Mufflehead

Once in awhile you stumble onto something and it turns out to be a great experience. This is our visit to Sandusky, Ohio. How and why did we pick this place to stop? It was close to Cleveland and it was close to water. What we discovered were two things. First, the Muffleheads (more on that later) and second Put-In-Bay.

To get to this island off the coast of Sandusky one has to take about a 25 minute Jet Boat ferry ride. Once the Captain has cleared the dock and opens the throttles up the boat seems to climb on top of the water and gently skims the waves. With a light sway and an occasional spray of water you are quickly taken to a calm and peaceful place. The scenery before you is hard to believe. You are on Lake Erie but it could be the ocean. This is all fresh water around you.

We are greeted to Put-In-Bay by a tall monument erected back in the early 1900's. Established to honor those who fought in the Battle of Lake Erie, during the war of 1812, but in equal part it is here to celebrate the long-lasting peace between Britain, Canada and the U.S. Situated only 5 miles from the longest undefended boarder in the world.

The island is only about 4 miles long. There are two main modes of transportation. Golf carts and bikes. We took our bicycles and explored almost every corner. There are many summer homes with only a small population that live here year long. Every side of this island presents new views of Lake Erie and the surrounding islands. The downtown strip consists of two roads that intersect each other. Lined with restaurants, bars, brewery's and gift shops. After peddling around the entire island it was time to hit the restaurants and bars. We visited 4 bars and one restaurant. Needless to say we were quite happy by the time we boarded the ferry for the return trip. The island is a popular destination for all types but today it seemed like the bridal parties were in control. Nothing like seeing a bunch of squealing drunk women running around and driving golf carts.
Now, being next to Lake Erie has its disadvantages. We discovered these things on our arrival to the Park. As I walked in the grass it seemed that it became alive. Thousands and thousands of these feather duster antenna, winged insects came out. It looked like I was walking in a snow globe but instead of snow it was these mosquito looking things swarming around. Thankfully, we discovered later, that they don't bite. They just annoy you by flying into your mouth or landing on your face.

We met this couple at a local restaurant and after having talked in length about RV'ing I finally remembered to ask what this plague is called. Mufflehead was his response. Wait, did he just call me a "Mufflehead"? No, that's what they call this insect. I don't know how it got the name but we did learn that they live in the mud at the bottom of Lake Erie. People around here are excited to see these winged nuisance because it lets them know that the lake is healthy. They come out once a year, grow some wings and go off to mate. They only live for a couple of weeks before their empty carcass crunches underfoot. They can live for a couple of years in the mud as larva. When you go outside everything is covered in these bugs. It looks like a shaggy living blanket. Of course when we were packing to leave we had bugs get inside the RV. We have been killing these things by the handful. Mufflehead. Another interesting fact about this country that we didn't know existed. Oh, we never did make it to Cleveland. We had to much fun around here.

Tonight we are parked in another Flying J Truck stop, en route to our next job. Thank God for the satellite to pass the time tonight.