Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation All Purpose Trail

Ohio

2 Reviews

South of Cleveland, the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation All Purpose Trail offers an outdoor excursion of just over 7 miles in Cuyahoga Heights. A good place to begin your journey is at the CanalWay Center on the trail's southern end, which offers amenities like parking, restrooms, and drinking water.

From the visitors center, you'll head north through the 306-acre park and have opportunities along the way for wildlife viewing, fishing, and picnicking. You'll pass trailheads at the Morgan's Hollow Picnic Area and the Settler's Bluff Picnic Area, where you'll find additional amenities. On its northern end, the trail parallels E. 49th Street and is surrounded by a more industrial area.

For a longer ride: At the trail's southern end, adventurers can connect to the 81-mile Towpath Trail, which goes north to Cleveland and south to Bolivar. Or, from the northern end of the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation All Purpose Trail, a paved pathway continues north along E. 49th Avenue another mile to Washington Reservation.

Parking and Trail Access

At the southern end of the trail, parking is available at the CanalWay Center (4524 E. 49th St., Cuyahoga Heights). Additional parking options include the Morgan's Hollow Picnic Area and the Settler's Bluff Picnic Area in the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation.

awesome

June 2021 ahhah99

What a nice trail with several trails linked to it. Most of the trail is paved. Area is mowed around it. You will share this trail. With other bikers and walkers. It is an easy grade you do have to shift to get over a few bridges. Great place for everyone to enjoy.

I Can't Believe I'm in Cleveland When I Ride This Trail

June 2019 orangedoug

I rode the All Purpose Trail in the Cleveland Metroparks’ Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation. This park parallels the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail and in fact part of the Towpath runs through the park.

The Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation is a beautiful little park that lies just south of Cleveland’s Industrial Valley. Together with the Cuyahoga River, the northernmost remaining 4.4 miles of watered canal provides wildlife management areas, fishing opportunities and scenic beauty. I find it hard to believe that this beautiful nature preserve can be so close to the heavy industry of steel mills and petroleum tank farms and yet thrive.

TrailLink.com lists the trail length as 7.2 miles but I did not get nearly that milage when I rode just the routes indicated on TrailLink's own map. Perhaps they counted the length of the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail through the park as well, but if they did I'm not certain why considering that the Towpath gets its own separate listing on this site.