We are fortunate in Medina County to have some of the best parks and hiking trails. Many of the parks have multiple trails offering varying levels of complexity. In my opinion, here are 7 of the best hiking trails in Medina County.
Best Hiking Trails in Medina
Allardale Park
The scenery at this park is beautiful. There is one spot where you are on top of the hill and you look out at the farmland and it is so peaceful. It has a lot of hills so if you are looking for a hike with some challenge, this is one of the best options. We are preparing to hike a 14er in Colorado next year and this is our park of choice to do our practice hikes because in North East Ohio we just don’t have the elevation that they have out west but as I mentioned, this park does have the most hills.
There are 5 trails at Allerdale; 1 paved trail listed as easy, 3 Nature Trails ranging from moderate to difficult, and one Equestrian Trail on the east side of the park listed as easy.
Hubbard Valley Park
There are 3 trails here, one paved and 2 natural trails. One of the natural trails takes a loop around the lake. There are slight hills on the natural trails, especially the Trillium Trail. This is a great hike even when it is hot because a lot of the hike is in the woods so the shade from the trees means it is cooler. When it is cold, the trees block you from the wind.
River Styx Park
This park has 3 trails; 2 nature trails that are listed as moderate and 1 paved trail marked as easy. There are slight hills here as well so if you are looking for some elevation in your hike, this would fit the bill. The nature trails are mostly in the woods here, so it isn’t as hot in the summer. However the tree cover here is not as strong as at Hubbard Valley so if it is windy, you will still feel a decent amount of the wind.
Whipp’s Ledges
This park is part of the Cleveland Metroparks. There is a trail here that is considered moderate difficulty. The trail is a consistent incline up through the rocks so if you are looking for a hike that is not just a straight walk, this would be great.
One of the main attractions is climbing on the rocks and exploring the paths through the rocks. While this isn’t necessarily a hike, it still tests your balance and stability.
In my opinion, this is the park with the best scenery!
Worden’s Ledges
This park is also part of the Cleveland Metroparks. The trail is considered moderate difficulty. The rocks here have carvings in them that create an incredible sight along your hike.
This trail can get pretty muddy so be sure you have hiking boots and/or shoes with good tread on them.
Princess Ledges Nature Preserve
There are 2 trails here; one nature trail and one ledges trail. Getting to the ledges is mostly downhill so then you have to go uphill on the way back out. The trails do get pretty muddy here as well so be sure you have appropriate footwear.
The ledges are a great sight – well worth the hike!
Buckeye Woods Park
This is such a fun park! There are 2 playgrounds for the kiddos and the paved walking trails take you around the lake and also along the wooded area. From this park, you can access 2 other parks and paths including the Chippewa Inlet Trail and the Schleman Nature Preserve. Hiking a combination of these trails will get you a long-distance hike if you are looking for one. The paths are mostly flat so would not be one that would help if you are looking for that kind of challenge.
Hiking Essentials
Having the right shoes, clothing, food, water, etc can make or break the hike. This is even more true if you are taking kids along for the hike. Here are a few things we like to take on our hikes with us:
- Compass for kids – we have learned that the difference between just surviving a hike with kids and enjoying it is being prepared. Having a compass or other tools the kids can play with makes it fun for them and distracts them from remembering their legs are tired. 🙂 Another thing we have done is ask our daughter to be our tour guide – she loves that. She just makes up things about the things we are walking past and loves being our guide and leader!
- Hiking boots – we didn’t get hiking shoes for all of us until this Summer and we agree that it makes a world of difference! Hiking with something that has good traction and ankle support makes the hike a very different experience, in our opinion. We had excellent luck with REI boots for us and we got our daughter’s at Walmart.
- The right clothing – layering is the best approach if it is cold because you will need more layers when you start the hike and you will want to take them off as you get hot throughout the hike.
- Backpack – having a backpack helps the previous tip not be so annoying. You are much more willing to have more layers and take them off as you want when you have a backpack to toss them in. We tested a bunch of different backpacks and landed on this one. It is lightweight yet holds quite a lot of stuff and is comfortable to wear since it has a chest strap & hip buckle.
- Water is always a must-have if it is hot or the hike is a few miles.
- Snacks are another must-have for longer hikes… or anytime if you have kids with you! 😉
- Trekking poles are very helpful if you need help with balance and/or it is a very uneven terrain.
