Old Canal Bed Panel

Step onto the footbridge to see how natural forces and people have shaped this view.

NPS / Arrye Rosser

Quick Facts

Location:

Park at Red Lock Trailhead, 1175 Highland Road, Sagamore Hills, Ohio 44067. Walk north on the Towpath Trail to the first footbridge.

Significance:

The Ohio & Erie Canal was once a vital transportation route, connecting Ohio and lands to the west to a growing eastern population. The canal is now maintained as a ruin. Here a small headwater stream winds across the old waterway to the Cuyahoga River. Healthy streams nourish the river’s recovery.

Designation:

Ohio & Erie Canal District, Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area, Ohio to Erie Trail, Industrial Heartland Trail Network

Amenities

4 listed

Audio Description, Benches/Seating, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Wheelchair Accessible

Pause here to ponder how nature’s return is changing Cuyahoga Valley. From this footbridge, look out over the remains of the Ohio & Erie Canal. Notice how a stream cuts across the old canal bed, seeking the Cuyahoga River. Where mules once pulled heavily laden boats, trees now drop their loads of leaves into the water. This provides shade, food, and shelter to salamanders and other small aquatic creatures. Park scientists look for pollution-sensitive wildlife as a sign of environmental health. Protecting small, free-flowing streams is important to the river’s recover. The National Park Service maintains the canal as a ruin, a testament to nature’s ability to forgive and recover.

If you cross the footbridge and head uphill, the 1.5-mile connector leads to the Old Carriage Trail and the Bike and Hike Trail. Continuing on the Towpath Trail takes you north to Station Road Bridge Trailhead or south to Red Lock Trailhead.