A comment made by a friend really caught my attention. She said, “I think every bridge that crosses this river is like this one—made of steel.” I just had to get out and take a photo. As I stepped out of the car, I said, “If I have to walk in deep snow, I’m not going to photograph it.” Well, forget that . . . because even though the snow was up to my knees, I could not resist recording this scene. It is so American! The French Creek is located in western PA and is a tributary to the Allegheny River. But the word “creek” is a misnomer and most locals agree and call it The French River. I have to confess that if this is a creek, then all we have in Georgia are trickles.

Another view of the icy French Creek (River) as it speeds along toward the Allegheny River.

There are two lighthouses at Fairport Harbor. This little lighthouse sits at the opening of Fairport Harbor, which is located on the coast of Lake Erie in Ohio. We had to walk nearly a mile to see it. Once we reached it, we could stay only a few minutes because the wind was so brutal and the temperature so cold. Still it was worth the venture. On the way back we passed duck hunters on the bay side. The season for duck hunting began the day after Christmas and I saw several gun toting hunters while I was traveling around Lake Erie.

Notice the lighthouse in the distance. These dunes were especially wild and lovely. I could have stayed in this spot for a long time. It was almost calm—unlike the beach a few yards away which was being swept with storm-driven waves.

Here is the second lighthouse and the older of the two. Because of power lines and cars and other distractions, I could not back up to get a good shot and did I also mention that it was raw and cold? A few minutes outside in this weather was too much for someone from the south. But I have to admit that I would do it all over again. The areas we visited were charming and the people were so nice.

“‘This is the land of Narnia,’ said the faun, ‘where we are now; all that lies between the lamp post and the great castle of Cair Paravel on the eastern sea. . . . It is winter in Narnia, and has been forever so long, and we shall both catch cold if we stand here talking in the snow.’

“‘Thank you very much, Mr. Tumnus,’ said Lucy. ‘But I was wondering whether I ought to be getting back.’”

—from The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

The snow was beginning to catch up with us last Sunday morning as I took this photo. It could have been a lot better, but I was cold—shaking. The wind was blowing and sleet was falling. We woke to find at least a couple of inches of freshly fallen snow on the ground. The Lorain lighthouse sits out in Lake Erie across from docks and tightly sealed ships. We drove behind fences and out across frozen ground to a point where we saw not only the lighthouse but an endless number of seagulls circling the water in front of us. We had traveled a long way, and we still had a long way to go to get to the city of Erie before night.

While we were in the quaint lakeside city of Vermilion, we stop at Main Street Soda to grab something to eat. The moment we walked through the doorway, we were sure we had stepped back in time at least fifty years! The hamburgers were great and the prices were right!

I had a vanilla coke from the soda fountain! Others had cherry coke—just as good. I also learned to like Vernon’s ginger ale on this trip

I actually have a plate like the one in this photo but I bought it at the old Lakewood antique show.

Almost everywhere I turned in this little town, Christmas was still in full swing even a week after we had opened the last gift.