Over the last several days we’ve been having unseasonably warm weather - in the 60s - so yesterday I took advantage of the opportunity and went biking on the Towpath Trail in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and many people were out and about on the trails. I took my camera along with me and decided to snap a few winter shots of the park, something I don’t get to see very often.

One of my favorite areas of the Towpath is the section between Peninsula and Boston Store. It takes you through several different ecosystems including forests, wetlands and fields. One area I love biking through during the summer is the boardwalk over the wetlands. The trees make a canopy over the boardwalk and it’s almost like biking down a tree-lined boulevard.

The Towpath follows alongside the Ohio & Erie Canal (it was literally the path the mules walked along to pull the canal boats) and also follows the course of the Cuyahoga River, which provided the water supply for the canal. The Cuyahoga is nicknamed the “Crooked River” because it makes many sharp bends along its course, including this one alongside the boardwalk.

It never ceases to amaze me how accustomed the wildlife in the park has become to humans. Nearly every time I go out biking I end up crossing paths with a deer. Many of them, including this one I came across yesterday, literally stand just a few feet away from you and stare at you.

Over the summer we had a long period of heavy rains that kept the Cuyahoga River at an elevated level for a prolonged period of time. One of the effects was that it caused part of the riverbank (and the Towpath) to collapse into the river. When I was last out on the Towpath six weeks ago the Park Service hadn’t done anything yet to repair the Towpath. I was quite surprised yesterday to see just how much they’ve done in a short period of time. First, they built a rock dam at a fork in the river and diverted most of the water away from where the riverbank eroded. Secondly, they build a wall of large rocks along the bank and filled in the area behind it with soil. Finally, they replaced the collapsed area of the Towpath and reopened it. It looks like they’re also beginning to stabilize other areas of the riverbank as well, although I think they’re going to need a lot more rocks!

The nice weather is supposed to last until Thursday (and then it’s going to snow) and I’m hoping I’ll get another chance to go out to the park and go for a hike.