Celebrate Trails Day on April 22
Celebrate Trails Day, a national celebration established by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in 2013, encourages people to get outside and enjoy the country's trails and trail systems. Observed on the fourth Saturday in April, Celebrate Trails Day shares a date this year with Earth Day—April 22.
Here in Cleveland Heights, on April 22, 1 p.m., Boulevard Neighbors is hosting an all-ages hike of a two-mile section of Forest Hill Park. Built in 1938, as part of John D. Rockefeller's estate, the historic urban park encompasses 235 acres—a mix of woods and fields, as well as a large lagoon.
The hike will proceed along the paved Forest Hill Pathway, which circles both the Cleveland Heights and East Cleveland sections of the park. Hikers should meet at the picnic shelter at the parking lot off of Lee Road, just north of Monticello Boulevard. For information, contact Rachel DeGolia, at degolias@gmail.com.
Cleveland Heights also offers trails through Cain, Cumberland and Forest Hill parks, and is close to the Euclid Creek and Acacia reservations, the Shaker Lakes trails, and the Lake-to-Lakes trail that runs along Doan Brook all the way to Lake Erie.
Rails-to-Trails's website, www.railstotrails.org, offers information on how to be part of Celebrate Trails day, and encourages participants to register their event on its website, where it will show up on a national map. It offers suggestions and tools for promoting local hikes and rides, including downloadable templates and a selfie frame.
Elaine Price
Elaine Price is an environmental professional who is now doing greenspace work for county government. A longtime resident of Cleveland Heights, Price is active in the Boulevard Neighbors block association.