With paved trails totaling about 69 miles, the Emerald Necklace Trail is still one of the longer trail networks in the state. The Cleveland Metro Parks that make up this system are called reservations and many are linked together to form the giant green (emerald) necklace shape, giving the trail system its unofficial name. (The trail is more commonly referred to as an 'all-purpose trail' on the Cleveland Metroparks web pages).
Metro Park View
The Cleveland Metro Parks were established in 1917, long before the phrase "linear park" was coined by contemporary trail builders. But that is exactly what this system is today -- a group of linear parks, many of which are linked together by the Valley Parkway Road and the park trail system.
There are several other reservations in the system that are not connected directly to the necklace, while the Big Creek Reservation is an offshoot of the necklace that is linked by trail.
The scenery is quite beautiful along much of the trail. It seems that every few hundred yards or so there is something to catch your eye. Vertical hillsides scattered with rocks, mammoth-sized highway bridge trestles, trail bridges over rivers, soccer games and family picnics -- the sights are numerous and varied as you make you way through the park system.
I started my ride at the northwest end of the bikeway at the Rocky River Reservation in Lakewood at Detroit and Sloane Avenues. Entering the reservation you descend into the Rocky River Valley which is often at the bottom of a deep ravine. The paved trail snakes along between the Valley Parkway Road and the river, which accompany you on your ride throughout the western sections of this trail network.
The trail travels through wooded areas and over and along several hillsides. This allows for some natural obstacles on the trail surface. Fallen leaves and nuts from trees were scattered on the trail surface here and there during my ride. I would recommend extreme caution when riding after a heavy rain, particularly in the fall when wet leaves are a real hazard. Mud slides are also possible in some sections.
The Emerald Necklace Trail is not a rail-trail and therefore it is not a flat or straight bikeway. The trail winds its way along much like a snake's track in the sand. This snake-like path quickly challenges your riding skills by taking you up and down small hills and through an assortment of almost continuous curves of varying degrees of sharpness. The asphalt path is quite narrow at only 8-9' wide, which makes negotiating the terrain while passing other trail users quite challenging. The trail provides a very technical ride if you attempt to cycle at more than just a leisurely pace.
I quickly learned that my road bike was a bit out of place on the trail. The majority of the trail riders I saw were on mountain or hybrid bikes. The roadies were riding on the Valley Parkway which parallels the trail. There they could pickup more speed and ride in more of a straight line. I considered joining them but opted to stay on the trail. After all, that's what I'd come here to ride. Besides, it turned out to be the most technical riding I'd done on my bike in years and showed me that my bike handling skills leave a lot to be desired!
At the time of my visit, the western section of bikeway had one continuous 22 mile asphalt path from Lakewood at the start of the Rocky River Reservation, to the east end of the Mill Stream Run Reservation, just east of Strongsville. Here the trail ended at West 130th Street and you must take the Valley Parkway Road if you wish to continue eastward to the Brecksville Reservation.
I found the 8.6 mile ride along the parkway to the Brecksville Reservation to be a pleasant one. The posted speed limit of 30 mph, along with the courtesy displayed by local drivers who seemed accustomed to bicycle traffic along this road, made the ride a lot less scary than riding on a rural highway or busy city streets.
If you're used to riding flat trails, however, the Emerald Necklace will be quite a change for you. There are several short hills and some of them are fairly steep. There's also a longer climb on the parkway en route to the Brecksville Reservation.
There are a number of connecting paths that you'll encounter along the way. Most were not signed during my visit, so at times you won't be sure which is the main trail. I managed to pick the wrong path only once since I was armed with a Cleveland Metro Parks map and Pathfinder, an accompanying info booklet that shows more detailed maps of each reservation. (To request a map, call Cleveland Metro Parks at: 216-351-6300.)
I concluded my ride inside the Brecksville Reservation at Riverview Road after covering about 32 miles of the Emerald Necklace. The varied terrain gave me a great workout and the downhill through the Brecksville Reservation was absolutely awesome. You'll reach 30+ mph with no difficulty, just coasting. Make sure your brakes are in good working condition!
I found the Cleveland Metro Parks system to be quite impressive. There seems to be something for everyone: a park road with a low speed limit for road cyclists, a paved trail for pedestrians who wish to rollerblade or take a leisurely bike ride, a bridle trail for horseback riding (which also follows the river along with the parkway and the paved trail), and of course, traditional facilities like ball fields and pavilions for picnicking and much more.
I started my journey where I'd finished my last visit to the Metro Parks trails, the Brecksville Reservation off of Route 21. A small parking lot is available right along Valley Parkway Drive.
Heading east on the trail through the Brecksville Reservation you ride down a fairly long, steep hill. The trail soon merges with the Parkway Road and comes to a stop. Here the road comes to a "T" at Chippewa Creek Drive.
A right turn will soon bring you to Riverview Road. Continue straight (east) through this intersection and you will find yourself at the Station Road Bridge Trailhead of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail! In fact, to continue northeast through the Metro Parks, you can ride a portion of the Towpath Trail from here at its 17-mile marker point.
Continuing north on the towpath the trail surface alternates from fine gravel sections to old asphalt segments as you make your way along this scenic route.
Jumping off the towpath at the Frazee House, I continued east on Sagamore Road. Turning left (north) on Dunham, I soon found the trail again at Alexander Road. I was unaware that a connector to the Bike & Hike Trail was just west of this point on Alexander Road.
From this point the trail is pretty much a continuous path from the Bedford Reservation through the South Chagrin Reservation, with perhaps one short section where you ride on a marked bike lane along a street.
Chagrin River Rd photo by Lynda Warner
Due to time constraints I wasn't able to checkout the Chagrin River Road which leads north to the final reservation in the Emerald Necklace, the North Chagrin Reservation. Therefore I can't report whether it is as bike friendly as the other parkways in the Metro Parks system (there is no connecting trail to the North Chagrin Reservation).
Also, I took a couple of wrong turns with long detours which meant an accurate mileage count for the eastern section was out of the question.
A real disappointment on this ride was that I was unaware of the close proximity of the Ohio & Erie Towpath and the Bike & Hike Trail. I only became aware of them after looking at the map on the kiosk at Station Road Bridge that shows all 3 area trails.
The Bike & Hike Trail connects to the Necklace at/near the intersection of Dunham Road and Alexander Road. The towpath trail connects just east of Chippewa and Riverview Road at Station Road Bridge. [Cynthia Grahl reports that a connector between the B & H and towpath is about a mile or so south of Station Road along the towpath. Another is to the north by taking Tinkers Creek Road.]
Hopefully future Cleveland Metro Park maps will at least include the connecting points with these major trails. (To be fair I did eventually find one small map in the Metro Parks Pathfinder booklet that disclosed one connecting point with the Bike & Hike.)
Are there differences between the eastern and western portions of the Emerald Necklace? Most definitely. The eastern section is hillier. The climbs are often steep and/or long. The trails in this section often seem to be climbing or descending in and out of the river valley in a crisscrossing fashion. But a break from the climbing is easy to come by here. Simply plan your route to include either the Bike & Hike and/or towpath trail.
Also, the eastern section spends more time following alongside the parkway roads rather than taking jaunts off into the woods as does the western side. However, the western section does a better job of following the river and remaining closer to the valley floor. So if you're not interested in doing a lot of hill work, go west! (For even flatter riding terrain, visit the towpath or Bike & Hike Trail.)
One of the most appealing things about the Emerald Necklace Trail has to be the fact that 2 other major trail systems are also located in the area. The Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath and the Bike & Hike Trail combine to add approximately 43 more miles of trail riding. With connecting points to both of these trails, it's truly trail-junky heaven!
I know I'll be grossly over-simplifying things here when I suggest - For more scenic valley views and less hills to climb on the Emerald Necklace Trail, ride the western section. For more hill work, visit the eastern section. And for still more variety, ride a loop or combination route that includes the towpath and/or Bike & Hike Trail.
The Cleveland Metro Parks trails system is truly unique. Not only are there traditional park facilities such as picnic areas, ball fields, etc., but bridle and paved trails run through much of this linear park system that is loaded with river views and beautiful scenery. Add 2 more major trails to this mix and... well, what more could one ask for?
Lakewood/Rocky-River Berea Strongsville Brecksville Bedford-Heights Chagrin-Falls
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