Lake Erie in pictures
Over the weekend I decided to brave the cold, put on my thermal gear and take a leisurely stroll along Cleveland’s shoreline. The city’s Downtown precinct lies near the mouth of the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie – one of the five Great Lakes of North America.
While the calendar tells us it is technically now spring – the season of rebirth and regeneration, of lush greenery and birds chirping – reality paints a rather different picture. Out there in that barren white wasteland, scavenging seagulls descend on the ice sheets, feasting on dead ducks frozen in on the surface. In the aftermath of February’s record-breaking cold front, Lake Erie may finally begin to thaw following a prolonged state of icy desolation. Locals tell me the lake doesn't always freeze over, but it’s understandable considering northern Ohio has just experienced one of the harshest winters in its history.
Lake Erie:
Is one of the five Great Lakes of North America (which together account for a sizeable chunk of the world’s freshwater supply)
Is the shallowest of the five Great Lakes, so it freezes the fastest come wintertime
Borders major US cities including: Toledo and Cleveland (Ohio), Buffalo (New York State) and Erie (Pennsylvania).
Derives its name from the Erie Native American tribe who settled along its shoreline
Has been crossed by thrill seekers and adventurers who have made the perilous journey from the USA to Canada by walking along swathes of ice. [Read this fascinating story of one man, Dave Voelker, who braved thin ice and exposure when he crossed Lake Erie – from Catawba to Canada – over a weekend in 1978.]
Lake Erie, Ohio| March 2015 -Would you walk over 50miles (80km) from Cleveland to Canada via Lake Erie?
