After several weeks of technical work we are happy to announce that our new site has launched. The new site looks similar to the old one, and our domain name and URL remain the same. One difference that visitors might notice is that our photos now reside on site (previously they were at Flickr). In the future we believe this will give us additional options in displaying them. However for now we look forward to resuming a more normal publication schedule.
© Deborah Platt, Robert Platt and TrekOhio.com 2012 to 2021
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Cascade Valley South is part of the Summit County's Metro Park system. The park has multiple entrances with different attractions at each. In all there are seven miles of trail and many locations where you can view the Cuyahoga River. We began our tour near one of the River's oxbows (an oxbow is just a tight bend in a river).
The above photo was taken from an observation deck that's located at the end of the Overlook Trail. The Cuyahoga River lies 125 feet below the observation deck. Read more ➜ 
Does this seems familiar:
Her: Wow, I can see for miles. What a great view!
Him: beep-ding ... Hang on, got to check this e-mail, and Twitter, and look at Facebook and ...
A hike is an opportunity to get some exercise, unwind from daily stress, and enjoy nature. One argument for not bringing a smartphone on hikes is that it can destroy the natural experience for you and those traveling with you.
So, should you bring your smartphone with you on hikes? Yes, definitely! A smartphone 
Shale Hollow is Delaware County's newest park having just opened in December. It is named for a small canyon of 20 to 40 foot shale cliffs rising above a stream named Big Run.
We visited Shale Hollow a couple of times in the past month. The park consists of 188 acres encompassing a ravine, forest, and meadowland. A gravel roadway leads to a parking area next to a nature center. The nature center features a small exhibit explaining the natural history of the area including the 375 million 
We visited the Hocking Hills State Park in July to view a couple of the park's waterfalls: Broken Rock Falls and the Lower Falls. We scheduled our hike on a sunny day following a rainy spell, so we hoped that lots of water would be flowing over the falls.
To get to these falls we passed by Old Man's Cave, one of the park's most famous attractions. The trail to all of these attractions passes through a scenic gorge.
Below are some of the sights that we took in on the way to Old 
It's the end of another year and time to reflect on Ohio parks and preserves we've visited and some of the interesting sights we've seen.
Best Hike of the Year
We're going to give the annual Hocking Hills Winter Hike a lifetime achievement award. It's a great hike and has been great fun for us every year we've participated. Beyond this annual hike, below are our favorites for this year.
Deb: I really enjoyed hiking within the maze-like crevasses at Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park
Bob: 
Two months ago we visited the site of a former coal strip-mine in eastern Ohio. The area was the site of a massive surface mine that supplied 110 million tons of coal for electric power generation in the region. Big Muskie — one of the largest earth-moving machines in the world — operated in this area. The bucket of this leviathan was large enough to hold two full size buses.
Mining operations involved removal of all surface vegetation, topsoil, and the earth overlying the coal 
Killbuck Marsh is a 5,761-acre wildlife area in Wayne and Holmes counties located near the town of Wooster. It is the largest marsh outside of the northern Lake Erie region; over half its acreage is wetland.
The Wildlife Area
A section of the wildlife area is designated as a wildlife refuge and is off-limits to visitors. The remainder is available for hunters (during hunting season) and fishermen. There are a couple of short trails and numerous scattered parking areas and pull-offs 
When we visited Holden Arboretum this past spring, we primarily visited the formal gardens. So in August we decided to go back and check out one of the nature trails. It turns out there are 19 miles (30.6 km) of hiking trails at Holden Arboretum.
We were accompanied by our daughter, Dee. We parked by the Visitor's Center, looked at some of the gardens behind the center, and then walked to the trail-head for the Old Valley Trail. We passed several wetlands and a nature observation platform 
Sunday we visited Char-Mar Ridge Preserve in Delaware County to enjoy the cool autumn weather and the last of the fall color. So without further ado, here are our pictures of Char-Mar Ridge.
Additional information
TrekOhio: Char -Mar Ridge Preserve — Our original article on Char-Mar Ridge. It includes information on the park's location.
TrekOhio: Delaware County Parks & Nature Preserves