Day 4.101: Near-island (quite far away)

Yesterday we decided to "Feel the Lake Effect." That's the slogan for the Visit Erie PA website - but it was a fairly accurate description of our visit to Presque Isle State Park. This narrow spit of land stretching into Lake Erie is an amazing place. The biting winds were pretty amazing too.

After a stop at the rather impressive Tom Ridge Environmental Center (including an encounter with a prehistoric giant shark mouth), we drove out into the park.  It is hard to believe that this is not seashore. It has waves, beaches, no sign of another shore... I suppose they don't call them the Great Lakes for nothing.

We ate our lunch sheltering from the wind in the car and watching (amongst other things) the Red-breasted Mergansers on the bay-side of the park.

A lot of places are called Peninsula-something in the area - a curious translation of the French name of the park into Latin*.  I suggest that the locals should remember themselves and start using the proper American translation: "Nearly-Island".

Or perhaps I should shut up and have another local beer.



* I am, in fact, aware that 'peninsula' is an English word (on both sides of the Atlantic).