An Ode to Winter in the CLE by Brad Nellis
Winter is awesome and you should learn to love it instead of just tolerating it for a few months.
I know that opinion is different from most people that live here and I’ll confess that for the longest time I was one of those “I hate winter” people. But we got a husky/golden retriever mix back in 2009 and he LOVED the cold and snow and so I was forced to walk him in those abysmal conditions.
We started hiking together around here in all seasons and I discovered the beauty of our local parks, both Cleveland Metro Parks and Summit Metro Parks, not to mention a lot of local community parks. And while nothing compares to the beauty of fall in the CLE, snowy scenes around here are a close second!
Some of my favorite spots include Quarry Rock Falls in the South Chagrin Reservation, the Great Falls of Tinkers Creek in Viaduct Park, Sulphur Creek, also in South Chagrin, and the Hemlock Creek Picnic Area in the Bedford Reservation. Here are a few, recent pics from those areas, you can see I’m obsessed with visiting and photographing the dozens of waterfalls in the area!
If you’re going to go out and explore the winter beauty all around you, here’s a couple of pieces of basic advice:
- Dress appropriately and in layers:
- I like fleece-lined/wind resistant pants paired with a heavy hoodie and a wind-resistant jacket.
- Winter boots and warm socks.
- Good gloves and a stocking hat.
- Bring along a bottle or two of water in the car.
- Keep your phone and ID on your person.
- Be mindful of weather conditions and wind-chill.
We’ve only got a few weeks of winter left but we all know the snow is not quite done yet; I hope you’ll get out if it does and enjoy nature’s beauty right here in our own backyard!
