Port Clinton tops the list for number of Ohio boat registrations: Who boats in Lake Erie?

Cleveland might be the biggest city on Lake Erie, but it ranks behind Port Clinton and Toledo in the number of Lake Erie-destined boats registered in its corporate limits.

Port Clinton has 2,234 boats, roughly one for every two residents. Cleveland has 1,977, which means .005 percent of the population owns a boat.

Across Cuyahoga County, the numbers are better, with more than 10,000 boats.

Put-in-Bay is surprisingly near the bottom of the list, with 206 boats registered there. But that’s nearly one boat for every person who lives there year-round. So we’re betting the summer residents have their boats registered at their permanent residence.

RocktheLake analyzed Ohio Department of Natural Resources data with cleveland.com’s data analysis expert Rich Exner.

The department’s Division of Watercraft requires all boats to be registered, including kayaks, canoes and inflatable boats. Kite boards and stand-up paddleboards do not need to be registered.

Take a look at the list below.