Located on Ohio's northeastern shoreline, Geneva State Park reflects the character and charisma of Lake Erie. The shimmering expanse of the lake lures vacationers who enjoy fishing and boating. Swimmers rejoice in the beautiful sand beach while nature enthusiasts retreat to the park's freshwater marshes and estuaries associated with the lake.

Lodge

• The Lodge and Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake is Ohio's ninth state park resort lodge
• The lodge was constructed and is managed through a unique state/local partnership with Ashtabula County
• In addition to beautiful views of Lake Erie, the lodge offers 109 guest rooms, a full-service restaurant, and conference facilities. Read about other amenities offered.
• Indoor & outdoor pools for lodge guests only
• Pets are permitted in select rooms
• Game room 

Camping

• 89 electric sites
• 4 full hook-up sites
• 7 non-electric sites
• Showers and flush toilets
• Coin-operated Laundry
• Pet camping is available at designated sites
• Basketball and sand volleyball courts

Getaway Rentals

• 12 Deluxe Cedar Cabins on the Lake Erie lakefront sleep four adults or a family of six with a combination of a private bedroom and a sleeping loft
• Each cabin features a complete kitchen, private bathroom with shower, furnished dining and living area, A/C, heat, and a screened porch and deck
• Cookware, dishes, and bed, bath and kitchen linens are provided
• Cable TV with DVD player
• Gas grill
• Access to an enclosed picnic pavilion for outdoor gatherings

Boating

• Lake Erie provides unlimited opportunities for boaters
• Six-lane boat ramp provides easy access to Lake Erie's central basin
• Marina features a canteen and concession area which supplies gasoline, boating essentials and bait, along with 383 docks for rental
• The east breakwall of the marina is capped with a sidewalk
• Transient dock rental is available

Picnicking

• Crabapple Picnic Area features two shelterhouses with electric and water, restrooms with flush toilets, volleyball court and horse-shoe pit 
• The shelterhouses are available by reservation, call the park office for details

Trails

• Three miles of multi-use trails traverse the park.
• They are used by hikers, cross-country skiers and hunters.

Hunting and Fishing

• Lake Erie is known as the walleye capital of the world.
• In addition to great catches of walleye, the lake offers yellow perch, channel catfish and steelhead trout
• Geneva Marina is designated as a small boat harbor and is a certified Clean Marina, private charter fishing boats are available 
• Hunting is permitted in designated areas from October 15 through February 28 annually
• A valid Ohio hunting and fishing license is required

Swimming

• A 300-foot guarded swimming beach adorns the shoreline of Lake Erie.
• The entire length of the park overlooks Lake Erie for approximately two miles with access to the lake provided at various points along the lakefront
• This provides park visitors with a scenic panorama of the Lake Erie shoreline.

More To Do

• There is a privately owned, public golf course within the park boundaries.
• Park visitors can enjoy volleyball in the picnic area.
•  The camp office loans games and sporting equipment to registered campers.
• A fish cleaning house is also provided for campers.

Area Attractions

• Astabula County is home to 16 covered bridges, 15 award-winning wineries, nineteen museums, and two wild and scenic rivers
• History buffs will want to visit the area museums, including  Conneaut Railroad Museum, Shandy Hall Museum in Unionville, and the Jenny Munger Memorial Museum at Geneva-On-The-Lake
• Headlands Beach State Park and the adjacent Headlands Dunes Nature Preserve offer a different view of the Lake Erie shoreline. They are located west of Geneva in Lake County
• The village of Geneva-on-the-Lake offers a family atmosphere with various amusements, water slides and restaurants
• For more information on area attractions, visit the Ashtabula County Convention and Visitors Bureau

Nature of the Park

The lake's beginning can be traced to the glacial era of Ohio's geologic history when the state was covered by ice over a mile thick. During the Pleistocene (Ice Age), continental glaciers advanced and receded from Ohio at least four times.

The scouring action of this ice sheet created the Lake Erie Basin which slowly filled as the ice melted northward to Canada. Initially, the newly formed lake drained to the southwest into the Mississippi River. When the glacier retreated from near present-day Buffalo, New York, a new outlet was exposed via the Niagara River. A flood of water escaped, draining the shallow western basin and much of the central basin. Twelve-thousand years ago, this outlet was 100 feet lower than it is today due to the great weight of the mile-thick ice depressing the land surface. The rebounding of this bedrock is reflected in the present lake level.

Because Lake Erie is a relatively shallow lake, it becomes treacherous during severe storms. In just a matter of hours, the lake can change from peaceful and serene to raging and thundering. Over the years, storms have taken their toll on the lake's shoreline. In the mid 1970s, the park installed a variety of protective devices and planted different types of vegetation in an effort to control erosion. Today, the park's shoreline is bordered by several breakwalls.

Geneva offers the visitor a natural beach, several areas of freshwater marsh and beautiful mature woodlots. The middle and western beach areas contain plants that are rare in Ohio but characteristic of the Atlantic coast. Sea rocket, seaside spurge, beach pea and silverweed can be found on the Geneva beaches. Marshes located at the mouth of Cowles Creek, No Name Creek and Wheeler Creek contain swamp smartweed, leafy sedge and submerged aquatic vegetation.

History of the Area

Geneva State Park is situated along the Lake Erie shoreline. Erie, meaning wildcat or "it is long-tailed," is derived from the tribal name of Indians who inhabited the area until 1655.

The lake was a principal avenue of transportation for Indians and frontiersmen alike. Overlooked by French settlers traveling west because of a shorter overland route linking Lake Ontario and the western Great Lakes, French trappers eventually established trade routes on Lake Erie in the mid 1600s. Since that time, the lake has figured prominently in Ohio's history and growth.

By the mid 1800s, the state's canal system was open and goods could be shipped from Ohio's rural farms to populous eastern cities using well-developed inland canals. Ports were established at Toledo and Cleveland to accommodate the growing shipping industry. Freight from these ports was shipped east across the lake to New York.

Today, the Saint Lawrence Seaway enables the Midwest to trade directly with many nations. Freighters of international registry carry corn, wheat, soybeans and other commodities from our region's diverse industries to many foreign markets. New trade avenues opened on Lake Erie contribute to the prosperity of Ohio's strong agricultural and industrial economies.

Acquisition of land to create the park began in 1964 with the purchase of Chestnut Grove. Land acquisitions continued through 1972. The last parcels added were the cottage and campground areas.

The park is located within the village of Geneva-on-the-Lake, which was Ohio's first summer resort.

Directions

From Columbus, Ohio:
Take I-71 North to I-271 East
I-271 East to I-90 East
I-90 East to S.R. 534 North. Park entrance is six miles north on S.R. 534 (turn left).

From Cincinnati, Ohio:
Take I-71 North to I-271 East
I-271 East to I-90 East
I-90 East to S.R. 534 North. Park entrance is six miles north on S.R. 534 (turn left).

From Toledo, Ohio:
Take I-90 East to S.R. 534 North. Park entrance is six miles north on S.R. 534 (turn left).

From Youngstown, Ohio:
Take S.R. 11 North to I-90 West.
I-90 West to S.R. 534 North. Park entrance is six miles north on S.R. 534 (turn left).