Where to run in Cleveland - Fall Edition

Cleveland isn’t exactly the place most people think of when they think of Fall.  Maybe it’s our Rust Belt history combined with our own burning river past.  Thankfully, agencies like the EPA have really helped clean up or waterways. The Cleveland Metroparks, along with some national parks services and even local cities have done an amazing job in really giving The greater Cleveland area some AMAZING places to enjoy the fall colors while out on the run.

Cleveland Metroparks Rocky River Reservation

The Rocky River Reservarion of the Cleveland Metroparks truly has something to offer every type of runner. Following the Rocky River from Lake Erie around Cleveland Hopkins Airport and down to Berea, this reservation is full of paved bike paths and dirt trails alike.  The accessibility of this park is unlike any others around the city, making it a real treat to those that live near it.

Beginner runners will love the paved paths, which can easily be ramped up by running up the many roadways and sidewalks that dive from the surrounding cities into thickly wooded river valley. Trailheads will love the area surrounding the Nature Center which has lots of dirt trails that climb up and down over hills and even a steep staircase that gives some of the best views of the Rocky River while getting that heart rate up.

Cuyahoga National Valley

Despite being a lesser known national park, at least nationwide, this is still one of the most visited parks in the US.  It can be a little tough to access but offers everything. With some very technical and hilly sections off of Truxell Road, winding in and around some rocky ledges, and some very flat and easy trails, following the historic Towpath, it has something for every skill level all year long.

This valley is home to many races, including the Burning River 100, which is a better known 100 mile race that occurs each July. Fall is amazing here given the amount of foliage that changes color and will never dissapoint. Some of my favorite areas also include, Kendall Lake, the Ledges, the Towpath, the ski areas and the Camp Manatoc Boy Scout Camp, which is only open to the public on special occasions. 

Here are some other fun places to plan your runs through the valley.

Fairhill Road Rockefeller Park/Ambler Park/Shaker Lakes

These obscure and small parks are located in the heart of the near east side of Cleveland, mostly between Fairhill Road and N. Park Boulevard. They are small and very hidden, yet offers some amazingly technical and hilly single track trails. The park has some amazing views of land that use to be here before development, and seems to have somehow escaped time. This park is even home to a tough 50k, which makes it that much cooler, despite it being relatively unknown. 

Cleveland Metroparks Brecksville Reservation

I now consider this my home course. Having moved to Brecskville in part because of the massive parks system that butts up to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, giving me total access to run all the trails I can tolerate. While smaller than the valley, it offers a ton of trails with one even called My Mountain, that overlooks the Chippewa creek. 

The trails here offer a ton of wilderness like feel, while always being fairly close to place you can go to for safety, or an Uber pickup in case your lost or dead tired of running. The hills here can really build a runner’s endurance and simulates some of the courses you’ll see in more mountainous regions, albeit without the elevation.

Cleveland Metroparks North Chagrin Reservation

This large Metropark is home to the famed Squire’s Castle, a 19th century castle style home, which is the starting point of the Burning River 100.  This unique place is a real treat to the east side of Cleveland and it’s nearby suburbs and a great place to see something you won’t see anywhere else in Ohio. 

With views of waterfalls, bridle trails and even paved path, this is a quintessential place to log some miles while tree gazing. Being so close to the mess that is 271, this reservation offers an amazing reprieve with every amenity the Metroparks offer, sans a beach. 

Hinckley Reservation 

This southern park has a lot of rolling hills and aggressive trails that job across ledges, and is not for the faint of heart. It’s easy to get lost here, but worth the drive and hike to really be one with nature while pushing yourself to the max.

Home of the buzzards, and a rare wintery 100k race, the trails here are great for those train for trail marathons or ultra marathons. Despite being in sleepy Medina county, don’t sleep on the beauty of this park with its large lake and sceneic overlooks.

Girdled Road Reservation 

This far east park system, which lies almost in Painesville, offers a lot of nicely groomed trails that provide quite a few rolling hills. This parks butts up to a few other parks and his home to a very unique bridge, that’s is amazingly fun to run across. 

Trails here are clearly surround by wetlands and dive into the woods leaving a great feeling of solitude, this far our from the "big city".  Despite how far this park is for most people, it’s a great place to plan a long run with a friend and has a few covered areas where you can plan in your own aid stations or a sit down lunch on a long run. Wildlife can abound out here, so who knows what you will run into!

Mill Stream Run Reservation

This Metropark is much larger than most people realize at first. Follow the southern parts of the Rocky River, this winding park has a lot of great river views with paved paths surrounded by wetlands.  Being easily accessible to many densely populated suburbs, this park is a big draw for many West siders. 

Most of this park is fairly flat and great for runners who really want an easy place to stretch their legs and go meander without the worries of getting lost or tackling big climbs. An ideal place for beginning runners, or those who just want a quick run through the park to break up the hustle and bustle of everyday living.

The Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon Pays Off

A few months ago, I ran the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon in May.  It was a great race for me time wise and because I was able to help a friend run her first marathon.  In the months leading up to the race, I wrote a lot of blog posts as well as retweeted and shared a lot of Cleveland Marathon articles, blog posts, tweets and Facebook posts.  That was my job as an official ambassador for the race.  It was fun for me to share my passion for this race, especially since this is the race that got me hooked on long distance running.  I wanted to take this post to share with you what came from all of that effort as an ambassador for the marathon.

The Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon made a $500 donation to the charity of my choice: City Dogs Cleveland!

That’s right, all of that sharing and spreading using my discount code for 2018 (EGCLE10) literally paid off.  Over 500 runners signed up with my discount code!  I am completely in shock that somehow my blog, tweets, Facebook posts and whatever else helped 500 people sign up for an event in the 2018 Rite Cleveland Marathon series!  I’m actually humbled by that number, but also love that all of the time I put in earned City Dogs Cleveland $500.  In case you never heard of City Dogs Cleveland, here is there website, here is there Facebook page and here is there Twitter profile.  Organizations like City Dogs are vital to helping keep animals off of our streets and helping to control the pet population.  Most dogs they get aren’t there through any fault of their own, they are just regular dogs who are down on their luck, most of which are absolutely adorable and great dogs.  They do a lot to help rescue dogs, particularly pit bulls, in and around the Cleveland area and I can not say enough good things about what they do, especially with how little they have!


If you were wondering why I chose City Dogs Cleveland as my charity for the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon to donated to, the answer is simple.  They helped rescue my dog Fitz, who was extremely evacuated when they found him.  He was very malnourished but rebounded well with some care.  The APL then adopted Fitz from City Dogs.  Fitz was a rescue dog in a shelter for over 4 months.  I then adopted Fitz from APL on January 11th, 2015.  Ever since then, Fitz has been an uplifting friend of mine and probably helped me meet my now wife.  After being on the streets for who knows how long, emaciated to near the point of death, and in shelters for over 4 months, you’d think he’d be a little damaged from all of this.  Well one of the amazing things about dogs like Fitz is that they rebound extremely well and other than being a little excitable to meet people, he is a great dog.  He loves snuggles, isn’t food aggressive and even has his own overstuffed chair he sleeps in at night (don’t worry, our German Shephard dog Belle and Dakota are OK with him sleeping in the chair and love him the same as Julie Anne and I do).  Fitz is proof that pit bulls have a bad rap and I’m glad City Dogs Cleveland is working so hard to save these loveable dogs.



While I’m doling out the kind words, I’d like to say thanks to Greg Murray of Greg Murray Photography for showing me how much City Dogs Cleveland does for pit bulls and the city of Cleveland.  Greg does a lot of work with dogs and to support dogs.  He’s even one of the main forces behind lifting pit bull bans around Cleveland, and possibly other places.  Greg did great work with my wife and I in capturing our dogs with some of his amazing camera skills.  I highly recommend him if your looking to capture some great pictures of your pets.  If you love adorable pit bulls, you can buy his 2019 pit bull calendar here, half of all profits go to organizations that help rescue pit bulls.

Lastly, thank you to everyone who signed up for the 2018 Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon using my discount code.  I’m amazed at how many people I was able to get to sign up, while saving them a few dollars and that it afforded me to make a positive difference right in Cleveland for many of our four legged running partners (or recovery couch potatoes).  I’m looking forward to being a 2019 ambassador for the Rite Aid Cleveland marathon as well and will be sharing a discount code, once I get the new one.

Now time for some pics of more dogs City Dogs is trying to help...  😁