Autumn, Brandywine Falls, Cuyahoga Valley National Park

This image contrasts the vivid color of a large sugar maple tree against water tumbling sixty feet over Brandywine Falls in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The park is located between the urban areas of Cleveland and Akron, and provides one of the few refuges for wildlife as urban sprawl takes over the area. Cuyahoga Valley National Park is under intense pressure from housing developments being carved out of forests on the park's boundary. The developments add population pressures and accelerate storm runoff that erodes streambeds and frequently washes out the park's trails and roads.