Find the top rated birding trails in Avon Lake, whether you're looking for an easy short birding trail or a long birding trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a birding trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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I rode this trail in July of 2017. The description here at TrailLink needs to be updated to reflect the opening of the half mile section of this trail known as the Lake Link.
I started with the northern section of this trail. I parked on Main Street on the West Bank of the Flats and road down Mulberry Street to River Road and then east to Elm Avenue. Where River and Elm meet the Willow Avenue Bridge crosses the Old Cuyahoga River Channel onto Whiskey Island. According to a June 7th Cleveland.com article, when this route is completed there will be an additional bicycle/pedestrian bridge built that will carry people over the very active Northfolk & Southern rail line and sidings into Wendy Park and the old Cleveland U.S. Coast Guard Station. Unfortunately, at this time this bridge does not exist.
The current Lake Link portion of the Cleveland Foundation Centennial Trail ends on River Road and runs south in a trench that once was a rail spur that ran down the center of the blocks between Mulberry Avenue and Center Street. The this section ends in about a half a mile when it reaches Detroit Avenue.
You can connect the Lake Link and the current southern section of the Cleveland Foundation Centennial Trail by riding on a closed section of roadway called Riverbed Street. It has a barrier near Columbus Road which prevents cars from using it. Riverbed Street follows a curve in the Cuyahoga River known as Irishtown Bend. This section was kind of creepy as it is overgrown with trees and shrubs and kudzu. What really makes it creepy is the sleeping bags you see just off the road that the homeless use to bed down. Since the road isn't used they probably don't get hassled too much in this area. When the groups developing the connecting of the towpath to the lake get to developing this missing section they will have to do some serious landscaping to open up the area to allow riders to see the river and to remove the ability for the homeless to hide. I did not encounter any homeless folks as I rode through but I came through in the middle of the afternoon on a weekday. At this point, I'd say consider how comfortable you are with this situation.
What I really enjoyed with this trail was the architecture of bridges, buildings, and the combinations of old with new, of commerce and industry, and of nature and human endeavor. I can see riding this trail many different times as the the scenery will change drastically with changes in light and weather.
I rode the Cleveland Lakefront Bikeway in June 2017 as a nice out-and-back ride. There is lots to see from Euclid Beach Park (on the East Side) to Edgewater Beach Park (on the West Side) as you ride through downtown Cleveland, Ohio. This route was pretty flat with no difficult hills at all. The bikeway itself was a combination of bike paths in and around the beach parks, on street bike lanes on Lakeshore Boulevard and Detroit Road, and on street riding in Bratenahl and Downtown Cleveland. The busiest street traffic was on the several blocks of street riding downtown.
I found the route to be well marked, particularly on the portions where you were riding on the street. Complaints made in previous reviews about the condition of the route are outdated as I found the trail surface to be in pretty good shape. Other review complaints about riding through a ghetto in the Manhattan Beach and North Collinwood neighborhoods seem exaggerated but are balanced out by the ride past the mansions in Bratenahl. Look for the Cleveland Script Signs on either end of the trail for great postcard-like photo opportunities.
For those interested in riding this route, I would definitely suggest lathering up with sunscreen because other than the 3 mile section through the tree lined streets of Bratenahl, you are always out in the open along the shore of Lake Erie.
I rode this trail in early June of 2017. This trail is approximately 9 miles long. I started at a parking lot just west of Edgerton Road and rode out to Edgerton and then northwest back through this Cleveland Metropark until it crosses Bagley Road where it continues on in the Rocky River Reservation. As mentioned by other reviewers this trail follows the main road through the park — the Valley Parkway. There were many bikers and pedestrians using the trail so at times maintaining a decent speed was difficult. I could see and understand why many cyclists prefer to ride on the road. I enjoyed the shade the trees along the trail provided, although on the return trip, the position of the sun was such that there was not as much sun protection. This trail follows the Rocky River as it heads north toward Lake Erie, though you don't see much of the river on this trail. Starting where I did, you are descending most of the way, and climbing on your return. For the most part the slope is very gradual with just a few short steep climbs on the return trip.
I rode this trail in May of 2017. This trail connects the last two remaining Kettle Lakes or "glacial potholes" that were formed from the melting of large chunks of glacial ice as the glaciers retreated at the end of the last ice age found in northeast Ohio. These lakes and the surrounding marshes provide habitat for a wide variety of animals, birds, plants and trees. They are thriving ecosystems that thankfully the Cleveland Metroparks have chosen to preserve. This is an interesting little trail as the wetlands are quite wild, yet you pass right by a large hospital and commercial area as well end up near Cleveland Hopkins International Airport when you reach Lake Abram. There are several observation posts along the trail where high-powered telescopes or binoculars are available to search for wildlife. I bet this is an interesting area at dawn and dusk each day.
Big Creek Reservation All Purpose Trail is one of the standard multi-use trails you will find in the Cleveland area MetroParks. The Cleveland MetroParks form what is known as the Emerald Necklace around Cleveland.
This particular trail goes from Parma, OH to just North of Strongsville, OH. This is mostly a connector route that leads from a small park in Parma to larger MetroParks to the southwest that make up the Emerald Necklace. Many of the area's MetroParks are connected by thin slivers of park roads that give one the impression that you have really never left a Metropark.
This particular path traveled down the center of a boulevard called the Big Creek Parkway. While you bike down this sliver of green, the road is on either side of you with homes facing the green space while not having to view the homes on the other side. This trail was fairly flat unlike many of the MetroParks on Cleveland's Eastside that seem to be centered around rivers and creeks at the bottom of ravines or valleys. This path crosses six very busy streets but crosswalk signals stop traffic for riders and walkers to cross safely. If you're looking to race down this path, look for another trail.
This trail is 8 miles long and ends when it connects to Valley Parkway All Purpose Trail in Mill Stream Run Reservation MetroPark. At Milepost 6.5 you arrive at Lake Isaac and can connect to the start of the Lake to Lake Trail.
Back in May 2017 I rode the Bridgeway and Steel Mill Trails in Elyria, Ohio. While TrailLink lists these as separate trails, I view them as one continuous trail. On this out and back ride I traveled a little over 12.5 miles. If you started at the Day's Dam Picnic area and rode just the Steel Mill Trail you'd have a round trip of about 4 miles (currently). These trails are multi-use trails found in the Black River Reservation of the Lorain County Metropark System. I spoke with a Park Ranger who said that the Steel Mill Trail will eventually connect into Cromwell Park on the north end. I found this short trail interesting as you view the contrast between the U.S. Steel Mill on one side of the Black River to the almost park like setting on the opposite side. The difference will only be more apparent when the trail is extended into Cromwell Park. It would be nice if a route or bike line could be extended out of Cromwell Park up to the shores of Lake Erie.
Back in May 2017 I rode the Bridgeway and Steel Mill Trails in Elyria, Ohio. While TrailLink lists these as separate trails, I view them as one continuous trail. On this out and back ride I traveled a little over 12.5 miles. These trails are multi-use trails found in the Black River Reservation of the Lorain County Metropark System. I spoke with a Park Ranger who said that the Steel Mill Trail will eventually connect into Cromwell Park on the north end. To the south, the Bridgeway Trail follows Ford Road out of High Meadows Section of the Black River Reservation to Midway Blvd., and then heads south along wide sidewalks of West River Road N, to Gateway Blvd. S to eventually W. 2nd Street where a cyclist can pick up the North Coast Inland Trail. While this part of the Bridgeway Trail exists, and is well-signed along the route, it crosses through the very heavily trafficked commercial and retail area of Midway Mall. I chose not to ride this section. I think you'd be better off strapping your bike to the back of the car and traveling the 3 or so miles to the North Coast Inland Trail if you want to make that connection.
In May of 2017 I put in 30.3 miles riding out and back on the Lorain County section of the North Coast Inland Trail from the Gateway trailhead in Elyria to 1.5 miles west of Kipton, OH. In Elyria, the trail extends beyond the Gateway trailhead up to the Black River Reservation Metropark. However, I would suggest that this section could be tricky as traffic will be heavy around the commercial/retail area near Midway Mall. The trail itself is a wide paved path in good shape except for the last 1.5 miles, which starting at Baird Road switches to medium sized limestone gravel -- probably not a good idea for skinny-tired bikes. West of Kipton the trail ends and you would have to ride the roads to reach the next completed section. Bring sunscreen with you as the further west you go the more open the trail becomes as you get into farming country.
According to ohiobikeways.net this 15 mile section is part of the 67.5 miles of trail currently open. When completely done this trail will stretch from Elyria to Toledo, OH and will cover about 270 miles making it probably the penultimate East-West trail in Ohio.
I've ridden on this trail numerous times. The latest was in May 2017. I rode 31 miles (out and back) between Middlefield and Chardon in Geauga County, Ohio. This used to be an old B & O rail line. This seems to be a hidden gem as I rode for almost an hour and a half before encountering anyone else on the trail. The trail is divided into 3 sections. The northern section north of Chardon, OH is paved and connects up to the southern section of the Lake Metroparks Greenway. After a gap in the center of Chardon, the paved central section of the trail heads east and south until it arrives at Headlands Park on the East Branch Reservoir. The surface of southern section of the trail is mostly hard-packed dirt/crushed limestone that extends the trail from the reservoir to Swine Creek Reservation part of the Geauga County Park District south of Middlefield, Ohio. This part of the trail can get rough due to ruts left by Amish buggies utilizing the trail. Look for lots of wildlife throughout and mosquitos in the southern section as the trail travels through swampy wetlands north of Middlefield.
I rode the The Lake Metroparks Greenway Corridor in May of 2017. This is a trail that is little over 5 miles in length but due some road construction in the south, and poor signage in Painesville, OH I did not ride the last half mile or so at the northern end. As you come into Painesville you are directed onto the street to cross an active rail line at a protected crossing (safety first), however there was no sign at Walnut Avenue directing those unfamiliar with the trail back onto remaining length of the trail. So instead I ended up following Liberty Street down to the Painesville town square which probably was more photogenic anyway. It wasn't until I returned home that I discovered that I missed out on this last part of the trail. This trail is missing an approximate 1.75 mile segment from It current southern end at Ravenna Road to a small trail link that heads south from Girdled Road to connect to the Maple Highlands Trail and Chardon, OH. I have no knowledge as to whether this missing link is in the works but from online maps filling this gap may be contentious as it crosses through Quail Hollow Golf Resort. Spanning this gap and connecting the of two parts of the Maple Highlands Trail through Chardon, OH could create a single trail of approximately 27 miles.
In April of 2017 I rode the Olde Muskingum Trail. This trail can be found along the Tuscarawas River in Canal Fulton, Ohio. To me this is an unusual trail. On one side of the Tuscarawas River you have the Congressman Ralph Regula Towpath Trail which follows the old Ohio & Erie Canal. This trail has historical significance, it currently has a working section of canal, and an actual canal boat ride if you are so inclined. The Olde Muskingum Trail is on the opposite side of the river and was an old railroad siding or right of way that has been converted into a trail. It too is a crushed limestone surface and you would be hard pressed to tell the two trails apart except for the canal facilities visible and in use on the Towpath Trail. The Olde Muskingum Trail is approximately 6 miles long. If you combine the two trails with Cherry Street in the north and Forty Corners Road in the south you could make a 12.5 mile loop to ride. The Congressman Regula Towpath Trail is part of the Ohio to Erie cross state trail. Combine that with the working canal boat attraction and the Towpath can get pretty busy during the summer. My guess is that the locals probably prefer the Olde Muskingum Trail because it is less busy.
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