Erie, Pennsylvania - Oct 2011 - Lots O' Pics

[dmckruit]

(This ones for you SlowCowboy)

Last October I took a trip up to Erie, Pa. for a weekend.

I set up camp at Sara's Campground. My family has been going here for years, and we really enjoy it. The campground is located right at the entrance to Presque Isle State Park. Half of the campground is located near the beach (you can tent camp on the beach), and the other half is located on the other side of a four lane highway. It was pretty windy this weekend, so I set up camp on the landward side.



Once I set up camp I went to see some sights. I always wanted to go to the Erie Maritime Museum and visit the Flagship Niagra:



Beside the museum and the ship, there is a lookout tower in the same complex. From the tower you get a 360 degree view:





The Erie Convention Center - Which looks like a ship:



Pics of downtown Erie:

[dmckruit]

Then I went to find one of the other two lighthouses. There are three lighthouses in Erie, PA. For the lighthouse enthusiasts in the forum and those that have the lighthouse passports, you can get all three stamps at the Maritime Museum, and the Tom Ridge Environmental Center (will follow below).

I first visited the Land Lighthouse:


View from Land Lighthouse property:



After visiting this lighthouse. I went to visit a few wineries. There are 12 wineries in the area. After visiting a few, I came back to the campground and then walked across the street to the lake. The lake was pretty choppy looking, and if you didn't know better, you would swear you were at the ocean:

[dmckruit]

Then I settled in to camp for the night. I even celebrated Halloween a bit with some decorations:



Made some Mountain Pie Pizzas by the campfire and then a few smores:



After that, I turned in for the night with a movie. The movie of the evening was "The Creature from the Black Lagoon", which was appropriate for the holiday, and plus I have never seen it before (pay attention for a strange surprise at the end of this thread ).

The next morning, I woke up and had some breakfast and coffee. I then set out to find the 2nd of the three lighthouses.

This one is called the North Pier Lighthouse. It is also located at the end of a long fishing pier:




Near the North Pier Lighthouse is the Commadore Perry Monument:

[dmckruit]

Driving around Presque Isle, there are several inlets. Here are some houseboats on one of the inlets:



Then I visited the Tom Ridge Environmental Center. This is located about 1/8 of a mile south of the campground:



From the tower, I can look over and see the lake and Waldemeer Park which is across the street. The park is shuttered for the season. Admission to the park is free, but you have to buy tickets to ride the amusements.





A few pics from the inside of the Environmental Center:




And...




I almost fell over when I saw this. I just watched "The Creature from the Black Lagoon" the night before!

That was really wierd and strange.

[dmckruit]

And that finished my weekend in Erie. For those of you who wish to see the 3rd lighthouse, below is a pic from a prior trip. This is called the Presque Isle Lighthouse:



Dave

[S. Heisley]

Thanks for all the beautiful pictures. I've always loved looking out at Lake Erie...just didn't like living in the snow belt!

[Gage]

But where is the teardrop?

[goldcoop]

Dave-

Looks great! Would/could Sara's handle a gathering? i.e. multiple sites in close proximity?

Cheers,

Coop

[dmckruit]

Dave-

Looks great! Would/could Sara's handle a gathering? i.e. multiple sites in close proximity?

Cheers,

Coop

Coop - Probably not. The campground does not take reservations and they only have 15-20 open sites. The rest are full timers. It is difficult to get in there between memorial day and labor day. We usually call the morning we are planning to go and have them hold us a spot until we get there. They do this for "the regulars". There are a lot of other campgrounds in the area though that may be worth checking out.

Gage - The teardrop is there. Check out the first photo of the thread.

[Gage]

Gage - The teardrop is there. Check out the first photo of the thread.

Damn I hate getting old. Still don't know how I missed that. .......