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Tick Alert
Multiple tick exposures have been reported by visitors to the park. Please be aware that proper shoes, clothing, use of repellent spray, and checking the body for ticks following a visit to the park are the best way to prevent transmission of disease. More »
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Canal Visitor Center Closure
Canal Visitor Center will be closed for construction, starting Monday, May 6, 2013. It will reopen with new exhibits in early 2014.
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Bald Eagle Closure in Effect
RR tracks, and 30 foot right of way on either side, are closed to all foot traffic from the Rt. 82 Bridge at Station Rd, north to the RR tracks at. The Cuyahoga R. downstream of the Brecksville Dam to the Fitzwater Rd Bridge is closed to water activities.
Farming in a National Park
Lindley Barn restoration. NPS/Ted Toth Surrounded by the history of the valley's early farmers, modern families carry on agricultural traditions, while also introducing their own specialized practices. In order to preserve the valley's pastoral landscape and protect both natural and cultural resources, the National Park Service developed a program called the Countryside Initiative. This program invites farmers to lease land and farm in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The Countryside Initiative program balances the needs of the land and farmer, who must follow strict guidelines for sustainable farm management. The Countryside Initiative program began in 1999 to rehabilitate approximately 20 picturesque old farms that operated in the valley from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. As agriculture disappeared from the valley in the 20th century, these farms fell into disrepair. Through the Countryside Initiative program, the National Park Service celebrates farming and healthy land practices that help both the farmers and land. While farming in a national park is an unconventional idea in America, that is not the case elsewhere in the world. In Great Britain, for example, over 90% of national park land is privately owned. Not only is it considered natural and normal to live within the park boundaries, farming is considered the only practical way to maintain the openness, beauty, and diversity of the countryside. For more information on the Countryside Initiative click the links to the left. 
In Their Own Words Click the topics to hear stories about Cuyahoga Valley life. Sustainability and the Small Farm (57 seconds) Farming in a National Park (1 minute 16 seconds) Also visit the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy website, and click to learn more about the goals of the Countryside Initiative: Rethinking Farming. |
Did You Know?
A young James A. Garfield, 20th President of the United States, worked briefly as a mule boy on the Ohio & Erie Canal, an important cultural resource within Cuyahoga Valley National Park.