Your parks boast more than 92 miles of trails suitable for hiking, walking and running across scenic Geauga County. In fact, the only parks within the system without a trail are Bass Lake Preserve and Woodin Road Park – all others are fair game!
Please enjoy perusing the resources below, including any upcoming naturalist-led opportunities to stretch your legs.
Are you setting a New Year’s resolution to explore Nature more? To discover new places, or get more exercise? Or maybe all three?
Here’s a program that’ll be perfect for you, now in its seventh year: the Geauga Gems Trekking Series!
Registration for the 2026 series opens January 1 at 10 a.m. online (January 2 by phone or in person) for Geauga County residents and opens January 15 for out-of-county residents.
Hike the Seasons!
To complete this year’s series, explore a minimum of four trails each season from that season’s list, created by Geauga Park District naturalists. Attending a naturalist-led hike? Count it as one of your trails. Don’t see your favorite trail? Add it in the space provided!
Hike a total of 16 trails by December 31 to earn your commemorative “year of turquoise” sticker (and your trekking pole if you are a first-time finisher). Or, if you are interested in hiking more, you may also still hike 80 self-guided miles to earn your rewards…to accomplish the goal of the program, we simply suggest you hike roughly 20 miles each season to achieve the full effect!
How to Get Started
Upon registration, you’ll receive a detail trekking card to track your progress. Remember to mark all your hikes on it, or track 80 self-guided miles of hikes throughout the year, since this is what you’ll turn in for credit. Naturalist-led hikes that we’d recommend for your hiking card (not a requirement) are easily identifiable on our website under Programs & Events by filtering program type Geauga Gems, or by looking for the Geauga Gems logo in our quarterly Park Explorer Activity Guide.
Whenever you finish (as early as November 1 but no later than December 31), you may submit your completed hiking card in person at The West Woods Nature Center. Those who complete their goal will receive a collapsible trekking pole (if they haven’t received one during a previous year of the series) as well as a collectible Geauga Gems hiking medallion sticker.
More details can be found on your trekking card when you sign up, as well as the following documents:
Happy trekking, and we’ll see you out on the trails!
| Event | Location | Date | Time | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geauga Gems Trekking Series Registration | The West Woods | 01/01/2026 | 7:00 pm - 7:00 pm | Free |
| Birding for Beginners | Eldon Russell Park | 04/27/2026 | 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm | Free |
| Full Moon Hike: The Sandhill Crane Moon | Observatory Park | 05/01/2026 | 8:30 pm - 9:30 pm | Free |
| Afternoon Tea and Wildflower Walk | The Rookery | 05/02/2026 | 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm | $5.00 |
| Annual Spring Bird Walk Series | Eldon Russell Park | 05/03/2026 | 7:30 am - 9:30 am | Free |
| Scout Day: Nature Walk | Eldon Russell Park | 05/03/2026 | 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm | Free |
Staff clear snow from paved trails in the following parks during the cold winter months. After large snowfall events, park entrance drives and lots take priority; thanks for your patience as operations crews make their way to the trails.
Do you enjoy special events, family activities, experiences in Nature, programs for seniors or or several/all of the above? Sign up for our emails tailored to your interests by selecting the proper categories below. We promise we won’t flood your inbox – just send you what we think you’ll like.
We look forward to keeping in touch!
(440) 286-9516