This past week was Thanksgiving Break so instead of my biweekly trip to Centennial Woods, I was home for the holiday. I decided to choose a place near my hometown to investigate and selected a location near the border of Brecksville Metropark and Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Brecksville, Ohio. This is a place along Chippewa Creek that my friends and I visit often, all times of year whether to go swimming or to hike and climb on the boulders that scatter the creek. Whenever we have nothing better to do we always end up at this spot. I think that is what makes this place so special, it holds personal significance, is a reminder of home, and the structure of the place itself is like nothing I have seen before.
Location of my Ohio Phenology Spot!
This place has various similarities and differences to my Centennial Woods Phenology Location. Both locations have a creek running through, yet the small brook at Centennial Woods is nothing compared to Chippewa Creek. Certain areas can get up to five feet deep, and massive boulders line the banks for about one mile before becoming a pebbled shore. Chippewa Creek is also settled between two steep hills where Centennial Brook has a small slope on one side and a clearing on the other. The main similarity between the two was the dominance of Eastern Hemlock. The entire hike to the creek was filled mainly with Red and White Pine and Eastern Hemlock. This compares to the large section of Eastern Hemlock located just off the bank of Centennial Brook and the pines that liter the surrounding area. However, more trees in Ohio seemed to be holding on to their brown leaves while in Vermont, almost every tree is leafless. I assume that this is likely due to Vermont being closer to the Northern Hemisphere, therefore experiencing overall colder temperatures which lead the trees to drop their leaves earlier.
While visiting Chippewa Creek, I also took the opportunity to spend time with my friends that usually explore this place with me. We normally adventure with a “leave no trace” mentality, but after reading the Honorable Harvest, I was inspired to do something more. I was unsure of what to leave on this hilly and rocky landscape, so instead my friends and I decided to pick up any trash we found during the hike and properly dispose of it. Lots of people use this area as a place to party or picnic, so there is always boxes, cans, and food packages tucked underneath rocks and roots. By taking away harmful objects, I felt as though I was giving the plant and animal species there the gift of a more clean, natural space.
