Lake Erie's popular isles off Ohio's
north shore attract families, beach buffs,
anglers and even night owls.

SUSAN R. POLLACK

Special to The Jewish News

Above: Ferries make frequent runs between
the northern Ohio mainland and the Lake
Erie Islands, a popular summer resort
about 3.5 hours from Detroit.

Inset: The Raptor is just one of 59 rides at
Cedar Point.

5/22
1997

S26

1p

arasailers soar overhead, punctuating
the postcard-blue sky with bright
patches of color. On deck, passen-
gers crowd the rails, snapping photos
of sleek yachts and jaunty sailboats bobbing in
the harbor. The sweet smell of coconut wafts
from the bow as sun-worshippers slather each
other with tropical tanning oils.

Susan It Pollack is an award-winning travel
writer based in Huntington Woods.

Suddenly, a horn blasts and the ship is
under way, escorted by a gang of wheeling
seagulls. Bound from the Victorian port town
of Put-in-Bay on South Bass Island back to the
northern Ohio mainland, it skims through the
blue-green waves of Lake Erie, perhaps the
most under-rated of the Great Lakes.
Granted, it's not Hawaii or the Caribbean
— there's nary a palm tree or steel drum in
sight. But if you're looking for a quick sum-
mer getaway, easily accessible from Detroit,
Ohio's history-rich Lake Erie Islands are a
pleasant — and affordable - discovery.
With ferries and slower excursion boats