#LakeErieLove Weekend: Day One

Traveling

The drive from Pittsburgh to the Sandusky area of Lake Erie is around 3 hours, making it a great destination for a close-to-home weekend getaway. Traveling on I-80 is smooth and quick and once you're in Ohio you are going to have access to the awesome Service Plazas on the Ohio Turnpike. They are convenient because they are on the Turnpike, meaning you don't have to exit the Turnpike and pay a toll to use the bathroom or get a snack and then get back on.  The set up saves you money and time. They also look similar. I think that's nice because you feel comfortable entering them, knowing what to expect. ​

The service plazas have bathrooms, ATMS, travel brochures and coupons, assorted restaurants, and even little souvenir shops. There are also gas stations so you can fill up before getting back on the road! 

Some of the food establishments are more expensive than they usually would be. Think airport prices on some things. It's kind of annoying, but it is convenient. So there's that.. 

I know it's random to be excited about bathroom stops, but I have just always liked the plazas on the Ohio Turnpike. 

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Visit the Ohio Turnpike Website For Service Station Locations

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Accommodations

After a quick stop for the bathroom and a snack, we continued on to our destination for the night: Country Inn & Suites in Port Clinton, Ohio.  ( Come back tomorrow for my review of this hotel. )

We checked in later in the evening around 9 pm and, after a quick unpacking, went out to explore the area a little bit. I was actually surprised how many places (restaurants etc) were already closed even though this is the busiest season for the area (I thought). It was kind of weird! But maybe closer to Sandusky things stay open later?

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Bassett's Market in Port Clinton

So we decided to check out a local grocery store called Bassett's Market. First exciting thing for me after entering the store was the infused water refresher samples! They actually sell infused waters in their produce section for someone who is too busy to toss a couple fruit slices in their water (wait.. are people really that busy?  Convenient, though. For sure. )  Still, I was working on a solid dehydration-headache and the water dispenser was a welcome and welcoming site! :o) 

We mainly stopped in to peruse the beer and wine zones of the grocery store. Pennsylvania regulations on alcohol in grocery stores are more stringent than other states, although some grocery stores can now carry beer.  Wine and liquor are found at the PA Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores. So anyways, we perused for a while, not knowing what to pick up. Then we came to the far end of the store and saw a whole liquor section, it's just so crazy!!!! In the end we kept it simple with margaritas and an Irish Pear Cider from Magner's Brand. Has anyone tried this? To be honest, I was a little disappointed. I thought it was so mild in taste that I would actually hesitate to purchase another pear cider again and I'm guessing that's not fair to other pear cider purveyors. I had checked it on rate beer.com while at the store and saw it got an overall 9 rating. I assumed 9/10 so I picked it up. Turns out it is out of 9/20 -- not as impressive. Next time I want a cider, I will pick up Angry Orchard, Strongbow, or Woodchuck.

Anyway.. other cool stuff about Bassett's Market:

• Super friendly and helpful employees
• Hydroponic herbs growing in house
• Sushi! 
• Wine Tastings 2x/week
• Meat Smoker out front -- they are smoking meats and you can pick up pulled pork, ribs, etc. Check the store for which items are available each day. Wish we could have tried some! It was smelling sooo good as we walked in. 

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Find Bassett's Market Online:

Bassett's Market Website
Facebook
Twitter

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Gas Station Eats

After leaving Bassett's we wanted to go to a restaurant, but everything around seemed to be closed. We ended up getting Hunts Bros Pizza from a convenience store with some funny characters inside. We were cracking up at our food choices for the day. Not our brightest moments...

And in retrospect, why didn't we just go back to Bassett's and grab some sushi or... anything else and eat that?! Who knows. We were tired and clearly not thinking straight. We had a big day ahead of us at Cedar Point and we needed to rest up. That's for sure. 

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