ICON

NAME

CLASS

RATING

TRAIL DESCRIPTION

SPREE

Glens

1.8

C

2

Glens Trail, on the opposite side of Front Street, provides views from the edge of the Cuyahoga River. Springs flow from the ledges along this trail, providing water needed for liverwort.

Gorge

1.8

BCD

3

Gorge Trail provides access to Mary Campbell Cave, an easy half-mile walk from the parking lot. At the start of the trail, a short (half-mile, round trip) section earns Class B status and is good for users with wheelchairs, walkers, canes and strollers. The trail quickly becomes more rugged as it passes through stunning rock-ledge formations. An upper section of the trail is even considered "primitive," earning Class D status.

Highbridge

3.2

C

2

Highbridge Trail offers a moderately challenging hike on the other side of the Cuyahoga than the Glens and Gorge trails, and it connects to Cascade Valley / South.

Class  A=Multipurpose  B=Accessible*  C=Basic  D=Primitive  E=Bridle
Rating  1=Easy  2=Moderate  3=Difficult

*Flat, easy trail or section with asphalt or crushed limestone surface that meets or exceeds ADA requirements.
See Spree For All for more information about accessible trails. Click for OPDMD trails

In 1759, a 12-year-old girl was captured in Pennsylvania by Delaware Indians and reportedly brought to a cave in present-day Gorge Metro Park, where she lived as a child of Chief Netawatwees. Young Mary Campbell, for whom the cave is named, unwittingly became the first white child in what was then the wild frontier of the Western Reserve. Mary later settled with the tribe in a village along the banks of the Cuyahoga River, not far from the cave. She was released in 1764 after a treaty ended the French and Indian War.

Thousands of years before Mary's adventures, the Gorge was cut when glacial debris blocked the former route of the Cuyahoga River (near present-day downtown Akron) and caused the river to find a new course. Today, the rushing water flows over a shale riverbed, between ledges made of Sharon conglomerate sandstone. Oak, blackgum, tulip and yellow birch trees are common in the woods that cover the valley walls.

This 155-acre Metro Park was made possible in 1930, when the Northern Ohio Traction & Light Company, the predecessor of Ohio Edison, donated 144 acres of land to Metro Parks. Previously, the area hosted a park of a different sort – the High Bridge Glens Amusement Park, which opened in 1882 and featured a thrilling rollercoaster and a dance hall.

The 155-acre Gorge Metro Park has an accessible fishing dock, picnic areas with grills, restrooms and a picnic shelter for gatherings of up to 64 people. The shelter cannot be reserved; it is available on a first-come, first-served basis and offers drinking water, eight tables and two grills in a rustic, open-air structure surrounded by trees.