Christine Smyczynski ____Writer
  • Home
    • Upcoming events
    • Contact information
  • Books
    • Western NY Explorer's Guide 2005/2008 >
      • WNY Resources
      • WNY Attractions
      • Media Interviews
      • Testimonials
      • First edition closed
      • Second edition closed
    • Backroads & Byways Upstate NY 2017
    • Backroads and Byways second edition 2025
    • Buffalo Niagara Explorer's Guide 2018
  • Blog
  • Forever Young articles 2015 and beyond
  • Articles overview
    • 2006 Articles >
      • Celebrating Black History Month
      • Naples NY
      • Olean
      • ICE Festival
      • Mid winter getaways
      • Art & History Museums
      • Aviation Museums
      • Hiking Trails
      • Welland Canal
      • Athenaeum Hotel
      • Bemus Point
      • Cobblestone Trail
      • Niagara Parkway Part 1
      • Niagara Parkway Part 2
      • Rock Park
      • Clifton Springs
      • WNY Amish
    • 2007 Articles >
      • Nature In Winter
      • Wine & Chocolate
      • Winter Wonderland
      • Outdoors in Winter
      • Inside in Winter
      • Old Fort Niagara
      • Power Vists
      • WNY Waterfalls
      • Corning
      • Dads and Cars
      • Artpark
      • Hershey, PA
      • Native American History
      • Lake Ontario Shore
      • Lockport Cave
      • Sonnenberg
      • Amish Traditions
      • Day trips rock
      • Country Barn Quilt Trail
      • Halloween in WNY
      • Festival of Lights
      • Chautauqua Holiday
      • NY City by Train
    • 2008 Articles >
      • Chautauqua Wine Trail
      • Mayville Ice Castle
      • Outdoor Winter Fun
      • Chautauqua Institution
      • Farmers Markets
      • Recharge at Chautauqua
      • Niagara Wine Trail
      • Local Boat Rides
      • Local Beaches
      • Chautauqua County
      • Lewiston Jazz Festival
      • Hammondsport
      • Buffalo Waterfront
      • Pumpkin Fun
      • Chautauqua Wine Trail LEL
      • Fall Road Trips
    • 2009 articles >
      • Off season getaways
      • Winter Fun
      • Free Attractions
      • Spring Break
      • Taughannock Falls
      • Winery Train
      • St. Lawrence Seaway
      • Seaway Trail Journey
      • Welland Canal LEL
      • Queenston
      • Sandusky
      • Cleveland
      • Fall Festivals
      • Scenic Fall Drives
      • Holiday Hollow
      • Shopping in New York City
      • Holiday Shopping Corning
      • Buffalo has Wright
    • 2010 Articles >
      • Snowshoeing
      • Toronto
      • Elmira
      • Buffalo Religious Arts
      • Ten must see getaways
      • Chautauqua and Erie
      • Welland Murals
      • The Tonawandas
      • Ten Hidden Places
      • Wing Festival
      • Presque Isle
      • Marblehead Lighthouse
      • Lewisburg, PA
      • Victorian Christmas
    • 2011 Articles >
      • Chocolate Trail
      • Fun With Grandkids
      • George Eastman House
      • National Historic Landmarks
      • Thing for Wings
      • Olcott Beach
      • Little League Museum
      • Rock City
      • Glassblowing
      • Lawn Fetes
      • Chautauqua Bicentennial
      • Shaw Festival
      • Chautauqua County 2
      • Olcott Carousel
      • 10 Hidden Gems
      • Chautauqua
      • Olcott Beach 2
      • Roycroft
      • Hot Dog Spots
      • Westfield
      • Canandaigua
      • Enjoy Presque Isle
      • His and Her trips
      • Belhurst Castle
      • Shop in Lewiston
      • Cuba Cheese Museum
      • Pumpkinville 2
      • Snowshoe 2
      • Spooky Treats
      • Walkable Shopping
      • Norman Rockwell Museum
      • Fatima Shrine Fest of Lights
      • Christmas Lights
      • Albright Knox Art Gallery
    • 2012 Articles >
      • Darwin Martin House
      • Maple Weekend
      • Divine Mercy Shrine
      • Ports of Call on Erie Canal
      • Gateway to Rochester
      • Cape Cod
      • Cobblestone Trail Landmarks
      • 8 Great Fall Road Trips
      • Little Known Places In WNY
      • Buy at local craft shows
    • 2013 Articles >
      • Made in America Store
      • Vidler's 5 & 10
      • Great Lakes Seaway Trail
      • Gardens in region
      • WNY Festivals then and now
      • Erie PA waterfront
      • Grape Discovery Center
      • Salt Sanctuary
      • Holiday Hollow
      • Hull House
      • Buffalo Religious Arts (FY)
      • Mall Madness
      • One Day Holiday Getaways
    • 2014 Articles >
      • NYC by train (FY)
      • Cabin fever
      • NOTL Getaway
      • Elmira
      • Summer Sands
      • Cruising along the canal
      • Canandaigua Getaway
      • Canalside Villages
      • Williamsville
      • Ridgeway Ontario
      • Leroy Quilt Trail
      • Maple Weekend (Longweekends)
      • Salt Sanctuary (Longweekends)
      • Grove City Shopping
      • Lewiston Day Trip
      • Indoor waterparks
    • 2015 Articles >
      • Indoor gardens
      • Aviation Museums
      • Rochester Museums
      • Finger Lakes Boating Museum
      • 1000 Islands
      • Corning
      • Port Credit Ontario
    • 2016 Articles >
      • Owego
      • Walkway over the Hudson
      • Newburgh
      • Woodstock
      • Uncle Sam Troy NY
      • Natural Stone Bridge and Cave
      • Fly Creek Cider Mill
    • 2017 Articles >
      • Lake Placid
      • Aurora
      • Wayne County Murals
      • Historic sites in Hudson Valley
      • Shawngunk scenic byway
      • Lake George
      • Adirondack Towns
​Enjoy Erie’s Presque Isle State Park

Western New York Family Magazine
July 2011

 
            Presque Isle State Park in Erie Pennsylvania, less than a two hour drive from Buffalo, is a popular destination, especially during the summer. Over 4 million people visit the park each year to enjoy its many recreational and nature related activities.
            Presque Isle –the name means almost an island– is a 7 mile long, 3,200 acre sandy peninsula on Lake Erie. The entrance to the park is located about 4 miles west of downtown Erie.
            A couple of years ago, when my family was returning from a vacation in Ohio, we decided to stop a Presque Isle for a few hours to break up the drive home. That short visit did not do this place justice. One would need an entire day or more to fully appreciate the park. However, we did manage to see the park’s high points in our all too brief visit.

 

Beaches Galore
            While Presque Isle State Park is open year-round, the most popular time to visit is during the summer, since the park has over nine beaches, depending on how you count them! The beaches are generally open 10 am to 7 pm, Memorial Day to Labor Day. Some of the beaches are more natural, while others have all the amenities.
            Beach 1 and Barracks Beach are near the park entrance. Beach 1 has a long stretch of sand, but no concessions, while Barracks Beach has modern restrooms. Beach Six has a lot to offer, including food concessions, restrooms, changing area, and even a sand volleyball court. Water works Beach has a ramp that provides access to people with disabilities, while just up the road Pellinato Beach has modern restrooms and concessions.
            The Mill Road Beaches are five smaller, unspoiled quiet beaches, with no facilities, except restrooms for two of them. These beaches have a pounding surf; I wouldn’t recommend actually going in the water here. Pine Tree Beach has picnic tables, as well as rest rooms, while a short distance away, Number 10 Beach has a concession stand. The most popular and family-friendly beach is Beach 11, which is the most sheltered beach, with hardly any rough waves. It features a large sandy beach with shallow water. Nearby are playgrounds and picnic areas.


 

Boating and Fishing
            One of the best ways to see Presque Isle is by boat. The Lady Kate, a narrated 90 minute tour which follows the Presque Isle shoreline, offers views of three lighthouses, the Erie skyline, and the Gull Point Nature Preserve. The boat operates weekends until the end of September.
            If you prefer to pilot your own vessel, rent a canoe, kayak, small motor boat or pontoon boat from the Presque Isle Canoe and Boat Livery (814-838-3938). There is also a 500 slip marina if you bring your own boat.
            Presque Isle is also a popular place for fishing because of its many ponds, bays, and piers. You’ll find bass, walleye, northern pike, and crappie.
 


Hike and Bike
            Presque Isle has 11 miles of hiking trails, as well as a 13.5 mile multipurpose trail for bicycling, in-line skating, hiking, and jogging. If we had more time during our visit, I would have loved to rent one of the quaint looking 4-wheeled yellow surreys to ride on the park’s bike trails that are available from Yellow Bike Rentals (814-835-8900). They also rent traditional bicycles, tricycles, roller blades, and even paddle boats.
 


Lighthouses and a monument
            If you enjoy looking at lighthouses as much as I do, you’ll want to check out the two lighthouses within Presque Isle State Park, as well as a third lighthouse on shore near downtown Erie. The circa 1872 Presque Isle Lighthouse features a 57 foot tower that overlooks Lake Erie. While the interior is not open to the public, you can view this lighthouse from the beach.
            On the Erie Harbor side of Presque Isle, the North Pier Light has been guiding ships into the Erie Harbor Channel since 1858. Visitors can walk along the pier out to the light. The Erie Land Lighthouse can be seen on the opposite side of the channel.
            Another Presque Isle landmark is the Perry Monument, built in 1926 to honor Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, who fought in the battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. This battle was actually fought on the west end of Lake Erie, near Sandusky, Ohio. However, Perry and his men returned to Presque Isle Bay to repair their ships and to get medical treatment.
 


A natural area that’s a birder’s paradise
            Presque Isle is listed as Pennsylvania Important Bird Area #1 and it has been rated one of the best places to bird watch by Birders World Magazine. About 320 species of birds have been spotted in the park. In late summer, Purple Martins roost by the thousands near beach #11 and in the cattails near the water treatment plant. September is one of the peak months to see migrating shorebirds and warblers, while late November and December is when waterfowl migration takes place.
            One of the main reasons to go to Presque Isle, especially in the off-season, is to discover the natural wonders of the park. It has been named a National Natural Landmark due to its numerous wildlife habitats. Some animal species found here are endangered, threatened, or rare. The most unique area of the park is the Gull Point Natural Area, which is closed to the public from April to November to preserve its fragile ecosystem. Rare and migrating shorebirds use this area to rest and many threatened and endangered plant species grow here.

 
Tom Ridge Environmental Center
            Learn more about Presque Isle at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, which is located at the entrance to the park. My family visited this 65,000 square foot, state-of-the-art facility, which has exhibits about the area history, ecosystems, wildlife, and bird migration. My kids especially liked climbing to the top of the 75 foot glass enclosed observation tower, which overlooks Lake Erie and Presque Isle State Park.
            After viewing the exhibits, we ate at the center’s Sunset Café, which has some of the best food, including wraps, paninis, salads, and homemade soup, that I’ve ever tasted at any museum. The center’s Nature Shop has a variety of nature-themed books, along with works by local artists.
 

Discover Presque Isle Days
            This annual three day festival, a fundraiser for the Presque Isle Partnership, takes place July 29-31, 2011. It features one of the area’s largest arts and craft festivals, along with children’s craft activities, boat tours of the peninsula, live music, and nature-inspired activities.
 

If you go
Pennsylvania State Parks www.visitpaparks.com

Visit Erie (tourism information) www.visiterie.com

Presque Isle Boat Tours www.piboattours.com 800-988-5780, 814-836-0201
 
Presque Isle Partnership www.discoverpi.com

Tom Ridge Environmental Centerwww.trecpi.org


 
Directions
Take NY State Thruway to I-90W. Follow I-90 to PA I-79N to the 2nd W. 12th St. exit. Take the exit and follow 12th St. west to Hwy 832 (Peninsula Drive). Make a right and follow Peninsula Drive into the park.



Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.