Cleveland Lighthouse Becomes an Ice Castle – Again!

In December 2010, the Cleveland Harbor West lighthouse was encased in ice due to high winds, big waves, and bitter cold. (I wrote about that event on my blog at this link: ”Cleveland Lighthouse Becomes an Ice Castle “.)

The weather conditions were similar this year – maybe not as bitterly cold – and the lighthouse froze over again. Wanting another chance to photograph it, we headed to the Lake Erie shore on the west harbor of the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio. While the coating of ice on the lighthouse did not appear as thick as it was in 2010, and there was no ice at all on Lake Erie today, it was still a beautiful sight. The color of the icy lighthouse seemed to change with the amount of sunlight; as a small cloud passed overhead, the ice coating became a dull gray. In the bright light, it looked very white, with just hints of a cream color. Despite the sun, it was very cold and very windy, making it hard to take a quiet video. I thought I’d share it anyway, along with some photos, including one of the old Coast Guard Station which stands nearby.

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Tall Ships Visit Fairport Harbor & Mentor Headlands

 
Last week, the “Tall Ships” were visiting Fairport Harbor in Lake County, Ohio,  and we viewed part of the Parade of Sail from the Mentor Headlands State Park vantage point. The Headlands dunes trail leads to the break wall on the western side of Fairport Harbor -  a perfect place to view the event  It was hot and muggy but we found a spot where a few trees provided shade. We watched as the ships exited the harbor,  raising their sails as they entered Lake Erie.

Saturday evening we returned to Mentor Headlands, hoping to catch some of the ships sailing on the lake. Three ships did head out of port. It was extremely windy and a small storm was coming in from the east and the skies looked ominous. As a result, those few ships that ventured out were not out long. They quickly returned to Fairport Harbor and lowered their sails. Here are a few photos from both days that we visited. The ships featured are the El Galeon Andalucia, Draken Harald Harfagre, When And If, Appledore IV, and Appledore V.  I also included photos of the Fairport Harbor West lighthouse, Lake Erie, and the Mentor Headlands dunes.  (Click on any image for a larger view.)

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Record Warmth in December in Ohio

The temperatures hit 70 degrees yesterday in the area – a record high for December 12th. Temps were in the low 60s when we took a walk yesterday morning on the dunes trail at Mentor Headlands State Park in Ohio. There was only a light breeze and the clouds were thick and very grey. Still, who would want to pass up a December walk by Lake Erie when the weather was so warm? Here are a few photos.

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Fall Sunset at Mentor Headlands

The fall colors are arriving and the weather has been beautiful. It was a good time to watch the sunset at Mentor Headlands Beach State Park. The dunes grasses were beginning to show warm colors, which made for a nice frame on the dunes trail to the west breakwater lighthouse. The Fairport Harbor Lighthouse and marine museum is also in view from the dunes trail. In some of the photos, the “Belt of Venus” is visible. Here are a few photos.

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Filming “Strangest Weather On Earth” A Year Ago Today

A year ago today, I was at the Lake Erie shoreline in Cleveland Ohio to be in FRONT of the camera for a segment of The Weather Channel series "Strangest Weather on Earth” being filmed by a UK production company.  The temperatures were below freezing with rain, freezing drizzle, and high winds. The topic being covered was the Cleveland Harbor West Lighthouse becoming completely encased in ice from a weather phenomenon which occurred in December of 2010. (That link includes some of the photos I took of the lighthouse that day.)

Here’s photo taken at the time of the filming. Despite being dressed in layers, it wasn’t quite enough, once the wind and precipitation was added to the cold temperatures. Needless to say, despite my best efforts to protect my head, it was a bad hair day!

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Cleveland Lighthouse Becomes an Ice Castle (HD Video)

Here is the video I took yesterday of the Cleveland West Harbor Lighthouse that was covered in ice from high waves and frigid weather. You can find some of my still photos here: ”Cleveland Lighthouse Becomes an Ice Castle”.

This footage was taken from the Edgewater Park vantage point. Sorry for the slightly shaky camera – it was cold and windy and I forgot my tripod!




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Cleveland Lighthouse Becomes an Ice Castle

It made national and international news - the Cleveland Harbor West Lighthouse, on the bank of the Cuyahoga River as it enters Lake Erie, was covered with a thick coating of ice. (I wrote about it in my Cleveland blog here: ”Cleveland Lighthouse Encased in Ice”.) The windy weather, plus the frigid temperatures, kicked up icy waves which splashed – and then froze – on the lighthouse. We had to go see it for ourselves, so we took a drive down to Wendy Park (located on Whiskey Island just west of downtown Cleveland), with all the camera gear in tow. The lighthouse was a spectacular sight. The nearby the Old US Coast Guard Station (photo also below) seemed untouched by the waves. We also stopped at Edgewater Park immediately west of Whiskey Island to check out the odd ice formations there made by splashing water. Some photos are below; I also included one of my photos of the lighthouse that I took last May, just for comparison. (Click on any image for a larger view.)

The lighthouse - in warm weather:

Here is the same lighthouse today:

(Nearby old Coast Guard station)

All Content © Chris A. Zimmer and chriszimmer.blogspot.com