Forest City

It's a dizzying climb up Holden Arboretum's new 120-foot Kalberer Family Emergent Tower. But the sight that greets you after 202 steps is well worth the swooping stomach and burning thighs. A full story above the trees, the tower opens onto a dazzling bird's-eye view of Northeast Ohio and a sparkling strip of Lake Erie. "People take trees and forests for granted," explains Clem Hamilton, president and CEO of Holden Arboretum. "Most of the services that a forest provides is what happens with the leaves: how they intercept sunlight, how they photosynthesize." To fully experience how a forest fits together, the tower connects to a 500-foot-long canopy walk that weaves through the dynamic ecosystem. Both open Sept. 14 when oak leaves turn yellow, sugar maples deepen to red, and the migratory warbler's distinctive whistle can be heard echoing. "You are enclosed by the trees and can experience them very directly," says Hamilton. "It will be like stepping into an impressionist painting." 9500 Sperry Road, Kirtland, 440-946-4400, holdenarb.org