11 Best Ways to Cruise Ohio's Lake Erie Shoreline

Toledo
Take the Glass City River Wall boat tour (jmcruiselines.com) for a view of the city from the water, including the United States’ largest mural, which depicts portraits of three generations of Native Americans amidst a swath of sunflowers. Prefer to tour on wheels? Check out The Ribbon, the city’s newest park feature, where you can roller skate a 1,000-foot-long loop trail in the summer (or ice skate in the winter). Dine on the river at The Docks, choosing between Zia’s Italian, Real Seafood Co., Glass City Steakhouse and El Vaquero at the Docks.

Oak Harbor
It’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it type place, unless you’re a bird — or a birder. Imagine you’re a warbler migrating north and come upon a giant body of water, and directly in front of it there are thousands of acres of wetland, providing both cover and a smorgasbord of buggy dining options. You’d stop for a rest. That’s what makes Magee Marsh Wildlife Area such a birding hotspot and the site of The Biggest Week in American Birding (biggestweekinamericanbirding.com), held May 9-18. Come for the birds, of course, but also to see the parking lot full of Subarus adorned with bird-loving novelty plates and bumper stickers and the trails packed with binocular-toting birders from all over the world.

Catawba
This is where you catch the Miller Ferry to the island of Put-in-Bay (see page 26 for more info on the Lake Erie Islands), but it’s also home to three of the most bucolic places to eat and drink in the area. Although none are right on the water, they all offer lively and expansive outdoor seating areas. Gideon Owen Wine Co. (gideonowenwine.com) is a historic winery known for its fine dining, as well as burgers and pizza. Orchard on Catawba Island (orchardoncatawba.com) has expanded over the years and now offers three distinct places to eat and drink, including the more upscale Orchard Bar & Table and the more casual Orchard Farm Stand and Orchard Coop. Twin Oast Brewing (twinoast.com) serves up craft beer on its 60 acres, as well as handhelds, shareables and pizza. It also hosts several family-friendly events throughout the year, including Apricot Fest (July 12-13).

Marblehead
Home to both Lakeside Chautauqua and Marblehead Lighthouse State Park, this is a good place to spend the night or catch the ferry to Kelleys Island. The Wave at Marblehead (wavemarblehead.com) is a brand-new boutique hotel/restaurant with expansive lake views. Just down the road, you’ll find the Red Fern Inn (redferninn.com), which offers four suites in an old schoolhouse and a winery with firepits and live music behind the building. Head to Beach Glass Lounge (facebook.com/beachglasslounge) for steak and seafood and to check out glass-blowing demonstrations at the gallery next door. Live music is on tap every night at Hidden Beach Bar (hiddenbeachbar.com), which is as close as one can get to the water.

Sandusky
Cedar Point, of course! Take part in classic fun during the summer or hit HalloWeekends Thursdays through Sundays from Sept. 11 through Nov. 1 for something spookier. New to the park this summer is the Siren’s Curse, billed as the “tallest, fastest and longest tilt rollercoaster in North America.” cedarpoint.com

Vermilion
Vermilion is always charming, but it’s even more so during 3rd Thursday downtown concerts (held the third Thursday of each month from May through September from 5 p.m. until sunset). You’ll find more than two dozen bands scattered throughout downtown, performing every genre of music from rock to gospel. Stores are open late on concert nights, including Erie and Anchor (erieandanchor.com), where you can stock up on lake-inspired clothing, blankets, bags and more. vermilionohio.com/3rd-thursdays

Lorain
Lakeview Park (loraincountymetroparks.com) is one of the lake’s best-kept secrets. Sure, there’s a nice sandy beach with a concession stand, but there’s also a lawn bowling court, historic Rose Garden with 48 beds and 2,500 plantings, Sunset Café, beach volleyball, and stand-up paddleboard rentals and classes. From the beach, you can see the Lorain Lighthouse. Want a closer look? The lighthouse is only accessible by boat, but you can schedule a boat ride there followed by a tour through the Lorain Lighthouse Foundation (lorainlighthouse.com). Keep it simple with a $25 tour or make is a night with the $165 Lorain Lighthouse Sunset Wine Dinner.

Bay Village
You may go to Huntington Reservation for the beach but, if you’ve got little ones, the playground will be a worthy competitor. The 1-acre nature-based space offers plenty of shade, as well as a willow tunnel, slide, playhouse and small stage, two swing sets, a water play feature and a 50-foot zipline. The only thing that might convince your kids to leave?  Ice cream from Honey Hut, just a few feet away. clevelandmetroparks.com

Cleveland
From Major League baseball to the world-class theater district, downtown Cleveland has it all, but we’ll focus on dining with a view. Our “low” option is Merwin’s Wharf (clevelandmetroparks.com), right on the Cuyahoga River on the East Bank of the Flats. Dine on handhelds, fried pickles or chorizo pierogies while watching the traffic on the water. On the “high” end, venture 32 floors up to Bar 32 (bar32cle.com) at the top of the Hilton Cleveland Downtown for stunning lake views and an elevated bar menu and cocktails. Interestingly, they both offer giant soft pretzels for $18.

Mentor
It’s the beach, baby. At Headlands Beach State Park, you can feel the sand in your toes for a full mile, making it the largest natural sand beach in Ohio. But the park is a destination year-round. There’s a paved trail that runs behind the sand the full length of the beach, fishing at the east end of the park and excellent birding in the spring and fall. The beach is adjacent to Headlands Dunes State Nature Preserve, which has a 600-foot elevated boardwalk that also serves as the northern terminus of the Buckeye Trail. It’s also just a short stroll from the eastern end of the beach to see the Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light. ohiodnr.gov

Ashtabula County
A stroll down Geneva-on-the-Lake’s famous Strip is sort of like Vegas mixed with Nantucket. It’s got an easy, breezy waterfront charm, but also the buzz of a big night out thanks to the bars and arcades. Spend the night either at The Lodge at Geneva-on-the-Lake or Lakehouse Inn Retreat. Both are great bases for enjoying The Strip or exploring the many area wineries nearby. Repeat your visit in October to take a self-driving tour of the county’s 19 covered bridges at the peak of fall foliage. visitashtabulacounty.com

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