The event celebrates and honors people who identify as LGBTQ.
The parade will begin at noon and take place from The Zone Dance Club near West 18th and State streets. It will travel north on State Street to Perry Square.
The festival will be held following the parade at Perry Square. Times are not yet available.
Events include drag performers, other entertainment, HIV/STI testing, other health screenings, vendors and more.
This year’s event will feature a Youth Zone through a partnership with Erie Playhouse and will include inflatable children’s rides and a story corner.
Erie’s Pride festival and parade is organized by the nonprofit NWPA Pride Alliance.
Discover Presque Isle is Erie’s biggest celebration for the breathtaking, expansive natural wonder.
The new format includes seven days of events that will highlight Presque Isle State Park’s many offerings.
An events schedule is not yet available, as of early June, but it promises to include many areas of the park and provide “family-friendly recreational and educational opportunities” — guided hikes, archery, pancake breakfasts, live music, sand sculpture competition, a giant bonfire and Presque Isle Lighthouse tours.
Most events are free and open to the public. Donations are welcome.
New this year: There will be no artist and vendor market.
“This difficult decision is due to capacity limitations resulting from the ever-increasing visitor attendance at Presque Isle in late July each year,” Discover Presque Isle officials said.
Organizers said they are working on other plans to include artists and vendors in a separate event in 2023.
Fireworks will be lit from near Dobbins Landing and the Bicenntial Tower and can be viewed from several areas around the bay.
The 15-minute show begins at 10 p.m. July 3. It is organized by Mercyhurst University and the city of Erie.
Tune into Erie’s Star104 (103.7 FM) for a synced music playlist for the show!
Lights Over Lake Erie began in 2018.
Where to watch
DOBBINS LANDING and the areas around the Bicentennial Tower, East Dobbins Landing, West Dobbins Landing.
ALONG THE BAYFRONT, including the Sassafras Pier, the Bayfront Convention Center area, public areas near Commodore Perry Yacht Club and Erie Water Works, and Liberty Park.
THE BLUFFS AREAS along East Front and West Front streets, including Bayview Park (on West Second Street between Cherry and Walnut streets) and the Bayfront Promenade.
PRESQUE ISLE STATE PARK, most notably the area of the West and East piers toward Perry Monument. It might be a bit far but the Waterworks area along the Bayfront might also offer nice views.
FROM A BAY VIEW ROOM AT THE SHERATON, which could give you comfort, space and air conditioning! Make it a romantic night, a friendly getaway, a family Fourth of July weekend — and cap it off with a fireworks show!
FROM A BOAT in the bay! Safety areas will be set up, but what an incredible vantage point for the show!
Shuttle service
EMTA will provide shuttle service to Dobbins Landing from 8 p.m. to midnight for people with disabilities and transportation needs. The trolley will make a loop and stop at the following locations:
East side of Perry Square along French Street
West side of Perry Square along Peach Street
Dobbins Landing
Parking
While the show can be viewed from various vantage points, if you plan on watching from the Bicentennial Tower and Dobbins Landing, it is recommended to park on the city side of the Bayfront Parkway and walk to Dobbins Landing.
Street parking and public garages are available in Downtown Erie. Public use of UPMC Hamot’s garage is not available. Limited parking will be available near the Bayfront Convention Center. Streets near Dobbins Landing will be closed and parking there is limited.
Erie’s 8 Great Tuesdays concert series is free and open to the public at Liberty Park’s Highmark Amphitheater on the Bayfront Park.
It begins July 5 and runs through Aug. 23. Each Tuesday show is from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Food and other vendors are on site.
The 2022 lineup:
July 5: Erie All Stars.
July 12: Zac Brown Tribute Band. Opening: Reignmaker.
July 19: King Solomon Hicks. Opening: The Pierce Dipner Band.
July 26: Concrete Castles. Opening: the Polkamaniacs, Patrick Lah.
Aug. 2: The Town Pants. Opening: The Probables.
Aug. 9: Latin Fusion.
Aug. 16: Buffalo Rose. Opening: the Ron Yarosz Power Organ Trio.
Aug. 23: Bruce in the U.S.A. Opening: Jack Stevenson & the Buried Treasure Band.
Vendors:
Asset Protection LTD
Bite By The Bay
Connie’s Ice Cream
Dickey’s Barbeque Pit
E Dogg’s Hot Dogs
Eileen Green Farms
GECAC
Happy Camper Snack Shack
Moe’s Southwest Grill
Spanglish Skillet
Widget Financial
Bike racks are stationed nearby. Plenty of sidewalks connect the park to the city and neighborhoods.
In addition, vehicular parking is available at the event site. Free shuttles also are available from nearby locations: Erie Intermodal Transportation Center (208 East Bayfront Parkway) and the Thomas Hoffman Transportation Hub (12th and Lincoln). Shuttles run 5 p.m. until after the event has closed.
While there are a lot of great fall, winter and spring things to do, we agree: Erie rocks in the summer!
Of course, the crown jewel is Presque Isle State Park with miles of Lake Erie beaches, biking, walking, hiking, kite flying, fishing, boating and so much more!
But we can’t do an Erie summer trip without the Ravine Flyer at Waldameer, Tall Ships Erie festival, 8 Great Tuesdays concerts, ice cream at Sara’s, hiking at Erie Bluffs State Park, Celebrate Erie festival, Dan Rice Days, the Erie Zoo, U.S. Brig Niagara, the Erie Maritime Museum and so much more!
While Presque Isle’s history can be traced 11,000 years ago, this gem that juts into Lake Erie was officially dedicated as a state park of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania 100 years ago today — May 27, 1921.
It was the foresight of Erie area residents to preserve and protect the peninsula as a state park.
In French, “Presque Isle” means “almost an island.”
Over time, the peninsula has actually become an island when lake waters rose, later returning to its status as a peninsula.
Pennsylvania state park officials estimate that at least four times since 1819, Presque Isle has been an island.
It apparently cost local residents $75,000 for the peninsula to become a state park, according to historical Eugene Ware. He estimates that the price — as of 2019 — would equate to $950,000.
The peninsula was a crucial part of the War of 1812. While the Battle of Lake Erie was fought off the shores of present day Ohio, Oliver Hazard Perry used the Erie harbor to build six of the ships used in the battle.
Perry is honored with Perry Monument, built near what’s known as Misery Bay and Graveyard Pond — named after the hardships the crew endured.
Prior to the War of 1812, the Erielhonan tribe, which dates to before the 1650s, lived along the lakeshore, including Presque Isle.
But it was the years post-War of 1812 that appear to be most heavily documented.
Presque Isle is home to two lighthouses.
North Pier lighthouse was built in 1858 at the end of the channel leading into the bay. That wooden lighthouse was later replaced by once from France after the original one was destroyed.
Presque Isle Lighthouse was built in 1872 and lit a year later. It now is part of a partnership with a nonprofit group that welcomes tours into the former residence.
Just three years after state park status, the peninsula’s road system was built. Presque Isle boasts a 13-mile road loop. In the 1980s, a bike lane was added.
Presque Isle State Park welcomes thousands of visitors each year. And while it’s known for its sandy beaches in the summer sun, the peninsula allows for activities throughout the year thanks in part to the diverse climate. The park is also home to many species of birds and other animals — some of which are not seen anywhere else in the state.
Explore Erie 