Trails will be temporarily closed between Red Lock Trailhead and Brandywine Creek from Monday, March 3, to Friday, May 2, 2025 for installation of a new Brandywine Creek culvert. No detour is available.
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Photographers love to take photos from the Station Road Bridge. When the Cuyahoga River is relatively calm, its water reflects the graceful concrete arches that carry Route 82 overhead. With a bit of planning, shutterbugs can also catch Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad rolling through the arches to Brecksville Station. For runners and cyclists, the station’s drinking fountain is a magnet that draws people passing through on the Towpath Trail or heading into Brecksville Reservation. In spring and early summer, birders fan out in search of nesting bald eagles or migrating cerulean warblers. Warmer weather also attracts paddlers to the Cuyahoga River Water Trail.
Hands-on exhibits near the trailhead describe the river’s remarkable recovery since the infamous 1969 fire in Cleveland. Use the links below to plan your visit and learn about the region’s transportation and environmental history.
Brecksville Station was once a loading point for outgoing milk and lumber on the Valley Railway. Now this area is a crossroads for rail passengers, hikers, cyclists, runners, paddlers, and horse riders. Here, Station Road Bridge Trailhead provides ample parking and access to the Towpath Trail, Cuyahoga River Water Trail, and Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. In spring and summer, this is a hotspot for birders who flock to see cerulean and yellow-throated warblers.
Brecksville Station is a flag stop for Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. It is located at Station Road Bridge Trailhead, which offers ample parking. Passengers can get on and off the train as part of combination trail-train adventure. The train provides a one-way shuttle service for bicyclists, runners, hikers, and paddlers using the Towpath, Buckeye, or Cuyahoga River Water trails.
These short walks along the Towpath Trail explore many highlights of the valley’s lowlands. They are recommended for people who have mobility disabilities, are visiting with children, or have limited time.
The Brecksville Diversion Dam in Cuyahoga Valley National Park was a remnant of the area’s industrial and transportation history. Its demolition in 2020 is a major milestone in the Cuyahoga River’s recovery.
Read and listen to experienced fisherman Steven Moss, who grew up fishing in Cuyahoga River. He talks about his youth growing up around Cuyahoga Valley and explains how the health of the Cuyahoga River has changed over the past few decades.
The wrought-iron Station Road Bridge was built over the Cuyahoga River in 1881. It provided vehicle access to the Cuyahoga Valley Line at Brecksville Station. This train station and its bridge were a vital link between Cuyahoga and Summit counties, improving travel between Cleveland and Akron. Today, the bridge serves hikers, horseback riders, and cyclists. Two exhibit panels interpret the Pinery Narrows bridges and the Cuyahoga River.
Near the Station Road Bridge Trailhead, several exhibits tell the Cuyahoga’s remarkable story of recovery. Wildlife is returning to a river famous for catching fire. Listen and read how local people made this happen. Pose for photos with our eagle and heron statues.
How do you restore a river? When two historic dams were removed at this site in 2020, the Cuyahoga became free flowing here for the first time in nearly 200 years. Learn more and find out the new method for diverting river water into the Ohio & Erie Canal via the Pinery Feeder.
By the remains of Lock 36, visitors can explore the Pinery Feeder which still “feeds” water from the Cuyahoga River into this section of the Ohio & Erie Canal.
