Dug by hand from 1825 to 1832, the Ohio and Erie Canal was the first canal west of the Appalachian Mountains, connecting Lake Erie at Cleveland to the Ohio River at Portsmouth and facilitating a flow of goods and people across America from New York City to New Orleans.
The canal was largely abandoned in 1913 after catastrophic flooding caused damage too costly to repair. In the early 1970s, local citizens began to campaign for the preservation of this historic corridor, aiming to protect the Cuyahoga Valley area, through which the canal runs, from increasing urbanization.
Today, the Ohio and Erie Canalway National Heritage Area preserves the first 101 miles of the canal, along with its dozens of historic locks and aqueducts, from Cleveland to New Philadelphia. The Canalway closely parallels the Cuyahoga, Little Cuyahoga, and Tuscarawas Rivers and is a rural oasis in urban Ohio.
The Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail runs for 90.6 miles, beginning in Cleveland and ending abruptly at State Route 800 in the unincorporated community of Zoarville, with plans to eventually extend the trail as far as New Philadelphia. South of Cleveland, the trail passes through Cuyahoga Valley National Park before reaching its high point in Akron. From there, it's a more rural route, passing through a handful of small communities, as well as the larger town of Massillon.
We rode the existing Towpath Trail in its entirety – plus some. Without good shuttle availability, it took us almost 144 miles of riding to cover the 90.6 trail miles. Not greatly efficient, but mission accomplished!
Jana and Tom rock Cleveland