Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio

Unlike many other national parks in far-flung corners of the wilderness, the Cuyahoga Valley stretches between two urban hubs, Cleveland and Akron. For northeast Ohioans and visitors, this 33,000-acre expanse of forests, fields and wetlands offers a peaceful refuge from city life. Cuyahoga is an American Indian word often translated to mean “crooked”—an apt name for the 100-mile winding river forming the 22-mile spine of the park. The river also provided the water source for the 19th-century Ohio & Erie Canal. Remnants of those canal days—houses, farms and canal structures—constitute many of the park's points of interest. [ more ]