Miller Boat Line expects its new ferry to the Erie Islands to be delivered next fall, christened Mary Ann Market after the matriarch of the family business. Fraser Shipyards of Superior, Wisconsin, will build the new drive-on, drive-off passenger/vehicle ferry. It will be 140 feet long, 38.5 feet wide ferry and will accommodate 26 standard…

We love to watch freighters. As long as the Terminal Tower is tall, the ships are eye-catching, mesmerizing, romantic vestiges of industrial glory days. We can’t get over their size, whether they’re powering through Lake Erie or pivoting around the hair-pin curves of the Cuyahoga River. They’re more than a pretty sight on the horizon.…

You can still see the monarch butterflies at Wendy Park, stopping over on their migration from Canada to Mexico. But you won’t see a whole cloud of them at once because the weather is looking warmer and sunnier. Thousands of butterflies arrived on Lake Erie’s southern shores, beginning last week. And because of the rain…

“Attention!” Jessica Fleming shouts from the bow of the dragon boat. All 10 paddlers lean in, ready. “Paddles up!” We each lift one arm over our heads and shoot one arm to the side, making a triangle shape with our heads. “Take it away!” And we paddle. We sit two by two, following the pacers…

Nearly 100 boats will be on display Friday through Sunday in downtown Cleveland, at the second annual North Coast Boat Show. This year the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association has added live entertainment at Voinovich Park, as well as sailing lessons, and vendors on land. The Found Sounds Steel Pan Duo will play steel drums.…

They call it the No. 1 event in the No. 2 business: The annual Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District’s Open House and Clean Water Fest. The free annual event attracts more visitors every year; last year attracted nearly 3,000. It all happens from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Southerly Wastewater Treatment Plant, 4747…

Dream of owning your own private island? You can buy Middle Sister Island, just over 8 acres of pristine beach and woodlands in the Canadian waters of Lake Erie, for $888,888 Canadian. That’s less than $685,000 American.  The island, west of Pelee Island and the most wild and undisturbed of the Pelee archipelago, has been…

We all want more access to our Great Lakes. And despite all the industry and private property and expressways lining our Northeast Ohio shoreline, Euclid has figured it how to give it to us. The inner-ring suburb on Thursday broke ground on a 3/4-mile, $11.5 waterfront trail over private land. Landowners granted access for the…

Yes, we’re sad summer is over. The days are growing shorter, and the weather is growing cooler. But you don’t have to put away your stand-up paddleboard yet. And there are plenty of fall events to celebrate on Lake Erie. Here’s a taste. For more events, any time of year, visit rockthelake.com/events. Sept. 7 Put-in-Bay…

Well, it’s been quite a summer.* Instead of “rent-a-cars and westbound trains,” though, I’ve been rocking Lake Erie from Put-in-Bay to Historic Ashtabula Harbor. What have I learned? How to wake surf, for one. Why Lake Erie makes the Grand River Valley perfect for growing grapes. How to text a buoy to get the latest…