Hinckley Reservation – Whipps Ledges

I absolutely love coming out to the lake for a solid 3 mile or so hike. The views are awesome and the paths are easy to follow. There are view points you can stop at and plenty of nature to admire. I like sitting at the boat dock looking for snakes :)
The bathrooms by the boat dock are actually pretty clean for park bathrooms. They even have hand sanitizer available. There is also a huge park map by the bathroom so you can check out other possible trails, learn about the animals you are seeing, and plan your next hike!
After you hike the lake take some time for people watching at the base of the damn.
I always avoid the lake walk if it has been raining the day before — seems like it takes the path awhile not to be overly muddy.
I really need to make it out here more often :)

Hinckley reservation is awesome! There’s a wealth of activities to meet everyone’s needs. For under 20 dollars you can rent kayaks, paddle boats, or canoes and explore the lake. If your not up for spending money there’s plenty to do. Whether you just want to prancerise on the bike paths or explore the bridal trails, you will enjoy yourself no matter what you choose. Whips ledges is definitely worth a visit. The path up to the ledges is short. Wandering up and down the ledges and admiring old hikers signatures carved into the rocks will surely have you occupied for a couple hours.
There’s a couple of loops you can run/​hike/​prance if your down for a challenging and hilly course. A bike path loop that goes around the lake is just under 3.5 miles. There’s also a loop on the buckeye trail that is around 6 miles.
Also, In the winter there is a sledding hill that seems a mile long when your a kid, but it’s a blast. This is definitely one of my favorite reservations in the Metroparks. Hinckley reservation is fantastic so stop reading this review and go! Now.

Nice little lake. There is something for everyone in this park. It is farther out into the sticks, but this allows for less of a crowd during the peak times. Nature trails flow around the lake completely. Also a great bike path that surrounds the park entirely for the bikers and runners wanting a longer trip. At the base of the dam, a sand beach allows for sun bathing and swimming. You can also swim right up to the water falling down from the lake. At the rear of the lake, a rental shop has almost any rental that uses paddles. There are also some places to camp. The fishing is average.
A con of this lake is its size. The trail by the lake is only about 2 miles long. You could feel crowded on a busy day. The lake is also overfished.
As long as the number of people around stays normal, I highly recommend this for a nice day of kayaking, a picnic, and a swim.

This place was PHENOMENAL to say the least!!! This time, I brought my husband along, and we had a BLAST! This is most definitely a place where you can go and bring the kids to have some fun, FREE, family time! Even though I will be leaving the Cleveland area soon, this will definitely be a spot that I will have to come back to with each future Cleveland visit!!!

Monday through Thursday, Five SOLID Stars. Then, late on Friday afternoon, the sylvan paradise that is The Reservation goes awry. First, the blue hairs roll in, followed by the nature-​crazed famblies, then the loutish drunkards, followed closely by the laggards, the non-​doowop-​group drifters, plastic bucket-​sitting worm dunkers, the league of scoundrels, the mangy, a carload of tweakers, the unkempt, the illiterate, the hygienically-​challenged, the chronically broke, an odd Shriner or twenty, and finally, Republicans.
Monday morning, just before dawn, peace returns to The Reservation. The park pixies have spent the long night scrubbing the lake, re-​waxing the hiking trails, spritzing the trees, setting up mahogany tables offering complimentary mimosas, and all is once again right with the world. (As a special tip to my brethren and cistern here at Unilocalworld, if you catch one of the trails at the upper end of the lake, and follow it up, and up, and up a tad more, away from the huddled masses, you will find serenity, joy and something approaching nature. Let me know if you can’t find it. I have maps.)