A Put-in-Bay Adventure

This week, my family and I went on a mini-vacation to Put-in-Bay, Ohio. It's a little island sitting in Lake Erie, immersed neck-deep in the history of the War of 1812. The vacation was very different from our trip to New York City. We weren't constantly being approached by folks promoting comedy shows, nor were we eating giant pieces of cheesecake... this trip was a little more laid back.

One thing we did notice was the island's weird image issue. Put-in-Bay can't decide if it wants to be a place to bring your family, or a place to get totally hammered. It's got both themes running pretty thick throughout the island, I just can't decide which is more prominent.

There are a handful of things to do with your family, like mini-golfing, cave spelunking, and monument visiting. We did all of that, and it was really cool. Plus, if you like water (which I don't, really), you could go kayaking, boating, and parasailing. My bro and my mom went kayaking for almost two-hours, while my dad and I just walked around the town. But ultimately, the best thing to check out on the island is the historical society's museum, and Perry's Monument--which is dedicated to Oliver HAZARD Perry... that's right, his middle name is Hazard, so don't mess with him.

But at the same time, the majority of the locales in the main commercial district are bars. Lots of bars. And when it's not a bar, it's a t-shirt shop selling you shirts about going to the bars. In this regard, the place isn't really for families (unless you're a family that wants to get drunk together). We went in the middle of the week, so the evenings weren't very crazy, but people we talked to held the consensus that the weekends were nuts. This isn't a bad thing, but I guess it's something to keep in mind for folks going to visit the island.

I had a good time on the trip, and it was great getting to visit this little island that seems to disconnected from the rest of Ohio. I'd definitely return, just not on a weekend.