Day 1: Ashtabula to Sandusky

Yay, Ohio! I'm going to count today as day 1 since we didn't get to see any of Ohio yesterday and that's why we're here.

Our first stops for today are along the Ashtabula Covered Bridge Tour. They’re old, often one-lane bridges along quiet country roads which makes for a very pleasant drive.

First up is State Rd Bridge. I love its wooden surface and the smell of the wood. Beautiful, isn’t it?

We stretch our legs along the banks of the river below.

Whenever we go on vacation we somehow wind up on a dirt road and this time is no exception. In fact, I don’t think we’ve ever driven as many dirt roads in one day as we did today!

Benetka Bridge has distinctly different architecture with arches on both sides.

Little Olin Bridge (left) has a short trail off to the side that lets you walk under the bridge. I meet the funniest local fisherman on my way down to the river. He’s already got me giggling when he talks about why he likes to go fishing there, but the absolute best part came at the very end of our conversation:

“Have a great day now”
“Thanks, you too, sir”
“Oh, I probably won’t”

Hahaha … I will have to remember this one!

Next up is the Smolen-Gulf, at 613 feet long it is the United States longest covered bridge.

Doyle Road Bridge crosses Mills Creek and has a blind curve on each end. Kind of scary to drive through it because you never know if some local yokel is barreling down from the other side, but definitely one of the prettiest.

Me on the pedestrian walkway on Harpersfield Bridge.

Even though most of the bridges are within 5-10miles of each, by the time you figure in back country roads, taking pictures, construction delays and of course getting lost (I’m driving today, Sandy is attempting to work my phone and the GPS simultaneously with varying degrees of success haha) it takes a long time. So we decide to drive to Geneva State Park, a beach park on the shore of Lake Erie.

It’s pretty crowded and the sand is so incredibly hot my feet still hurt almost 12 hours, but as soon as I get in the lake I’m happy. This is the first time I get to really swim in any of the Great Lakes and the water temperature is just perfect. Not cold at all, but still refreshing on a scorching summer day.

Sandy meanwhile collects pretty colored rocks along the shoreline for her collection. I’m a bit worried she’s going to fill my car to the roof with a collection of rocks, driftwood and Amish furniture haha.

Headlands Beach State Park is supposed to be Ohio’s nicest lakefront park. I don’t know if that’s true necessarily, but it does have super wide beaches that seem to go on for miles. With everybody clustering near the water and jet skis loudly racing to and fro it wouldn’t be my first choice for a beach vacation, but of course I’m spoiled and it’s a nice spot nonetheless. What’s truly amazing is that all Ohio State Parks are free! You should’ve seen the size of the parking lot at Headland’s alone … they could make a killing if they started charging admission.

 

There’s a really cute lighthouse at the end of the beach, but it’s a long walk over either a) unbearably hot sand, or b) tiny pebbles that get caught in your shoes so we decide instead to walk back to the car and drive to another part of the enormous parking lot and get out at Headlands Dunes. It’s still quite a hike, especially with the heat, but worth the effort.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen an actually light house before!

We contemplate staying at the beach a little longer, but Lake Farmparks closes at 5pm and I’m dying to learn how to milk a cow so we trudge back to the parking lot where we crank the AC on as high as it will go.

Random cute church along the way. I think it’s on the register of National Historic Places.

We make it to Lake Farmparks a little bit after 4pm and I’m so excited … until we find out the cows are done for the day. Luckily the cashier runs after us to offer a refund when she realizes we left right after getting there. How nice is that?!

As an added bonus I got to pet a bunch of sheep on the way out.

There’s another state park right near Cleveland that supposedly has a nice view of the skyline of downtown Cleveland, but this turns out to be a bit of a letdown.

The most interesting parts of the park are a random drum group meeting with belly dancers, and the public bathrooms.  I would love to know the rationale behind having bathroom stall with doors that not only are incapable of locking, but also show you business to whoever is walking past! :-o

There is a small beach area that is pretty nice.

We drive through downtown to Little Italy where we have a fantastic dinner at Anthony’s. Somehow we’re lucky enough to snag an outside table near the corner store that’s playing Italian classics. The street is very “cozy” and European looking with its many terraces.

We start off with a complimentary hummus and crackers, followed by an enormous flatbread Caprese.  Sandy picks gnocchi for dinner while I try the pesto tortellini, but we’re so full already that we only manage to finish about half of our dinners. You’d think we’d skip dessert, but with gelato flavors like kiwi and pear who can resist?

Dinner: Anthony's
Hotel: Days Inn Sandusky