What is Erie like?

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by wheelingman

I love outdoor activities.

If you come any time of year, there's plenty outdoors to do at Presque Isle: hiking, biking, birdwatching, fishing. In the summer there's swimming, or course, or renting a canoe or a kayak and paddling through the lagoons in the park.

Waldameer now has a first-rate roller coaster as well as a water park.

Here's some info to get you started:

Erie Pennsylvania ...Feel the Lake Effect

Pennsylvania State Parks - Presque Isle - PA DCNR

Waldameer Amusement Park Water World, Water Park Erie, PA vacation near Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh

Welcome to the Erie Zoo!

You don't have to be a kid to go here:

Home

If the weather's crappy, you can always hit the slots parlor.

[TechieTransplant]

Originally Posted by PeterRabbit

Is the municipal golf course still there? That's the only course I ever played that was surrounded by a neighborhood on all sides.

It's still there, but I think it's been closed because of budget shortfalls.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by PeterRabbit

Is the municipal golf course still there? That's the only course I ever played that was surrounded by a neighborhood on all sides.

There are 3 municipal/city-owned golf courses in Erie (though Erie Golf Course has been closed for the past year after extensive renovations and a budget mess/real estate deal with Millcreek Township where it is actually located). Downing and JC Martin (aka Glenwood) are the two others. JC Martin sounds like the one you played... only a little 9-hole mainly used by kids.

Erie actually has a wide variety of great courses in the area to choose from. The major country clubs in the area are Kahkwa, Lakeview, Lawrence Park, and Lakeshore. Of those, Lakeview is the most challenging course. But you need to member for any of those. There are plenty of other nice courses open to the public though. The Erie region was actually ranked one of the top places in the nation a few years ago by Golf Digest for quality golf courses open to the public.

[PeterRabbit]

^ Yes, 9 holes and I was a kid when I played. It was exactly like Oakmont.

[pj3000]

^ That first hole is actually quite challenging... a narrow 580 yd par 5. Hook one to the left and you're OB into the Erie Zoo (the fairway broders the bison). I think there is still a sign that says "Beware of Bison - Do Not Climb Fence to Retrieve Lost Ball".

[PeterRabbit]

^ I was 16 when I played there and recall the course as being fairly easy. The only hole I remember specifically was a par 3 I think was 175 yards and the green was near a sidewalk/street. I hit the pin on the fly and thought I had a hole-in-one because a little kid was down there jumping up and down making a fuss. No hole-in-one yet it was always a fun course to play.

[councilbluffs7]

Thank you, PeterRabbit. That "place that sells good sherbet" is Sara's. An Erie absolute must-see. They sell Smith's Hot Dogs, the best hot dogs in the world. Presque Isle (better known to locals as "The Peninsula") is also another place you have to go to. You can swim in the lake, walk across the bay in the winter when the ice is thick enough or rent a bike and go on the bike trail there. In the region is the Allegheny River, the perfect river for canoeing and kayaking (I should know, I've done it before). If my report was detailed enough, you may be surprised to know I'm not from Erie. But my mother is, which is why I always visit it so often.

[RPreskop]

To hell with I-90, when driving to Buffalo from Erie take either state route 5 or US Route 20 and see the best that both NW PA and WNY have to offer. Plus you will save some money because Route 90 is a toll road. The NY Thruway is mediocre road anyways in terms of pavement conditions and the heavy truck traffic makes it unpleasant.