Presque Isle State Park
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| Presque Isle State Park, Pennsylvania, USA | |
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| IUCN Category III (Natural Monument) | |
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| Location: | Erie County, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Nearest city: | Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Coordinates: | |
| Area: | 3,200 acres (12.95 km²) |
| Established: | 1921 |
| Governing body: | Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
Presque Isle State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on 3,200 acres (12.95 km²), a sandy peninsula in Lake Erie, near the city of Erie, Erie County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park hosts over 4 million visitors per year. Beachgoing, swimming, hiking, biking, in-line skating and bird watching are popular activities within the park. The park contains 13 miles (21 km) of roads and 21 miles (34 km) of recreational trails. A monument to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, a naval squadron leader during the War of 1812, sits at the far end of the peninsula. Presque Isle State Park can be reached from Pennsylvania Route 832 or by boat.
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[edit] History
[edit] Erielhonan
The Erielhonan a tribe of Native Americans were the first known group of people to inhabit the Lake Erie area, in fact the name "Erie" comes from their name. The Erielhonan were also called the "Cat" or the "Raccoon" people. An Erielhonan legend taught that the Great Spirit lead them to Presque Isle because of the wealth of game, the abundance of clean fresh water, and the cool breezes "coming from the land of snow and ice" (Canada). They lived in multi-family long houses in villages enclosed in palisades and grew the "Three Sisters"—corn, beans, and squash—during the warm season. In the winter tribal members lived off the stored crops and animals taken in hunts. They were ultimately destroyed by the Iroquois, who adopted some of the survivors into their own group, these being primarily absorbed into the Senecas.
[edit] War of 1812
Presque Isle played a part in the victory over the British in the Battle of Lake Erie, during the War of 1812. Oliver Hazard Perry commanded the fleet in battle. He strategically used the peninsula’s bay as a pier and, a place to construct six out of nine of the ships in his fleet. Using this location protected the men by creating an obstacle for potential attackers because they would have to travel all the way around the peninsula to reach them. The bay was later named Misery Bay, because of the hardships that took place there after the men returned from battle, during the winters of 1812-1814. Many men suffered from smallpox and were kept in quarantine in the area of the bay. A great deal of the infected died and was buried in a pond now called Grave Yard Pond.
[edit] Lighthouse
The Presque Isle Lighthouse was constructed in 1872 and lit on July 12, 1873. It was the second lighthouse constructed on Lake Erie. Presque Isle Lighthouse is 74 feet (23 m) tall with a red brick house that is used as a park residence. The lighthouse is maintained by the United States Coast Guard and flashes a white light to warn oncoming ships of the sandy peninsula that juts out into Lake Erie.
[edit] Natural history
[edit] Bird habitats
There are seven different ecological zones in Presque Isle State Park. Each zone has a different plant and animal community. They are, Lake Erie ,the bay and shore line, sandy plain and new ponds, sand dunes and ridges, marshes and old ponds, thicket and sub-climax forest and climax forests. Many different species of plants and animals can be found at Presque Isle State Park due to the wide variety of ecological zones. Off all the animals at the park, birds as the most studied. The peninsula is located on the Atlantic Flyway a major migratory path. The diversity of habitats on the peninsula make it and ideal home for over 320 species of birds.
[edit] Geology
The Erie area was previously under a massive continental glacier. The glacier retreated and melted and filled a valley creating Lake Erie. Geologists believe that Presque Isle was created by the wave action of Lake Erie over the course of 11,000 years since the last ice age. When Presque Isle first formed it was probably 3 miles (5 km) to the west of its current location. The constant pressure applied by wind and water has migrated the peninsula to its current location and it continues to slowly creep eastward.
The name presque-isle literally means almost an island in French. Interestingly, Presque Isle, has actually been an island for brief periods of its history. It has been cut off from the mainland four times since 1819 and each time the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has worked to reconnect it. Fifty-eight Breakwaters have been built to slow the effects of erosion. These breakwaters have "captured" the sand and prevented it from being pushed to the east. The result has been a build up of sand and larger beaches.
Presque Isle protects the natural Presque Isle Bay. This bay creates a deep and wide harbor for the city of Erie. The bay is often times filled with pleasure craft as well as cargo ships from all over the world that use the Great Lakes shipping port.
[edit] Recreation
Lake Erie is the prime recreational attraction at Presque Isle State Park. It provides many miles of open water that are open to recreational boating, fishing, water skiing, ice fishig, ice boating, and ice skating.
[edit] Boating
Boats of nearly any variety are permitted on Lake Erie at Presque Isle State Park. Boats with internal combustion engines are prohibited in the interior lagoons, except for Grave Yard Pond which is the location of the 500 slip marina. A boat rental concession at the marina provides a variety of powered and non powered boats for recreational use. All boats must have a current registration from any state. Water conditions on Lake Erie can change with little notice. All boaters are asked to monitor marine channel 16, the Coast Guard Emergency Channel on a VHF radio or NOAA Weather Radio 162.400 MHz for current boating conditions.
[edit] Water skiing and scuba diving
Water skiing and scuba diving are permitted at Presque State Park in designated waters of Lake Erie. Water skiing must take place in Presque Isle Bay or out on Lake Erie and is prohibited within 500 feet (152 m) of the shore. Scuba divers must be certified and are required to register at the park office to obtain information on the waters that are open to diving.
[edit] Fishing and hunting
There are two distinct fishing zones at Presque Isle State Park. Lake Erie is the home to perch, trout, walleye, bass, and steelhead. Presque Isle Bay is the home of muskellunge, northern pike, crappie, smelt, and the other fish that swim in from the lake itself.
Hunting is prohibited at Presque Isle State Park with the exception of controlled duck and goose hunting seasons.
[edit] Swimming and picnics
Presque Isle State Park is home to the only surf swimming in Pennsylvania. There are 13 beaches that are open for swimming. Each beach opens Memorial Day weekend and closes Labor Day weekend. Lifeguards are on duty 10:00 a.m. until 7:30pm. There are extensive picnic facilities at most of the swimming areas.
[edit] Tom Ridge Environmental Center
New to the park is the Tom Ridge Environmental Center (TREC), named after former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, which opened on May 26, 2006. The center has 7,000 square feet of interactive exhibits about local and regional flora, fauna, history and culture. The center also offers an orientation film, a large format movie theatre, nature shop, and cafeteria, as well as a 75 feet (23 m) tower overlooking Lake Erie. In addition to these attractions, TREC also houses five classrooms for environmental education, eight research labs, and an administrative hub of conservation groups and agencies.
Groups that are represented in TREC include:
- Pennsylvania's DEP offices of the Great Lakes
- Coastal Zone Management
- Lake-Erie Allegheny Earth Force
- Purple martin Conservation Association
- PA Sea Grant
- DCNR's northwest office of the Bureau of Recreation and Conservation
- Pennsylvania Audubon
- Presque Isle Partnership
[edit] Nearby state parks
The following state parks are within 30 miles (48 km) of Presque Isle State Park:
- Erie Bluffs State Park (Erie County)
[edit] References
- Presque Isle State Park. Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Retrieved on 2007-01-30.
- Presque Isle - Wildlife. Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Retrieved on 2007-01-30.
- History. CyberInk, LP. Retrieved on 2007-01-30.
- United States Geological Survey. Presque Isle State Park, USGS Erie North (PA) Topo Map. TopoZone. Retrieved on 2007-01-30.
- Presque Isle State Park
- Beach work delayed at Presque Isle
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
