Two new wineries make six on Back Roads and Beaches route

The great thing about the Back Roads and Beaches bike and multi-sport route is there is something for everyone—bike tourists, hammer heads, kayakers, runners and a mix of all. BRaB now has a total of six wineries on and just nearby the route. Paper Moon Winery is a delightful new winery that opened its doors a couple weeks ago. The best way to reach Paper Moon from BRaB is to take Darrow Rd. west, off the main BRaB route. When you reach SR 60, turn right. Remember that SR 60 is a state route and can be busy, even on this small stretch. Vermilion Valley Vineyards is a soon-to-be-open winery that is located on Gore Orphanage Rd. in the Henrietta Township area of the Route, just south of SR 113. Click here to follow their progress toward opening.

These two wineries are an addition to four great wineries already on the Back Roads and Beaches route. Just off the western portion of the route is Matus Winery on Gore Orphanage Rd., just south of SR 20. In the middle of the route, you'll find Single Tree Winery on Baumhart Rt., about a half mile south of Garfield. And in the eastern portion of the route, just off SR 6 in Avon Lake you'll find our Klingshirn and Christ Wineries. For more information on other activities including history, architecture, kayaking, running trails, mountain biking and healthy, organic meal stops, click here.

Brisk but enthusiastic start to kayaking season

Some views from this morning’s Keel-Haulers kayak/canoe race. The race was moved downstream where water levels were higher.

Ready, set, go

Time to plan for 2009 North Central Ohio Adventure

Kayaking on the Vermilion River. Photo courtesy of Shawn Newsome. Shawn is the owner of a new campground along the river—Vermilion River Cliffs Marina. (website coming soon)

It's that time of year again. Spring! We're starting to see cyclists and kayakers out and about on our rivers and back roads. Now that the weather is more cooperative we want to give you some tools to plan your visit. First off, a few upcoming events around Back Roads and Beaches:

Kayaking:
Sunday, March 29 will be the annual Keel-haulers Vermilion River Race. Check out the website for information including rules, maps and start times. The Keel-haulers is an organization headquartered in Northeast Ohio with 400 families that share an interest in outdoors and all kinds of boating including whitewater, sea kayaking, canoeing, rafting and racing.

Run
Oberlin’s 5K Earth Day run will start and finish on Tappan Square on Saturday, April 18 at 10am. Entry fee is $10 per person and the first 75 registrants will receive a t-shirt. For more information, contact the Oberlin Recreation Dept. at 440.775.7254.

Cycling
Seems like it hasn’t been that long since the Lorain Wheelmen’s traditional end of season ride-the Red Flannel that capped off a great 2008 cycling season. Now, it’s time for the Wheelmen’s annual tradition to begin the cycling season-Afrost. The ride will be Sunday, April 19 and begin at 9am. For details check out the Wheelmen’s Afrost Page. The weather this week looks to be great for an early spring ride. Updated Back Roads and Beaches maps are available and can be obtained here and online maps here. See you out there!

Snow!

Multi sport enthusiasts who’ve been waiting for snow now have more than enough to enjoy a winter hike, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, ice skating, sledding etc. And more appears to be on the way! Findley State Park, Lorain County Metro Parks, Cascade Park and our many other parks offer miles of trails and other winter amenities.

But don’t stop at traditional winter sports, be creative and try some real adventure! Bottom line is, getting out in the snow along BRaB is a blast! And when you’re done, explore one of our great galleries or museums, and warm up in one of four wineries along the route. Make it a weekend and stay at one of several local lodging facilities that welcome our multi sport visitors.

Winter Days Festival photo by Mark Teleha

This weekend, Jan 17–18, 2009, the Lorain County Metro Parks will be hosting their annual Winter Days Festival at the Vermilion River Reservation. The festival will run Sat. from 10am–4pm and Sun. from 11am–4pm. Ice carving competitions will be the highlight on Saturday and demonstrations from professional ice carvers will take place Sunday. And don’t forget about the awesome sledding hill there!