Wednesday, November 6, 2024

It’s Lake Erie time

The Great Lake Erie is one of Toledo’s most defining and beautiful features, one of Northwest Ohio’s most treasured resources, and the largest freshwater fishery in the world. We are graced with her gorgeous presence as this magnificent body of water flows, ebbs and caresses our shorelines. So take a moment this season to enjoy the lake.

Lake friends
Explore the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Watercraft website (watercraft.ohiodnr.gov) to discover where to play on Lake Erie, view maps, current weather conditions, boating class schedules and regulations. Join the lake’s social network to share your water excursions on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Call 1-888-HookFish for daily fishing condition updates and to find out where the fish are biting.

Lake guide
The Lake Erie Shores and Islands Official Travel Planner chronicles an abundance of water recreation, beaches, natural areas, attractions and places to camp and stay. Visit shoresandislands.com for a free copy. Use the guide to find a shoreline hiking path to celebrate National Trails Day on Saturday, June 1 (americanhiking.org/national-trails-day/).

Lake destination:
Toledoan John Mull highly recommends a seasonal jaunt to Put-in-Bay’s Middle Bass Island which, he says, is less congested than the other islands. After docking his 37 foot, two-masted sailboat Antares (christened for the Milky Way’s giant red star) he and his wife, Evelyn, head over to J.F. Walleyes ( 1810 Fox Rd., jfwalleys.com) to relax in the Olympic-size, waterfall-enhanced wading pool. Nothing compares to a Lake Erie sunset and stargazing, so Mull suggests an evening when the moon is waning to “just drift on the water and enjoy the stars” while listening to Leon Russell’s “Back to the Island.” The couple is embarking on a year long sailing trip to the Caribbean via the Erie Canal, Hudson River and Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.

Lake history
WGTE has produced an eight-part Lake Erie Legacy series www.wgte.org/wgte/watch/index.asp?page_id=788. The three-minute clips, interlaced with gorgeous water views, highlight the lake’s history and cover pertinent issues including: climate change, algae blooms and wetland protection.

Lake experience
This is my favorite Lake Erie pure, blissful sensory experience. I’ve written about it before and it bears an encore. Slowly walk out onto the 100 foot-long Metzger Marsh fishing pier. You are completely surrounded by the glistening lake and the blue sky overhead. Stretch out your arms and feel the rush of wind upon you, hear the sounds of the water and the birds calling as they soar by while you sway with the waves and breathe in the wonderful, watery aroma. (St. Rte 2 at 12600 Bono Rd., Curtice, OH) site maps and info at ohiodnr.com/wildlife.

National Learn-to-Row Day
If you’ve ever dreamed of joining the tawny-skinned teams of rowers that descend on the area’s waterways every year, then this holiday on Saturday, June 1 is your best chance for an introduction. The Toledo Rowing Club Boathouse, 8 Main St. in International Park, will host a free seminar between 8:13 am-12:18 pm to show interested potential athletes the boathouse, teach the basics of the rowing stroke on the indoor rowing machine, and ride along in an eight-man shell with six experienced rowers. www.toledorowing.org/learntorow.html.

The Great Lake Erie is one of Toledo’s most defining and beautiful features, one of Northwest Ohio’s most treasured resources, and the largest freshwater fishery in the world. We are graced with her gorgeous presence as this magnificent body of water flows, ebbs and caresses our shorelines. So take a moment this season to enjoy the lake.

Lake friends
Explore the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Watercraft website (watercraft.ohiodnr.gov) to discover where to play on Lake Erie, view maps, current weather conditions, boating class schedules and regulations. Join the lake’s social network to share your water excursions on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Call 1-888-HookFish for daily fishing condition updates and to find out where the fish are biting.

Lake guide
The Lake Erie Shores and Islands Official Travel Planner chronicles an abundance of water recreation, beaches, natural areas, attractions and places to camp and stay. Visit shoresandislands.com for a free copy. Use the guide to find a shoreline hiking path to celebrate National Trails Day on Saturday, June 1 (americanhiking.org/national-trails-day/).

Lake destination:
Toledoan John Mull highly recommends a seasonal jaunt to Put-in-Bay’s Middle Bass Island which, he says, is less congested than the other islands. After docking his 37 foot, two-masted sailboat Antares (christened for the Milky Way’s giant red star) he and his wife, Evelyn, head over to J.F. Walleyes ( 1810 Fox Rd., jfwalleys.com) to relax in the Olympic-size, waterfall-enhanced wading pool. Nothing compares to a Lake Erie sunset and stargazing, so Mull suggests an evening when the moon is waning to “just drift on the water and enjoy the stars” while listening to Leon Russell’s “Back to the Island.” The couple is embarking on a year long sailing trip to the Caribbean via the Erie Canal, Hudson River and Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.

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Lake history
WGTE has produced an eight-part Lake Erie Legacy series www.wgte.org/wgte/watch/index.asp?page_id=788. The three-minute clips, interlaced with gorgeous water views, highlight the lake’s history and cover pertinent issues including: climate change, algae blooms and wetland protection.

Lake experience
This is my favorite Lake Erie pure, blissful sensory experience. I’ve written about it before and it bears an encore. Slowly walk out onto the 100 foot-long Metzger Marsh fishing pier. You are completely surrounded by the glistening lake and the blue sky overhead. Stretch out your arms and feel the rush of wind upon you, hear the sounds of the water and the birds calling as they soar by while you sway with the waves and breathe in the wonderful, watery aroma. (St. Rte 2 at 12600 Bono Rd., Curtice, OH) site maps and info at ohiodnr.com/wildlife.

National Learn-to-Row Day
If you’ve ever dreamed of joining the tawny-skinned teams of rowers that descend on the area’s waterways every year, then this holiday on Saturday, June 1 is your best chance for an introduction. The Toledo Rowing Club Boathouse, 8 Main St. in International Park, will host a free seminar between 8:13 am-12:18 pm to show interested potential athletes the boathouse, teach the basics of the rowing stroke on the indoor rowing machine, and ride along in an eight-man shell with six experienced rowers. www.toledorowing.org/learntorow.html.

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