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Texans
hearing the word erie - can’t help but to think of a feeling of inexplicable fear
or uneasiness but that word spelled correctly is eerie. The word means none of
that when referring to Lake Erie. It comes from the Indian tribe who lived along
its southern shore. Some say Lake Erie is the shallowest and stormiest of the
Great Lakes. Others say it contains so many sunken ships it should be called the
“Graveyard of the Inland Seas”. The greatest depth is probably 210 feet.
On
a mission of photographing lake lighthouses, from the southwest we followed the
Ohio Lake Erie Coastal Trail to Fairport Harbor. Our first lighthouse
was the Grand River lighthouse near the mouth of the Grand River (itself).
Built in 1825 it now houses a marine museum. Fairport Harbor lighthouse nearby
replaced it in 1871. |
The
old Grand River Lighthouse, deactivated, now a museum.
Photo
courtesy Ken
Rudine |
| Foreground
is Grand River, in the distance (lower right corner) is the current lighthouse
in Fairport, Ohio.
Photo courtesy
Ken Rudine |
Following the shore
northeasterly we passed the nuclear power plant near Perry, reminding me of Commander
Oliver Perry during “The War of 1812”. His ship defeated a British ship in a battle
that took place in the waters off this shore.
Approaching Ashtabula late
in the month of May, we noticed the beauty of the Dogwood trees in full bloom.
The closest viewpoint of Ashtabula lighthouse was a difficult photo because
a coal powered electric plant was partly in the way. Speaking with a lady feeding
birds in a park we verified that the water being sprayed on the pile of coal was
to keep the dust down. She said that was only somewhat successful. |
| Continuing on to Pennsylvania
their first lighthouse was Conneaut, an intriguing art deco design reminiscent
of Port Washington, WI (Lake Michigan). In Erie, Pennsylvania
we found three lighthouses. |
| Erie has a harbor
for marine traffic formed by a 7 mile long curved peninsula. It houses a State
Park where the park keeper lives in Presque
Isle lighthouse. At the end of the peninsula is a pier light named North
Point. It marks the peninsula side of the entrance to the harbor. Nearby fishermen
were catching bass, rock bass, perch and walleye. There were some floating residences
in lake coves similar to those we’ve seen on the Amazon River. |
| Back in the city of
Erie we found the third light in Lighthouse Park. A small lighthouse, nonetheless
it marks the landside of the harbor entrance. |
| Crossing this corner
of Pennsylvania,
it is only 50 miles of lakeshore drive from Ohio to New York State. We located
the Dunkirk, New
York historical lighthouse, but being after hours we photographed it through
a chain link fence. |
| Due to the weather
we judged it best to skip Barcelona Lighthouse located near Portland. We stopped
in Evans, New
York 29 miles SW of Buffalo. Looking to find a lighthouse we went to the Sturgeon
Point Marina but the only lighthouse there was a small replica. A squall is happening
now, so we avoided Buffalo. This was our last glimpse of Lake Erie. |
| Buffalo is famous
for more than “Buffalo Wings.” In 1825 it was the Lake Erie end of a 363-mile
long canal from Albany on the Hudson River. The canal forty feet wide by 4 feet
deep spurred the first great movement west of the Appalachians. Simultaneously
the Erie Canal established New York City as an international center of commerce
and finance. About 1850 folks began singing “The Erie Canal” song. This song celebrated
the mules that walked along side the canal, dragging barges of freight. |
| I’ve got a mule
and her name is Sal
Fifteen miles on the Erie Canal
She’s a good old worker
and a good old pal
Fifteen miles on the Erie Canal | |
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