As I mentioned in the comments of my previous blog post, the other night, I explored a new section of The Portage Hike and Bike trail that has recently been completed. Now I can go from downtown all the way to either Munroe Falls in Summit County or to Ravenna to the east of Kent. The Portage now links up on one section to the Summit Hike and Bike Trail, allowing you to go all the way to Munroe Falls if you want. This is the section that I explored, not knowing where exactly the trail would end. As it stands, I went all the way to the Portage/Summit trail borders and then turned around again to head back downtown, since I had a previous activity planned for that evening (my Monday night T'ai Chi class). I was rewarded with some spectacular scenery along the river banks, walking along sections that were both rapids and placid quiet river. I was also rewarded on my way back downtown by watching a Great Blue Heron fishing along the rapids section of the river close to downtown. It was so nice to see folks out walking, biking and enjoying this new offering for our area, sure to add a great deal to the quality of life in our area. I encountered people of all ages, from children to seniors, so obviously multiple generations are taking advantage of this new trail. People need green spaces and encounters with nature, especially in these times of massive suburban sprawl and disappearing farm fields. It was so wonderful to take in all the sights, sounds and smells along the trail and to see what it had to offer. The river is something that people are just now beginning to realize is a real asset to our area. Restaurants along the river are beginning to add outdoor patios overlooking the river and people are flocking to these places to take in the scenery and the atmosphere now that our river is far cleaner than it was in past years. People are also beginning to see the benefits of having hike and bike trails, not only to have something to so, but for the sake of their health, as they see the benefits of walking and biking, so our river is beginning to be viewed by the folks who count as a recreational asset to our area. We missed out on receiving a grant to create a whitewater park in downtown Kent, and with this bad economy, it's not likely to come up again anytime soon, but I doubt that those who are pushing for it will stop trying. In fact, I hope that they continue their quest to create such a facility to attract kayakers and canoe enthusiasts to the river. Hopes are that if such a thing goes through, it will create new businesses catering to river sports in downtown and its vicinity, and that can only be a good thing. I wonder if we can get some federal stimulus money to go forward with this idea since it'd create jobs and opportunities for the Kent area? Wow, wouldn't that be a plus for Kent, to add to the recreational and business opportunities that the river has begun to create in recent days!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Hiking The Portage
As I mentioned in the comments of my previous blog post, the other night, I explored a new section of The Portage Hike and Bike trail that has recently been completed. Now I can go from downtown all the way to either Munroe Falls in Summit County or to Ravenna to the east of Kent. The Portage now links up on one section to the Summit Hike and Bike Trail, allowing you to go all the way to Munroe Falls if you want. This is the section that I explored, not knowing where exactly the trail would end. As it stands, I went all the way to the Portage/Summit trail borders and then turned around again to head back downtown, since I had a previous activity planned for that evening (my Monday night T'ai Chi class). I was rewarded with some spectacular scenery along the river banks, walking along sections that were both rapids and placid quiet river. I was also rewarded on my way back downtown by watching a Great Blue Heron fishing along the rapids section of the river close to downtown. It was so nice to see folks out walking, biking and enjoying this new offering for our area, sure to add a great deal to the quality of life in our area. I encountered people of all ages, from children to seniors, so obviously multiple generations are taking advantage of this new trail. People need green spaces and encounters with nature, especially in these times of massive suburban sprawl and disappearing farm fields. It was so wonderful to take in all the sights, sounds and smells along the trail and to see what it had to offer. The river is something that people are just now beginning to realize is a real asset to our area. Restaurants along the river are beginning to add outdoor patios overlooking the river and people are flocking to these places to take in the scenery and the atmosphere now that our river is far cleaner than it was in past years. People are also beginning to see the benefits of having hike and bike trails, not only to have something to so, but for the sake of their health, as they see the benefits of walking and biking, so our river is beginning to be viewed by the folks who count as a recreational asset to our area. We missed out on receiving a grant to create a whitewater park in downtown Kent, and with this bad economy, it's not likely to come up again anytime soon, but I doubt that those who are pushing for it will stop trying. In fact, I hope that they continue their quest to create such a facility to attract kayakers and canoe enthusiasts to the river. Hopes are that if such a thing goes through, it will create new businesses catering to river sports in downtown and its vicinity, and that can only be a good thing. I wonder if we can get some federal stimulus money to go forward with this idea since it'd create jobs and opportunities for the Kent area? Wow, wouldn't that be a plus for Kent, to add to the recreational and business opportunities that the river has begun to create in recent days!
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2 comments:
Sounds like a lovely walk. What other restaurants with patios have cropped up on the river, besides the Riverside Winery in Kent?
Panini's in downtown Kent, where JB's used to be, has a riverview patio out back. And a lot of the bars now have patios that afford views of downtown environs as well. Zephyr has a several story one that, if you go up top, you can probably see a good view of the river as well.
Kent's really catching on to the idea that the river is a real asset to the community. And it's about time, too!
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