Day 37: Cedar Point, OH

Not all parks we go to are made by Mother Nature.  Today we are going to a manmade park, a well known manmade park called Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH.  Cedar Point Amusement Park is voted the best amusement park in America and in the end you will see that I agree with this. This park holds a lot of records with their coasters, so if you are a coasters fan like I am, this is the best place to experience them.

Arriving 15 min before the park officially opens, there were huge lines already forming at the gate. That's when I knew that today was going to be a test of my patience.  In fact, I didn't have to wait to long before my patience was tried and it wouldn't be the last time today.

For 2013, Cedar Point has a new ride called the GateKeeper.  It is 4164 ft long with a 164 ft drop.  It is the tallest, longest, fastest winged roller coaster in the world.  I had to ride it first.  Everything was going well until I was literally one staircase away from entering the seating area.

The weather that had been following us for so long, finally caught up to us and started raining buckets for 2 hours.  Almost all rides were shutdown at Cedar Point during this time and I was taking shelter under a platform having wished that I didn't drink that big cup of coffee earlier.  But I wasn't about to give up my position in line and it didn't matter anyway. I had shelter and because most of the other rides were shut down, there was nothing to do but make friends with the people in line with me.  B unfortunately didn't do as well. She was completely drenched and had reported to me that some parts of the park had knee deep standing water.  However, once the rain stopped, the Cedar Point grounds crew managed to drain all the standing water.

The next ride and probably the best in the park, is called Maverick.  It was all the way in the back of the park so after I was done with Gatekeeper I headed there in order to beat most of the crowd.  I still had to wait in line for 40 min but it could have been much worse as the crowd finally caught up behind me and the line started growing.  This ride wasn't about big drops, it was about lots of twists and turns, kinda like watching a rodeo rider on a bull.  I felt the most banged up from that ride, but also the most adrenaline.

Next was a twin wooden roller coaster known as Gemini.  The was probably the calmest of the coasters in the park, but that really doesn't say much as most of them are pretty crazy.  When the coaster was originally introduced, it broke the height and speed records, but has long since been surpassed.

Next is a coaster called Mean Streak (not pictured).  Made entirely out of southern pine and 1.7 million board feet long it is holds records for the wooden roller coaster.  It also gave me a headache being such a bumpy ride.  I was glad to be off of that one.

FInally, the most popular coaster is all about speed and height.  No crazy corkscrews or twists, but one big turn.  It is called Top Thrills Dragster (TTD).  Being able to ride this ride would prove to be the most painful one in the park.  The first time I was in line, the rain came back and shut down the ride, so I left to go ride some other rides with B.  I'll come back and try again later.

B and I also rode a corkscrew coaster and our favorite couples coaster was called Raptor where you hang in a seat and your feet are dangling.

Millennium Force is by far the longest roller coaster I have ever seen.  Just look at the beginning hill.  When you reach the top it is an 310 foot drop and you reach speeds of 93 MPH.  Talk about a rush!  The first hill has an 80 degree drop.

I went back to TTD for a second try but just as I got there, they shut down the ride....AGAIN.  Why?  Because someone puked before the ride even started.  Ugh.  They would spend at least 30 to 40 min to cleanup the mess.  I went with B and we rode some other rides and went to see a Broadway show (I highly recommend the show).  Third time in line and once again, they shut down the ride.  I wasn't sure why this time. Someone mentioned mechanical issues, but that wasn't clear.  Again, I got out of line and went to ride the Power Tower (not pictured).  You are launched up 300 ft and then you freefall and let me tell you, it is quite a feeling to have your stomach try to come up through your mouth.  

Right after this, I see that TTD is open again, so I finally get in line and this time I finally made it, 30 min before the park is suppose to close.  Let me tell you, it is quite amazing.  Probably the most thrill I've had out of all the coasters.  They really do put the thrill in Top Thrill Dragster.  You go 0 to 120 MPH in 4 seconds and launch almost 90 degrees upward to a height of 420 feet before you go over the top by physics only.  Sadly, the entire experience only lasts 17 seconds, but you'll never forget it.

With only 30 min left, we went back to our favorite couples coaster, the Raptor (not pictured) and with almost everyone gone from the park, managed to ride it a couple of times back to back before heading out to the parking lot.

However, when we got out to the parking lot, we were attacked by biblical proportions of mayflies.  Our car and the road was covered with these little guys.  They aren't really dangerous but when you are driving, then can cause you to slide off the road or into another car, so you have to be careful.  

We were pretty tired, so we headed back to Wal-Mart for the night to get some rest.

Day 36: Richfield, OH to Sandusky, OH

Stops:

Cuyahoga Valley NP, OH

Day 2 at Cuyahoga Valley NP looked like it wasn't going to happen at first.  With a high probability of a couple of inches of rain forecasted, we decided to play it by ear.  

We decided to head to the Everett Covered Bridge.  The bridge was originally built after someone drowned in the small creek and was functional until 1975.  It had deteriorated so much, that it had to be rebuilt and made better.  However, you cannot drive over it anymore.  On the way to the bridge, we encountered a small snake and walked around it.

The morning decided to cooperate with us, so we decided to rent some bikes from Century Cycles in Peninsula and go on the Towpath Trail.  The Towpath trail was used by the mules to pull the boats through the canals and to the locks.  The trail is fairly level and mostly dirt or small gravel.  There are occasional boardwalks and paved areas.  The entire length of the Towpath is about 21 miles.

Along the way we came across a pond with snapping turtles and frogs.

Finally, we went back to the Winking Lizard for lunch and a drink and I came to know why it was called the winking lizard. I swear he winked at me!

Nearby, is the Deep Lock Quarry hiking trail. Within Deep Lock Quarry lies Lock 28, which at 17 feet was the deepest lock on the Ohio & Erie Canal, and an old quarry from which blocks of Berea sandstone were cut for the canal locks and other local structures.

Near the lock was the quarry where many of the sandstones used in the construction of the locks on the northern section of the Ohio & Erie Canal were cut from.  You can still see the stones left behind used to make the locks as well as a Freemason logo.

Another neat hike is at the Ledges area of the Virginia Kendall park. It is located within Cuyahoga Valley NP. A short hike in and you will see that there are rocky cliffs within the forest.  There is also s cave, icebox cave, but it is closed due to white nose syndrome.

Finally, we ended the day eating sweet corn on the cob from Szalay's Farm. The corn comes right out of their fields and is some of the best corn on the cob I've had.

We left Cuyahoga Valley NP towards Sandusky, Ohio wishing we could hang around longer to see more wildlife.  The locals may not know how good they have it.

Day 35: Chambersburg, PA to Richfield, OH

Stops:

Cuyahoga Valley NP, OH

We arrived late in the afternoon to Peninsula, OH which is close to Akron and also near Brecksville, the hometown of our friend, Bobby Lee.  In fact, Bobby knew the area quite well and basically we communicated through a series of text messages on what to go see and where to go eat.  It was like having our own personnal tour guide.  For the few hours we had left for the day, this was really useful and made our use of time much more efficient.

Cuyahoga Valley NP is unsuspecting at first.  It is surrounded by a bunch of residential areas linked by small towns like Cuyahoga Falls, Brecksville, Peninsula, etc.  But because of it's history with the Ohio and Erie canals and the system of locks used and the shipbuilding done there, along with its support of small farming communities,  it is now a National Park.  In fact, many the small farms are still working farms today.  However, it is much more than that.  For wildlife lovers, I would consider it a hidden gem.  Beaver Marsh was once a junkyard and was reclaimed by beavers. 

Now you are able to see herons, fish, snapping turtles, ducks, tree swallows, beavers, frogs, and much, much more.  Out of all the national parks I've been to so far, this one has the most concentrated area of wildlife.

We started our exploration with Brandywine Falls.  It is a short walk from the parking lot but a beautiful waterfall with the water cascading down the rocks.  Just further up is where a mill use to be.

Driving to different points in the park actually takes you in and out of the park weaving through the residential areas to get there.  Our next stop was at the Boston Mills Visitor Center.  It contained replicas of the shipbuilding process but was closed unfortunately for the day.  Next door was a great restoration of an old gas station and garage.

We finally ended out at Beaver Marsh at dusk, where the wildlife really comes alive.  You will come upon a lock and even a beaver dam in the marsh.  

Here, I came across a frog sitting on a lily pad in the lock making for this almost icon photo.  

Next I came across this heron fishing for dinner.  I actually saw it dip its head in the water and pull out this colorful fish and then swallow it whole.  It was like watching a National Geographic movie.

And then, we spotted the beaver swimming around the marsh.

This little swallow was flying in and out of a small hole in the this tree.  It wasn't the only one either.  Several other swallows were doing the same thing.

Finally this red-winged blackbird was cawing at me, begging for it's picture to be taken. I couldn't resist.

Afterwards, Bobby suggested dinner at the Winking Lizard bar in Peninsula before we headed to Richfield to call it a night.