Road trip from New York To Chicago - part 6 (Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio)

For our drive back from Chicago to home(NY) i decided to squeeze in one last stop. It would be too boring and a long drive back home, might as well stretch our leg a little. Spending 2 nights @ Cuyahoga National Park. We tried to booked their camp site but unfortunately Cuyahoga it's quite popular for camping it was fully booked. But we got a good deal @ a nearby Motel $101.80 for 2 nights tax included ( Super 8 motel at Richfield) and subway is just next door ;)

good thing this National Park is FREE!!!! no entrance fee

1st stop the Boston store visitor center. got tips for where and what to do

one can also ride the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic train

for more information ----- http://www.cvsr.com/bike-aboard

our 1st trail start from the information center to visit the Brandywine Falls

someone is excited

we came across the camp site...it's open field style....no shades it'll be very hot in the summer time, no trees to hang things. not sure i like it

the trail was relatively easy, some part where u have to climb up the steps but it's not too bad

almost there

to the viewing area

Bandywine Falls

the falls itself aren't much to see nor impressive but the trail was pleasant 

it's about 1.5mi trail

after the trail we head to the heart of the national park to a small town for lunch.

There is a few options and we went to a sports bar tavern, Winking Lizard Tavern and orders their spare ribs.....was really good price was reasonable,  definitely a nice place for a bite but parking in this small town is abit limited best to go during odd hours

after a heavy meal we head to another hiking trail, Ritchie Ledges. A Must visit!!!! very beautiful place

the trail is about 1mi. i regret for not bring my camera for this trail. all was because was too lazy to go back to the car, so pictures were taken with iPhone 6

there is a also a cave, Ice Box cave but unfortunately it is currently close due to the spread of white-nose syndrome(WNS), a fungal disease that has killed millions of bats in the northeastern and eastern U.S and threatens the bat population in Cuyahoga Valley National Park

this place is a little bit like a maze, can be scary if your are alone

enjoying the natural wonder

saw a big ass black snake.....freak the hell out of me. not sure if it's poisonous

the next place not too far away is Beaver Mash, i didn't saw any beaver, otter or muskrats, just turtle and cranes....in Chinese culture both this animal symbolize longevity

i guess it is our lucky day 

busy hunting

this wetland fills with lotus plants

beautiful place

it's a 1.5mi trail but we only did half way

last stop before we call it a day Everett Covered Bridge,

the only remaining covered bridge in Summit County. Built in the 19th century, the original was destroyed in 1913. Although repaired, it was destroyed again in 1975. This historically accurate replication was finished in 1986

this bridge look like the one in Sleepy Hollow

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a beautiful place for a nice hiking during a long weekend. I would definitely recommend this place if you are even in Cleveland, it's just 30 minutes drive away from the city. 

the next day we head home, drove 6 hours luckily the weather was great and got home safely, a nice way to end our 9 days road trip. I really enjoy the whole trip, glad that we did this! god knows where we will be in the future might not have the chance again. 

Started off from: upstate NY --- Taughannock Falls, NY --- Letchworth State Park, NY --- Cleveland, Ohio --- Shiphewana, Indianapolis --- Chicago, Illinois --- Cuyahoya Valley National Park, Ohio --- upstate, NY in 9 days. My 1st time to plan for a such a long road trip. there was some flaw but overall i'm happy with my itinerary.

Now i can checked this off from our bucket list. Till my next adventure!!!! adios and keep traveling

~ bye~

Road trip from New York To Chicago - part 5 (Chicago)

Another good night sleep at red roof inn in Elkheart. Well we tried to head out early(7am) but by the time we reached Chicago it's the rush hour time. Driving time from Elkheard to Chiacgo about 2 hours

approaching Chicago city center

yes it's bumper to bumper however it's not that bad at least we still move slowly unlike traffic jam in Malaysia where the car stand still for hours

I got to say parking in Chicago can be very expensive. Our hotel Parking(Inn of Chicago)along the Magnificent mile, cost almost $60/ night ( valet parking) Thank god i do my homework. We pre booked a parking spot with an App(Spothero) for a parking garage just 1 block away from our hotel and got a great deal of $25/ night. it's easy to use. Pre-booked, select time and date you will be clocking in and out and pay online, drive to the parking garage at the ticket machine just scan the QR code, voila done! just make sure you clock in and out on time

before we start to explore Chicago, let's have a nice Chicago breakfast.... headed over to Portillo's hot dogs, there is one just few blocks away from our hotel. Open at 10:30am....i was damn hungry already. The picture might not look appetizing but it's good. i prefer their Beef steak sandwich more than their Chicago style hot dog. Anyway it's a MUST try in Chicago

after a nice heavy breakfast we headed to Navy Pier, a nice place to stroll and enjoy the high rise view of Chicago. Very windy place, they didn't call Chicago the "Windy City" for fun.

some one is enjoying very much catching water type Pokemon in Chicago, came prepared with his power juice

many boat company to choose from for a boat tour but it's quite expensive about $30/pax

cool design benches to chillex

light house

USS Chicago anchor

walking around the town

awesome Raddison Blu aqua hotel in central downtown

i wonder how much it cost for 1 night? 

i do like the city planning. it's somewhat like NYC, much smaller, cleaning, less crowded however i don't see much cops not like in NYC you see NYPD in every corner

Harris theater @ Millennium park

Chicago's icon artwork, Cloud Gate but more known as The Bean

under the Bean

lovely park to with visit with family

corn cob looking building

one can also take this river cruise and know about the building's history

Chicago's sales tax is extremely high at 10.25%....i think i would rather go back to NY to shop

all this walking is making me hungry......what else if not Chicago's famous deep dish pizza.

We tried the one in Lou Malnati's Pizzaria, the one in N Wells St. We were lucky it's was not crowded when we got there at 5pm. However it takes about 30-40 minutes to prepare the deep dish pizza. 

Verdict? We love it!!! it's so juicy and yummy. we order the small one just nice for the 2 of us 

we ordered the Malnati Chicago Classic( made with their special lean sausage, extra cheese and vine- ripened tomato sauce on Buttercrust), price $ 15.45

so good that it makes my mouth water while writing this....hehehe

it's a beautiful city to just walk around aimlessly

night @ Dusable bridge

went back to see the Bean at night

urban kayak activity along the Chicago river,

would be fun if we could join in

good night for day 1, our hotel in Chiacago cost $96.75/ night with taxes total is $227.20 for 2 nights

it's the most expensive hotel we spend for this road trip i think the price is pretty cheap for a city hotel ( Inn of Chicago) with a good location however breakfast is not included. In NY a simple highway hotel can sometimes cost more than $100 / night

the next day we had a nice breakfast somewhere near to the Millennium Park, i think the restaurant name is MingHin Cuisine. The food was surprisingly good....i find their dim sum is much better than the one in Flusing NY more Hongkie flavor, definitely worth trying,though they are open quite late @ 11am

we stroll the other parts of the Millennium Park while waiting for the restaurant open

hey i found the boat from Life of Pi...hehe

after a heavy satisfying brunch we went window shopping and people watching along the Magnificent Mile

weather in Chicago changes really fast, it was raining, sunny and windy at the same time

was a grade 1 autumn weather, and this is in late August early September 

walk along the river-walk one last time 

love the double deck Dusable bridge

time for a nice tea time @ Ghirardelli

double chocolate brownie sundae

yum though i do prefer the strawberry sundae that we had last time in San Francisco

that's about it, our 2 nights in Chicago. I enjoyed the food very much in Chicago, wish we could stay longer but don't think my waist line would agree with me.

The next day after checking out  we decided to visit Chicago's Chinatown for breakfast before driving 5.5 hours to Ohio. It was a rather sleepy town unlike the Chinatown in NY and San Fran always hustling and bustling. We were there at about 9:30am most of the shops were still close but luckily we found a noodle shop that packed with locals but food was average and price was reasonable about $5-6 for a bowl of noodle. Though i won't really recommend going all the way to Chinatown if you are taking the sub from downtown 

1 thing i would appreciate is that the shops in Chicago would open earlier, It's killing me to wait until 10:30 or 11am for breakfast

Right after breakfast we head back to Ohio, this time we are not going to spend the night in the city but a motel near Cuyahoga Falls National Park. Our last stop before we end our 9 days road trip

~ end of road trip Day 5 ~