Spring is in the air.

Last weekend the family loaded up in the Jeep to take a little day trip to Sandusky Ohio. We met early that morning to enjoy breakfast at Pond-a-cow (aka. Ponderosa). Funny story, growing up our family used to frequent Ponderosa for any type of family gathering/dinner/holiday and had many, um, experiences. There was one Easter everyone in our family had to rotate in and out of the bathroom after our dining experience. Imagine, a family of four taking numbers to use the only bathroom in the house! Yeah, it took us a long time to go back! My mother would make comments that it was like feeding time at the zoo when she walked in there, stuff yourself til you puke!


Ponderosa (aka. pond-a-cow) a great place NOW for breakfast!

Jumping forward about 20 years, we have grown more to enjoy their new Sunday morning breakfast bar. They really have cleaned up their act. It helps a good friend of ours is also a manager there, so if we EVER have a concern, Cheryl will take care of it! Today's breakfast was filled with pancakes, waffles, french toast and custom-made omelets. Taylor even had a bowl of ice cream to top it all off! After breakfast we headed off to Sandusky. My mom had picked up free tickets to the Kalahari Home and Garden Show saving us a boat-load of mulah($6.00 each savings)!


Kalahari Resort in Sandusky Ohio @ dusk.

Walking into the beautiful conference hall, the smell of fresh blooms filled the air. Patience, we will get there soon enough. If you'd like more information about Kalahari resort and their WONDERFUL water resort, check out their ad on my side bar (then I'll get credit for your click, hehe)or you could CLICK HERE!


Kalahari Resorts...someday we may even stay the night!

We made our way around the halls of the conference hall, picking up an array of freebies; candy, pencils, business cards, magnets etc. The coolest freebie, cash! One of the credit unions booths was even giving away "green bags" cloth grocery bags. Of course I wanted one, but there was a catch. You had to sign up for, wait for it, a drawing! Almost always followed by the annoying telemarketing calls-yuck! Cool part was they had a big basket filled with green plastic Easter eggs that you also got to pick out of after you signed up. Cringing, I did it anyways, and checked the do not call me box very clear. I didn't want to be the only one having all of the fun, so I pushed Taylor towards the basket and told her to pick out an egg. Yay for Tay, my lil bug opened an egg with a dollar bill in it, $1.00 hard cold cash for her piggy bank! You would've thought she won the lottery, she was hooting and hollering like it was a million. My mother, on the other hand, opened one of the MANY dud eggs. Oh well, we all can't be winners!


Aahh..take a deep breath, I've turned on the scent just for you!

Next, we walked into the long awaited "nursery" rooms. These side meeting rooms are filled from top to bottom with beautiful trees and blooming flowers galore. Usual centerpiece is a stone or brick patio, but a really neat addition this year, the water fountain wall. I could hardly keep Taylor's hands out of it.


Taylor playing in the water, surprise, surprise!

We loved walking through here, dreaming, and the fragrance was unbelievable! Taylor wanted mommy to take her picture next to every single flower in the room. I only picked a couple, she literally took dozens! I can't help it though, she is such a camera ham!


Taylor posing...and posing some more!

Overall, it was a very good day. We got to see what everyone was offering in home improvements out there, as well as really get some spring in our system. I didn't mind getting out of the house too. Someday we may stay overnight and check out Kalahari's huge indoor water park, but for now we'll just admire it from a distance.

Until next time...

Lighthouses and fish...what a day!

Looking through some more photos I came across one lone little lighthouse, The old Port Clinton Lighthouse in Port Clinton Ohio. We often refer to this city as the "gateway to the islands". From Port Clinton/ Catawba you can catch the two main ferry services over to the Lake Erie Islands and Put-in-bay.


The Jet Express and The Miller Ferry, the easiest way to the islands!

Today's trip we didn't venture over to the islands, we just stayed on the mainland. Today we were searching for the Old Port Clinton Light. Many guides I had referred to placed this light somewhere on the Portage River in a private marina. If anyone has ever visited Port Clinton, you know there are literally dozens upon dozens of private marinas along the Portage River and lakefront. Our first stop was the Yacht club. I must say, even though the light was not hiding here, they were very helpful in pointing us in the right direction. They were so welcoming, we didn't feel the least bit out of place!

With better directions, we weren't too far from the light, or remnants of it. This light long ago was much taller and located on the breakwall at the mouth of the river. Story goes it was moved in the 60's to its present home in Brands marina after years of bickering over the light.


The Old Port Clinton Lighthouse @ Brands Marina on the Portage River.

We captured a couple of photos of our "little" light then voted on where we would go for lunch. There was no argument, Jolly Rogers Seafood Restaurant is the hands down local favorite for fish. A bit pricey, but very good. We usually make a couple of trips for lent (to start the season off right), and another trip during the summer (though the wait is sometimes unbearable).

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Jolly Rogers Seafood Restaurant in Port Clinton Ohio.

The end of a great day; another lighthouse visit and full bellies, what else could you ask for! I'll keep looking through my photos, I'm sure there are plenty more to come!

Until next time...

Toledo Ohio, The Glass City.

Yesterday I came across a couple of photos of another one of my favorite lighthouses, The Toledo Harbor Lighthouse. I have not visited this light up close yet, but I have visited it from shore many times. Depending on the haze, you can view this light from many points at Maumee Bay State Park. To see the ammenities this park has to offer, please click HERE!


Many deer wander around @ Maumee Bay State Park.

Maumee Bay State Park is my favorite "quick getaway" that has something for every mood. For a day trip, you can come to enjoy a nature walk on either of the 2 or 3 mile boardwalks through meadows, marshlands, and forest.


The boardwalk trails @ Maumee Bay State Park.

We love to go in the late afternoon and see how many deer we can spot on our hike. Other options are the pools, the beach, or the resort itself. The dining room has one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato and basil that we have ever had. Taylor has become quite attached to the playground as well. She knows exactly where it is and which way to go when we arrive.


Taylor not wasting any time getting to the playground @ Maumee Bay State Park.

The Toledo Harbor Lighthouse's Fresnel Lens was moved to Maumee Bay State Park Lodge May 13, 2008 and is located in the main lobby. I found out on the Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Preservation Society website that Jim Woodward moved the lens from the lighthouse in 1995 and moved it again from COSI in 2008. COSI is a hands-on science center that used to be in Toledo, but is still operating in Columbus Ohio. The Fresnel lens was enclosed in glass as required by the Coast Guard July 2, 2008. I was there a week before it was moved there, then again a month or so as well. Unfortunately, I didn't walk inside the lobby until after the glass was placed around it.

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The Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Fresnel Lens @ Maumee Bay State Park.


The Toledo Harbor Lighthouse from Maumee Bay State Park.


We have visited this park during the hottest days of summer, and yes, even the frigid winds of winter. My sister, when visiting from Arizona, puts this park on the top of her "must see" places. I honestly cannot say when I preferr to visit, I love to visit here any time of year.


The frozen waters @ Maumee Bay State Park.

I have yet to see the Toledo Harbor light up close yet, but by summer's end I will. They have the Toledo Lighthouse Festival the 11th and 12th of July this year, and have all types of activities planned, including boat rides out to the light. I hope to see Turtle Island Lighthouse (ruins) up close as well. We were even at the festival last year but never knew about the boat rides! We actually went to see the summer fireworks and listen to the music.To see a copy of the event flier, check it out HERE!

Until next time,

Ooooh....get to the point!

So what can I say? After I sat down and looked through some of my photos I realized I had a few left over. To be truthful, unless I look at the date stamp on the photo, I really cannot think where these fit in to the rest of the lighthouse adventures. So...here they are in no particular order. Enjoy!


Cedar Point, America's Roller Coast!

If anyone is ever in the Sandusky Ohio area, this is a MUST SEE! Definitely one of the best amusement parks around, Cedar Point has been satisfying thrill seekers for decades! Please check out their website HERE for more information!

Our family decided before our trip to CP we would stop in Huron Ohio and check out the light while we were so close. Huron is literally a hop, skip and jump away from CP, so who could resist a distant shot.


Cedar Point, distant view from Huron Ohio.

The walk out to the Huron Lighthouse wasn't too bad, but I had to go alone. Matt, my husband, couldn't walk due to a foot problem he developed on our trip up to the U.P a week ago (he'd kill me if he knew I was talking about his blisters, lol) It was a very well maintained dock/breakwall that took me out to the light. I could have gone further out by following the trail of people, but with Matt waiting on me, and a 2 year old wanting to get to the park, I had to keep moving.


Huron Lighthouse, Huron Ohio, a bit Art Decco.

While sitting on the wall snapping a couple of shots, the Goodyear Blimp decided it wanted to be included too! I finished up and headed back to the wounded and impatient. Off to Cedar Point!

We had won these tickets to CP from our donation to the United Way. Matt's factory (and my old job too) is a Pacesetter for our community and has promotional give-aways for their employees who payroll deduct to the United Way, it's the least we can do to help out. Anyhow, this was our second trip to CP this summer, so today was for Taylor. Matt and I already got to ride all of the coasters we wanted the first trip.


Taylor enjoying the rides...over and over! *notice what color she always picks!*


Another photo of Taylor on the rides.

Taking a break from the excitement, we went on a relaxing train ride and paddle boat ride. To our surprise, we found a *ahem* lighthouse on the river boat excursion. Who knew?


The lighthouse on the Riverboat Excursion.

Who could resist a water ride on a hot summer day! Obviously our family can't! Taylor and I had stood close to the Snake River Falls bridge to get a little splash to cool off. To give you a bit of insight, there are a couple of places near the bridge to stand and just get a little splash. For the ride goers themselves, after they exit the ride, they cross over the bridge. Timing is just right that as they are crossing the bridge, the next "car" is coming down the falls and creates a huge wall of water. No one stays dry on this ride. So when daddy said he wanted a turn to hold Taylor by the bridge, I didn't think much of it. Well, Matt decided that just getting close to the bridge wasn't good enough, he got ON the bridge. Yup, they are soaked!


Daddy and Taylor standing on Snake River Falls Bridge...SOAKED!

Now mashing our two trips together...

Our first trip this year to Cedar Point was for our Company picnic. They reserve one of the wonderful picnic areas and provide discounted admission tickets as well as a full catered lunch. It's always a hit! This year, we decided to go for a walk after lunch to settle our bellies instead of jumping on the first roller coaster. So our family walked along the Lake Erie coast to see what was on the other side of the peninsula/island. Matt and I already knew the Sandusky Bay Lighthouse at Cedar Point was out this way, so that is where we were headed.


Sandusky Bay Light, replaced with a cylinder style light, marks the entrance to the Sandusky Bay.

Not much to see, so we continued on around the bend...then bam! We found the not-so-know Cedar Point Lighthouse. This is more like it! Tucked away in "Camper World" on the back side of CP is this beauty. Can you imagine, this area used to be the ferry entrance for decades when the ferry shuttles used to run from Cleveland to the park. I could almost feel what the excitement was like to arrive for the first time to the park by boat 100 years ago.


Cedar Point Lighthouse.

But this find wasn't all....imagine my surprise when I gazed across the bay. In the distance was the Marblehead Lighthouse! This is by far my favorite lighthouse. This is the same lighthouse my family has been visiting for years while I was growing up. Now I can add this view to my album of photos.


Marblehead Lighthouse across Sandusky Bay from Cedar Point Amusement Park.

I'll keep looking through my photos, I'm sure I've got more to post!

Until next time!

Last outing of 2008.

At the time we didn't know it, but this trip would turn out to be our last outing of 2008. Today, we were going up to Detroit to meet my parents for dinner, so why not sneak in a little bit of lighthouse sight-seeing. We wanted to finish up the lights of Lake Erie and the Detroit River that we have been putting off for some time, so this was our chance.

Our first stop was to find the Detroit River Lighthouse. This light proved to be a tricky one. Without any clear cut directions I really don't think we did too bad! According to google, there was a park and "island" that gave you the closest distant view of the light, now we just needed to find it. After driving around what seemed like a landfill and work yard for about 30 minutes, we found the road we were looking for.


Aerial view of the island. *Borrowed from Wikipedia*

After heading in the right direction, we finally found the park. We quickly found out this was a state public hunting area (Pointe Mouille State Game Area). Click HERE to read more about this very unique area. We were hesitant at first to enter, until a couple of guys taking their dogs out for a stroll assured us it was OK to cross to the island. They told us they often walk over to the island, and told us we would be OK if we didn't see any hunters. Best advice, if you see someone with a gun, get out of the way! With it being the time of day that it was, we were sitting OK. There wasn't anyone out on the trails, and only a couple of fishermen were out fishing. So we headed off. We started walking the "short" way around the 5 mile loop. This was a long walk!


Daddy and Taylor out for a stroll.

We continued walking around the bend, until suddenly....there it was! We were so lucky, we even caught two ships passing by the light. This is such a small light compared to the ships. They seem to tower over the lighthouse.


Detroit River Lighthouse with a passing ships.


After we got a couple of distant shots we continued on our walk. Suddenly, we started to hear shots from the other side of the island. They were duck hunting, and we needed to get out! I really don't believe we were in any danger...yet, but we didn't want to stick around and find out. The two guys with their dogs also picked up and started to move them along as well. We were pretty worn out after the hike, so the car ride up to the Grosse Ile Lighthouse was a good reward.


Grosse Ile, Michigan.

There are two ways to get cross onto Grosse Ile, one has a toll (I think it was $4.00 one way), and the other is free. Luck for us, we found the free bridge over. This is a very beautiful and large island on the Detroit river. High-society homes line the streets, and I'll admit we felt a bit out of place. There were cars sitting in the driveways at some of these homes that cost more than our house! While passing through, we seen a lot of deer meandering around and posing in the front yards while residents were out for their late afternoon walks. They really seemed to co-exist without bothering the other. If I had to guess, we probably seen upwards to 15 deer in our short visit.

After we wandered around the island for a while, we found the lighthouse at the north end of the island. We had an issue though, the light is sitting behind personal property with no access. We really didn't want to trespass, so we continued down the lane until we could get a glimpse from the road. At the end of a cul-de-sac we found an open lot that gave a perfect distant view of the light on the other side of the marina. No one was at home (I tried ringing the bell to ask for permission)so I quickly snapped a couple of pictures from their driveway. These would have to work for now.


Grosse Ile Lighthouse

Not as well as I would have hoped, but they serve their purpose for now. I did contact The Grosse Ile Historical Society to verify what days they would have the lighthouse open. They told me they only open the lighthouse one day a year, the Sunday after Labor Day. We were there, they were not! Unfortunately, due to issues of some sort, they were not opening it this year. Oh well, maybe next year!

After viewing the Grosse Ile light, we headed into Detroit to meet my parents for dinner. It was a good day for lighthouse sightseeing. We have now officially ended our lighthouse travels for 2008. Now we need to focus on our maps and travels for 2009.

Until next time....

It's a Detroit thing, everybody.

Detroit Skyline from Belle Isle Michigan.

The Motor City, home of Motown, the Automobile, even the ice cream float-- what a city of so much diversity! But first, we've got to work our way there from Harsens Island. Continuing on from our last post, we had started the day in Port Huron Michigan, working our way down the St. Clair river to Lake St. Clair and ending on the Detroit River in Detroit.

We had our sights set on making it to the ferry over to Harsens Island to see The St. Clair Flats South Channel Range Lights after leaving Port Huron. Getting hungry we grabbed a pizza and headed over to the ferry docks in Algonac.


Guess what we pizza we haven't had in a while?

For our Jeep it was $7.00, not too shabby for a round trip! But to show you what type of day I was having, I forgot to get cash at an ATM on the mainland. So here we are, counting out CHANGE to go across! You should have seen us scrounging in the coin cup. When we got to the island, we drove to the furthest point you can drive on the island and got a couple of distant photos of the lights.


The St. Clair Flats South Channel Range Lights offshore of Harsens Island.

With the reflection of the sun, the photo isn't as good as I'd wish, maybe next visit we can find someone who wouldn't mind taking us on a boat ride out to get a closer photo? Know anyone?

After stopping at the community park on the island to eat our pizza, we headed back to the mainland to finish up our journey. Next stop, The St. Clair Lake Lighthouse.

Well...there is a light out there, not much else. As we were coming Lake St. Clair Shores and Grosse Point Shores, we found the park I had wrote down from my google map, Lakefront park. Unfortunately, I didn't look into this park any further than it's location. When we arrived, we found the park is a "private" park for residents of this very, very well-to-do community. We were very fortunate that the guard understood what our mission was, and after we surrendered our driver's licenses, she allowed us to drive back and snap a photo or two of the off-shore light out in the middle of the lake.


Lake St. Clair Lake Lighthouse....yeah, its out there!

Ugh, what in the world? We were doing so well, but now it seems like we were striking out getting good shots of these lights. Nonetheless, we continued on to find the Windmill Point Lighthouse. Heading south on E. Jefferson Avenue, we turned into a residential area towards the junction of Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River. You could tell we crossed the tracks (if you know what I mean). We literally went from multi-million dollar homes to run-down apartment buildings and duplexes. All the same, we weren't there to look for a home, just see the lighthouse.


Windmill Point Lighthouse at the mouth of the Detroit River.

One last stop before sunset, we headed over to Belle Isle to see the William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse. Now this park was interesting! With so much to do, you could hardly believe you were in downtown Detroit. To see more about the "beautiful Island" please visit The Friends of Belle Isle Website.

I got some good shots, but with every passing second it was harder for me to get any shots without camera jitters (it would've helped if Matt had stopped the jeep too).


The William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse on Belle Isle in Detroit Michigan.

You guessed it, another add to our Need to return list. We're planning another trip this spring/summer sometime when the weather starts to get nice again.

Until next time...

Here we go again!

With our last visit to Port Huron, we arrived right at dusk, so this time we wanted to come back during the daylight. It was even more beautiful during the day than at night, definitely a good call on our part. Today we were driving up to Port Huron and migrating south along the St. Clair River to Lake St. Clair, ending in Detroit.


Fort Gratiot Lighthouse...during the day.

We loved walking along this beach, there is so many interesting things to look at. The water, it is simply breath-taking! The water is very clear and blue, you are mesmerized by its motion through the rapid current. The beach is not only made of "clean" sand, but pebbles and river rock are washed up as well. We carried home two bags full of interesting rocks and fossils. Taylor wanted to take home every rock she found, another new hobby I guess.


Taylor picking up rocks on the beach at the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse.

While leaving the park I noticed the lighthouse was open for visitors today, but we were trying get Taylor away from the beach and rocks (we literally had to pull her away or she would never leave). Matt and I thought it was best to skip the tour this time and make it less stressful for us.


Taylor taking a moment to pose with the flowers.

Our second stop was the Huron Lightship. They too were open for tours, but the price was a bit steep for the three of us. Usually children under a certain age are free, according to the signage out front this was not the case. The sign stated our 3 year old was $5.00 and adults were $6.00! Instead we opted for some shots of the boat from the outside. None the less, it was an interesting ship with lots of history.


The Huron Lightship permanently docked on the shores of the St. Clair River.

For more information about the Museums of Port Huron, please check out their website HERE!

It was such a beautiful day. We happened to stumble onto an event taking place, the Port Huron Museum's Cemetery Walk at Lakeside Cemetery. It was such a nice day, and the locals were very courteous-- we felt very welcome.

While strolling along the riverfront and in the park, we viewed boats of all sizes cruising up the St. Clair River. None though could compare to this, a large ship heading right for us! We stood and watched as it cleverly maneuvered its way into the river. You could tell they've done this a time or two. I really wish I had purchased the book Know your ships; Guide to boats & boat watching--Great Lakes & St. Lawrence Seaway. Maybe now I'll wait til April when the new 50Th Anniversary Collector's Edition becomes available.


Ship coming into the St. Clair River under the Blue Water Bridge.

Leaving Port Huron, we drove southward following the St. Clair River to the small village of Marine City. I have to admit, I was talking on the phone as we were going through and almost missed this lighthouse completely! As the story goes, I had handwritten the directions in -ahem- order before we left home. I had placed this light at it's original location on Peche Island.


The Peche Island Lighthouse located in Marine City Michigan.

The Peche Island Lighthouse was relocated in 1983 here in Marine City. I had this information before we left, but misplaced it sometime on our trip. Luckily for me, I happened to look over as we were passing the downtown park area. I saw a quick glimpse of the light as we were passing a side street. Matt turned around for me, and while still chatting on the phone I stood in the middle of the road and snapped. If anyone had seen me I must have really looked like a tourist. It wasn't til about an hour later when I found my directions again that I realized this WAS a light on my list. I apologize for not taking this light more serious at that time, and I vow never to let it happen again--lol!

Now were off to Harsens Island!

Stay tuned, there's more to Come...