Summit Metro Parks We're Your Back Yard

Gorge

Metro Park

Photo: Gorge Metro Park, Gorge Trail

Interested in the effort to remove the Gorge Dam? Learn more.

Park Areas

Main Entrance

Address 1160 Front St.
Cuyahoga Falls, OH 4422
1

Hours Daily: 6 a.m. - 11 p.m. (trails open until sunset)
 

Trail Icon Trail Name Miles Class Rating Description
Glens Trail Glens Trail 1.8 D 3

Glens Trail, across Front Street from the main lot, offers views from the edge of the Cuyahoga River. Springs flow from the ledges along this trail, providing water needed for liverworts. Frozen icicles in the winter create a “crystal palace” on the gorge walls. The trail is 1.8 miles round-trip. Trail sponsored in 2023 by HiHO Brewing Co. 

Gorge Trail Gorge Trail 1.8 B,C,D 3 Gorge Trail provides access to Old Maid's Kitchen (formerly known as Mary Campbell cave), an easy half-mile walk from the parking lot. The trail quickly becomes more rugged as it passes through stunning rock-ledge formations. The upper section of the trail is considered "primitive," earning a Class D status.

Highbridge Trail

Address 1270 Front St.
Akron, OH 44310

Hours Daily: 6 a.m. - 11 p.m.


 (trail open until sunset)
 

Trail Icon Trail Name Miles Class Rating Description
Highbridge Trail Highbridge Trail 3.2 C 2 Highbridge Trail offers a moderately challenging hike on the other side of the Cuyahoga River from the Glens and Gorge trails. It connects to Cascade Valley Metro Park and is 3.2 miles round-trip.

Classes: A = Multipurpose  |  B = Accessible*  |  C = Basic  |  D = Primitive**  |  E = Bridle

Ratings: 1 = Easy  |  2 = Moderate  |  3 = Difficult

* Flat, easy trail or section with asphalt or crushed limestone surface.

See our  Spree For All page for more information about accessible trails.

** Rugged and challenging with uneven surfaces and steep, narrow routes

Park Map

Gorge Map

History & Wildlife

The most prominent rock shelter in Gorge Metro Park has been known as Mary Campbell Cave since 1935, even though there’s no evidence that the real Mary Campbell was ever there.  According to local legend, a woman named Mary Campbell was captured by the Lenape in the mid-1700s and the tribe camped in the rock shelter.   While Mary's name is on the list of captives relinquished to Col. Bouquet at the Treaty of Muskingum in 1763, it is unlikely that the conditions of the rock shelter would have made it an ideal place for a settlement or camp. What we do know for certain is that early European settlers to this area named this remarkable geological feature Old Maid’s Kitchen (which was a common name in the 1800s for many such rock shelters). Because the historical record on Mary Campbell is unclear, the park district is currently in the process of renaming the cave Old Maid's Kitchen.  
 

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Thousands of years ago, 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.

In 1930, the Northern Ohio Traction & Light Company, the predecessor of Ohio Edison, donated 144 acres of this land to Summit Metro Parks. From the 1880s until then, the area hosted parks of a different sort – the High Bridge Glens and Caves and Riverview amusement parks, both of which featured a rollercoaster and dance hall.

Photo Gallery

Activities
  • Boating
  • Fishing
Amenities
  • Pet-friendly
  • Picnic Tables
  • Restroom
  • Shelter
Activities
  • Take a hike or enjoy the view
Amenities
  • Pet-friendly