What a wonderful park this is. It is shameful that the state does not spend a cent to plant a flower or add a restaurant. Even small cities located on any body of water invest in improving their waterfronts. But this review is my commendation for Edgewater and not a condemnation of government.
This is in the city and perhaps those of you who live in the outlying burbs will find way too much diversity for your tastes. Other reviews support my claim as the writers focus on one aspect they find contrary to their WASP standards. They do not see the big picture.
I have walked the path leading from the lot next to Perkins Beach down the slopes to the beaches of Edgewater with my collie. I often sit at a picnic table on the bluff overlooking the lake watching kites color the sky with downtown Cleveland looking like an island in the background. Sailboats and jet skis ride the waves as people fish from the pier.
In winter I feel like I am in a Swedish black and white movie. The sky, the lake, and the beach are shades of gray. The bare trees look black against the snow and fog. I appreciate our climate in the spring where pale green plants begin to take over. Fall is yellow poplars growing from the sand.
Summer means more people and more activities. As I sat eating my lunch or reading a book on a bench down by the concession stand I have known Cleveland. Recently I saw a group of Amish girls sitting on the rocks by the lake carrying plastic Igloo lunch coolers. I have seen African Americans set up for a day at the park. They bring tents, lounge chairs, and coolers and baskets filled with food they prepared in huge quantities. Old ladies and babies are at tables. The men are at the barbecue grates and the women are uncovering casseroles.
I have seen Puerto Rican families pushing tables so their extended family can sit together with bowls and platters of food spread from one end of the table to the other. I have seen Vietnamese men catch fish they take to women who wait by woks heating on grills. Gay men have grilled steaks, tossed salads and eaten on a picnic table covered with a madras cloth. I also saw white women and their children carrying bags from fast food restaurants finding tables where they eat quickly and leave.
Edgewater Park is a wonderful place.