Ashtabula – who knew

Ashtabula – who knew

Sunny Ashtabula – sounds more like “bella” than “Beulah” when the locals say it.

 now that is an early start!

Arriving early afternoon due to our crack of dawn start, we were treated to a deluxe tour of the local maritime museum perched high on the hill overlooking the harbor.  The view was worth the small fee to this charming and folksy collection of artifacts presented simply without the bells and whistles of technology (- that evil box according to our guide.) The small seven rooms were crammed with personal possessions of former “guardies” and other displays pertinent to the maritime history of this little town.  While small in population this town boasted a huge fleet of ore boats that served the coal industry. Ore was delivered or stored here and then transported across the lake by railcars on ferries or smaller cargo ships which could navigate through the Welland canal to Lake Ontario and points east. We got knowed up on everything to do with the ships and machinery – massive machinery – involved in this industry that thrived over a hundred years ago with only a ghost remaining today. We have happily not met any of the current 1000 foot monsters that move the ore these days. We also heard most of our guide’s life story in our almost two hour visit to this tiny museum. There is almost nothing we did not learn about coal, shipping and Ashtabula, so we were more than ready to stop for homemade ice cream and chocolate fudge. These sustained us on our walk around town and out to the protected harbor for a calm anchorage kissed with enough breeze to keep us cool.  Sadly, the free concert here was on the opposite side of the breakwater so we couldn’t hear what was probably the best free music yet – a jazz band. The deejay from the antique car show on the eastern shore was both audible and visible – but, thankfully, only intermittently!

 Ultimate guide at work

 view from hill