gran.html

Photo 2 here shows the protected bikeway over the Hope Memorial Bridge from Tremont/Ohio City into downtown Cleveland.

The Guardian Looking out for the City of Cleveland | Canalway Partners

Map of the Towpath Trail to Steelyard Commons in Cleveland and south of Akron to Canal Lands Park, near Zoar. The gaps in the trail are well described in the above Cleveland.com article.

https://www.nps.gov/cuva/planyourvis...DF_3_FINAL.pdf