CLEVELAND — A new program in northeast Ohio allows outdoor enthusiasts to more easily enjoy the natural wonders of Cuyahoga Valley National Park by both land and water. 

Doug Marsh’s paddle is no stranger to the Cuyahoga River. He’s been kayaking the waterway for about 10 years. 

“This stretch is really nice because you get a little bit of everything,” he said. “You get some white water, like we’re coming up on here, and you get some nice quiet runs. Some quiet stretches.”

The white water isn’t too troublesome, just class one rapids, and it’s just one of this winding river’s challenges.

“Common folklore has it that ‘Cuyahoga’ means ‘crooked river’ in Mohawk Native American language,” Marsh said. “I don’t know if any of that’s true or not, but it sounds nice.”

The twists and turns add to the distance of the trip.

“It took us 15 minutes to take the train here,” he said. “It’s going to take two hours to get back.”

The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s Explorer program now transports people, and their kayaks, to access points along the river. It’s something Marsh and his wife, Sarah, like to take full advantage of, on this trip riding the train from Brecksville to Boston Mill. 

“A lot of times when people do kayaking trips, they have to take two vehicles, and we’ll put one at the start and one at the end,” said Sarah. “So, this is convenient because it eliminates that issue.”

Additionally, the train ride is another way to see the sights. 

“It’s made everything more convenient, and it’s just enjoyable,” she said. “It’s fun, it’s something different to do, so I think that’s made us do it a lot more frequently.”

At the destination train station, crews unload the kayaks, then kayakers transport the boats to the water. Once at the river, kayakers can use their paddle power to make the trip back to their vehicles. 

“That just means so much more of the river is accessible to you, practically and logistically, than it had been in years past,” said Doug. 

The excursion offers more opportunities to experience nature and watch wildlife. 

“I just like being outdoors,” said Sarah. “And in northeast Ohio with the seasons, it’s pretty much beautiful year-round for different reasons.”

Doug said changes to the river make it more eventful.

“With them taking the dams down, every year you were able to do a little bit more with it,” said Doug. “Once they took the Brecksville dam down, then you could kayak a huge stretch of it. And this is awesome.”

The Cuyahoga River is accessible near four of the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s stations. visitors need to bring their own kayaks.

Maps and pricing information is available at cvsr.org.