Cool breezes at Erie Beach

Daytime temperatures may be in the double digits regularly now that April is here, but there's still no shortage of ice along the Lake Erie shoreline to help cool breezes. Photo taken from ice along west side of old pier.

Down by the pool

More photos of the ice forced up on the Lake Erie shore during a late January storm, this time showing the giant swimming pool (last summer above, this winter below).

Don't swim in the deep end

Ice fills the old pool (northwest corner above can be seen in upper right of Google map) following last month's storm which drove ice right up to (and onto, as pictured in this post) the new boardwalk and promenade.

The Erie Beach pool was once billed as the world's largest and constructed because of a lack of sand on the rocky Lake Erie shoreline at the mouth of the Niagara River.


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Path of destruction

Last summer (above) before the work to recreated the promenade at Erie Beach, the old concrete at the Bardol end of the walk was busted up, the accumulation of years of Old Man Winter's wrath, plus some help from man. After the late January storm which forced tons of ice up on the shore, the scene is eerily reminiscent of the old days.

Ice for the ages

The Jan. 30 storm which pushed up ice along Lake Erie's north shoreline remains evident today. The above photo shows what it looks like when about 7 feet of ice pushes up around the foundation of the Lindy Loop ride. Below is a photo from mid-summer from about the same angle.

Rival path

More than half of this concrete sidewalk (first one north of the reconstructed promenade) has been covered over the years with sand, dirt and decaying leaves. While the south side (left) is crumbling away more and more each year, there is an equal amount of concrete under the leaves on the north (right) side of the path. And of course, trees have grown through cracks over the past 77 years and now stand in the middle of the path in some sections.

Off the beaten path

Deep in the woods, after the leaves have fallen, some ruins which usually hide in the shadows can be seen clearly. Footings from the Tumble Bug or something else? If you know for sure, please email me.

Video update

A quick look at the nearly finished Erie Beach section of the Friendship Trail in Fort Erie. On a windy fall day.

Three cheers

Work is nearly done on the three-metre wide recreation of the concrete promenade through Erie Beach. Railings are up, greenery has been planted in strategic sites and there is a section (below) which includes modern versions of the concrete columns which supported decorative light posts along the full length of the walkway.

Stevensville Lawn Service, the company which won the contract to do the work on the promenade, which is the final section of Fort Erie's Friendship Trail, did an incredible job in keeping some of the old flavour of the park, recycling some of the ruins and incorporating them into the new layout. In a couple of spots they even replaced the steps leading up to the paths which run deeper into the park.

Some work is still to be done -- I believe the plan calls for some signage with historical notes and some seating in certain spots -- but the Friendship Trail through Erie Beach is pretty much done.

A Niagara This Week story notes a ceremony is planned for the spring.

With the increase in foot traffic along the trail, now all that needs to be done is for the town to get serious about a plan for the length of the shoreline from Erie Beach to Waverly Beach and the potential for increasing tourism in the area. Reconstructing the pier as an amazing vantage point for both shores or filling in the old swimming pool and erecting a bandshell as a unique ampitheatre are just two ideas suggested by those with an interest in the old amusement park.

Just about done

Concrete was poured this week on the east end of the Erie Beach section of the Friendship Trail. It's looking good; just a little landscaping and some final touches (such as the lookout point in the bottom photo) to go and the workers will be out of the area.

Slowly but surely

Not much progress on the Friendship Trail this week; possibly a delay in pouring cement as the weather wasn't too co-operative. But one can see how the final product will look and note those nice finishing touches with the old posts from the original promenade.

Can Erie Beach pool be brought back?

FORT ERIE - Walk around the Erie Beach ar a while the final leg of th Friendship Trail construction is und rway and it's not hard to hear conversations about other work the town should be doing in the area.

Fixing the old steamship pier, filling the swimming pool with dirt and creating a park complete with bandshell, or even restoring the old concrete pool which was advertised nearly a century ago as the world's largest.

Such an endeavour would create quite a tourist attraction, said Howard Melcher when asked about the idea during a recent walk through the area.

continue reading in the Fort Erie Post

Prep work nearly done

The preparation is nearly done on the east end of the Erie Beach section of the Friendship Trail. The base has been built up from truckloads of gravel, slabs of the broken, busted-up concrete from the original promenade are being used along the edge and the cement will probably be poured during the next week. At the west end, the boardwalk is installed and there is new concrete all the way past the old dance hall to the spot you see at the very end of this video.

Past and present

Have to hand it to Stevensville Lawn Service, the company that is constructing the Erie Beach section of the Friendship Trail. Along the way, wherever possible, they have preserved elements of the old promenade. And where they've found some of the few guard rails/lamp posts that remain, they've incorporated them into the trail. Nice work.

The above and below photos, taken Friday, also shows the progress of the work being done at the east end of the promenade, where the rubble had to be sorted -- large blocks of the old concrete are being used to reinforce the new section and also act as steps to the waterfront -- and a new base is being installed.

Ticket to ride

Ken dug into his collection of old roller coaster photos and passed along this beauty of the Wildcat.

The fountain

Remains of the electric fountain from the Erie Beach Amusement Park were somewhat hidden for a long time, but in recent years have been dug out and used as a fire pit by those who have fun in the woods after the sun goes down. The above photo, taken by Doug Garner in the 1980s, shows how the centre portion of the fountain, installed pre-1920, was filled in with weeds and small trees at the time. When compared to photo below, taken in July, it also shows how thick the trees have grown in during the last two decades.



Below, you get an idea of what the fountain looked like in its heyday.





The above photo, taken from the opposite angle of the first three, shows the fountain near the middle on the right side, giving you an idea of where it is located next to the promenade just east of where the old dance hall stood.

Can't recall off the top of my head if the rest of the concrete is around there (it must be). Next time I am down there I plan to move some dirt around and see what's buried under there.

How low can it go?

The water level at the east end of Lake Erie is lower than I ever recall seeing it. I recall when the water where that mid-sized dog is standing, in this photo from Saturday, was usually at least six feet deep and only the tops of those rocks were visible.

Nearly there

Construction at the west end of the old promenade is nearly complete. The cement is is place, just a little work on the boardwalk at Waverly Beach remains. Work on the east end, though, where there was no concrete base left to work on, continues slowly. What is done looks great -- and what is to come will no doubt look as good. It should be completed in mid-October.

Half-way there

Well, maybe not half way but there is a lot of progress on the Friendship Trail. This 10-foot wide section of cement was poured Tuesday along the stretch of the old promenade which passed the dance hall.

Down at the dance hall

A friend of the family has some old video, circa 1960, of their time living in the Waverly Beach area. This short section shows the dance hall, long after it had closed but while it was still standing.

For those who have never seen it before, this is what your parents are talking about. For those who remember it, enjoy!

Wild ride at Erie Beach

It's hard to believe now, but Fort Erie once boasted one of the most popular amusement parks in Canada.

Until it suddenly closed near the beginning of the Great Depression, Erie Beach Amusement Park was the top attraction in Niagara outside of the Falls.

But that was a much different time. Long before air conditioning and television, or even a family car, summer escapes to shoreline resorts were the highlight of summer for many people.

With its beautiful picnic groves, luxury hotel, expansive midway, giant outdoor pool and a three-storey structure which housed a dance hall and bowling alley, Erie Beach was a wildly popular destination for families from Buffalo and beyond.

"Everybody used to come from all over to go there because it was the best around," said Mavis Burger (nee Colman).

"Crystal Beach didn't have anything to compare."

CONTINUE

source: Fort Erie Post/Niagara This Week