C Cleveland - Acacia Reservation

Saturday, August 10, 2013

I've talked about our beautiful Cleveland Metroparks before. The Metroparks are an extensive system of individual parks that follow the rivers and creeks that surround Cleveland. The Emerald Necklace, as the Metroparks are called, encompasses over 21,000 acres and offer everything from bike paths to horse trails and golfing.
 
Remember the spooky legend of Squire's Castle? Part of the Metroparks.
 
And the fun that you can have at the zoo in the winter? Cleveland Metroparks, too!
 
I'm fortunate enough to have a reservation of the park, Euclid Creek, about 1/2 mile down the road from me. Bernie and I used to love going there and I've taken Millie and Dino there a few times as well. It's a fabulous place to take in the beautiful fall foliage.
 
Our luck doubled because a new park just opened 1 mile in the opposite direction. It's called Acacia Reservation and the land was formerly a private country club and golf course.
 
Acacia Golf Club was founded in 1921 and eventually developed into a leading country club. The problem was that the east side of Cleveland became so overrun with private clubs within a 10 mile radius of each other in the last 20 years, that Acacia just wasn't able to survive. What can I say? We like to golf.
 
Residents (including me) were concerned that the private club would be sold to a developer for residential or worse yet, commercial use and it's natural beauty would be lost. After much back and forth with the Mayor of Lyndhurst ( a douche who wanted to develop the last remaining tract of land into yet another residential/commercial zone), the shareholders agreed to sell the 155 acres to The Conservation Fund, a non-profit organization that purchased the land for $14.75 million.

And then, the coolest thing happened. The Conservation Fund turned around and donated the land to the Cleveland Metroparks with deed restrictions that ensure it will remain a greenspace for many generations to enjoy!
 
If you haven't heard of The Conservation Fund, you may want to take a peek at their website. They have protected 7 million acres of land in the US and are in the top 1% charities nationwide. I had never heard of them before but I'm now awe of their mission.
 
I took Millie and Dino there last week and I think we've found our new favorite place to walk!

It was a cloudy day but it was still beautiful.




You can even go fishing!
 
So many smells!

 
I love how they've let the natural vegetation overgrow.

No manicured greens here!




They peed literally every 5 feet.


 

8 comments

  1. Hey Chrissy! What an amazingly upbeat result! And by the way, that second photo, with the flowers swirling round the base of the tree? Love it. Indigo x

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  2. I've always imagined Cleveland to be really urbanized - but this looks nice..

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  3. How awesome, Chrissy!

    What a beeeautiful place! And Millie and Dino look so happy to be there.

    I clicked to view your photos big and they're super. I like how the grounds look natural and untouched. Especially loved the second photo from the bottom!

    X

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  4. @Indigo,
    I know! We're so excited. Thanks. :-)

    @David Macaulay,
    Stick with me, David. I'll show you all of Cleveland's deep, dark secrets.

    @Ron,
    It's so weird when you're used too seeing the green, manicured golf greens but I love the way it looks now. Thanks! I wish I had my better camera but I couldn't risk dropping it with the dogs.

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  5. That is pretty cool. Oh my, could you imagine Millie and Dino off the leash there? If I was to play golf thats the stuff I would be hitting out of anyways.

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  6. @Simply Suthern,
    Oh, geez. I would never find them again. Even your sand traps are overgrown.

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  7. I love and miss the Valley (Westsider terminology)!

    Have you ever considered writing freelance (for $)pieces for pro-Cleveland-themed publications? Not that I really know of any (other than Cleveland magazine), but with your voice and writing chops, you'd definitely be an asset.

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  8. @The Roving Retorter,
    You should come and visit!

    Thank you! I would love to do that but we really don't have much. Cleveland and that rag Scene magazine.

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