Water Pollution, Goose S**t, and a nice camping spot

Ryan:    
After our fun day at the Columbus Zoo and the water park and two comfortable nights in hotel rooms, we pointed the truck north and headed for our next campground.  Maumee Bay sits at the far southwestern tip of lake Erie near Toledo, Ohio.  The state park has the usual park feel in some respects, but it is also a resort with a golf course, bike rentals, lodge, restaurant, and amphitheater.  Despite its size, with over 250 campsites, the campground was well cared for, and our site was nicely shaded, reasonably private, and at night, very quiet.  Last year we all saw our first great lake for the first time at Indiana dunes, and it was amazing and beautiful.  With the memory of that beach on lake Michigan and the admittedly unfounded expectation that this one on lake Erie would be similar, we went to check it out first thing in the morning.  Turns out, the beach at Maumee Bay is nothing like the one at Indiana Dunes.  The sand is not bad, but does seem a bit dirty, and there is a big sign that warns you to "avoid getting lake water in your mouth".  It goes on to describe all the water conditions you should watch out for, including paint like substance floating on the surface, green globs, or colored streaks. I didn't see any of the listed nasties, but the water did have a decidedly green murk to it; it did not look particularly inviting, and I really didn't want the girls playing in it.

This is the closest we got to swimming in Maumee Bay.

 I took the girls over to the nearby inland lake to see if it was any better.  This beach has it's own gross factor, namely goose shit. The geese are such a disgusting nuisance that the park is currently training dogs to harass them in the hopes that they will decide Maumee bay is no fun and do their pooping elsewhere.  Despite the minefield of bird turds, we decided this beach was better than the other one because the water looked better, it was fairly clear, and there was no sign here warning us of chemical or biological dangers.  We relocated, Kat and I spread our blanket among the poo and the girls splashed in the relatively clean water.

The girls swimming at Goose Poo Beach.

Practicing "The routine"

Rebel. (by Zoë)

another glamour shot by Zoë

    Even if the beach situation was a bit disappointing, we spent a nice couple of days and nights enjoying the first truly comfortable weather of the trip. It was still hot, but the humidity had broken, it felt good in the shade, and the nights were actually cool.  The girls amused themselves with photo shoots and playing on the slack line.  We had nice campfire dinners and smores and sunset walks around the adjacent lake trail.

the photographer

Zoë is lucky she has a willing and photogenic little sister.

    From Maumee Bay we would be driving into Canada and to a place called Port Burwell.  As we crossed the bridge over the Maumee river, which flows into lake Erie at Maumee Bay, we looked out at  Toledo's industrial center and that nasty water seemed a little less surprising.  We were headed to a spot about half way up the opposite shore of lake Erie on the Canadian side, and we wondered if this body of water was big enough that we might find a very different kind of lake there.