Upper Taquamenon Falls

After leaving Whitefish Point, we headed south, then west to get back to Grand Marais. Since it was only 6:30, we decided to make a very quick stop at Taquamenon Falls. Choosing the upper falls, we hiked quickly to the falls, it was once again raining, took a few photos, looked around, then headed back to the car. This is the last waterfall video you'll see of this trip....I promise!

 For those of you that get seasick during my unsteady videos, press play, listen to the sound, but just look at this photo!

I wish we would have had a bit more time here, but I'd prefer not to drive in the dark in "big animal" country! I'll be back in the UP in less than 2 months, hopefully, I'll have the better part of the day to spend here, hiking between the upper and lower falls!

Lighthouse Climb...Whitefish Point

Late afternoon we arrived at Whitefish Point. It was still quite foggy and overcast and we were greeted by a foghorn (not the original) which is (hopefully) the video that I have placed in this spot! 

Due to the increase in shipping activity (especially mining), and the large number of shipwrecks near this location, Congress approved a Lighthouse (and later a Lifesaving Station) on Lake Superior at Whitefish Point which was completed in 1849. Weather was not kind to it, and it was rebuilt in 1861. Not the typical construction as to what we are used to, but actually an iron cylinder, much more stable in the high winds and weather at this location. 

 On this very rainy afternoon, you can see the light and the keepers quarters. An assistant keeper was deemed necessary in 1895, and the quarters were remodeled into a duplex.

 Just as were were getting ready to leave, the sun started to come out and you can see the grounds from....the gift shop! Where they had dozens of books I really wanted to take with me, but I narrowed it down to....4!

The large rudder and tiller in the foreground is from the M.M.Drake. The 201 foot vessel sank 6 miles west of Whitefish Point on October 2,1901 in a collision while trying to tow the 212 foot schooner Michigan.

Of course, if the tower is open you know I HAVE to climb it! It was only 57 steps to the top of the cast iron tower, but it was VERY narrow, nearly claustrophobic, the steps were the narrowest I had seen, even with my tiny feet! And (being an iron tube) no windows. That was a first for me. So this is the view to the south, the red roof below is the keepers quarters, behind that a building with a VERY touching (and teary) film about the Edmund Fitzgerald and the raising of its bell a few years ago. To the rear left of that is the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum (highly recommended) and to the right....the impressive gift shop!

 Here's Alyssa waving at me from below, no one else wanted to climb to the top. Rule #1 should be "Never pass  an opportunity!", the tower had been closed to the public for many years, but has just been recently reopened to climbing as it is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year! Of the rebuilt one that is.

 Another view from the top. To the left is the gift store and to the right was the barracks for the men that manned the Lifeboat Rescue Station here from (I think) 1923 to 1970. This building now serves as a Bed & Breakfast. I think some time I may just come back & stay for an evening! The closer building (that I have cut off) was the building in which the rescuers stored their lifeboat and other lifesaving equipment.

Looking west on the shoreline of

Lake Superior.

Directly north was a nice boardwalk (didn't  have a chance to explore that),beach and at the bottom of the photo, the foghorn building, reconstructed in 1935. Although you can hear the foghorn sound in the video, the actual foghorn was removed by the Coast Guard in 1995, as they considered it obsolete, with the advances in shipboard navigation and all. 

 And, finally the view to the east, the "point" of Whitefish Point and Whitefish Bay. Upon leaving, there was a smaller building on the opposite site of the parking lot. Seems like the wooded area is a refuge for migrating birds, especially spring!

 I'm not sure if you can see my foot, but it shows just how narrow the steps are! My leg is against the back of the previous step and my toes are hanging over! Keep in mind a size 7 is too big for my teeny feet!

The Lifesaving Station had some really

great exhibits! I wish I would have had more time here! This was the preferred method to rescue crew off of vessels, as it was quick and less risky! It's a breeches buoy. The Keeper would load a Lyle gun that sent some sort of projectile to the ship in peril. The projectile was attached to a line. The crew then secured the line as instructed, and the the Keeper would send the breeches (looked like a big pair of britches if you ask me) over. The line would act like a pulley system, bringing crew to safety, one at a time.

 The last resort was to haul out the Beebe-McClellan self-bailing, water-ballast surfboat. A crew of 6 to 8 oarsman and the keeper would run this 25x7 boat to the water (and it wouldn't necessarily be the water right it front of the light either, sometimes it was necessary to port it a few miles!), and start rowing to the folks who needed to be rescued. They could bring aboard up to 15 survivors. One of the books that I almost bought detailed the Lifesaving Division and explained more in-depth of their routines and had several stories of rescue.....I'll be sure to pick that up next time!

And I certainly couldn't leave out

a picture of the bell of the

Edmund Fitzgerald. Raised only a

few years ago, it is now housed in

the museum.

By the time we left, the skies had started to clear, and the fog horn had ceased .

Munising Falls

To end our day, we hiked a very short,  maybe 1/3 mile walkway into a gorge to see Munising Falls. I think this was my favorite waterfall of the trip. The canopy of trees was so thick you didn't notice the fog nor the ever present raindrops! I'm sure on a hot day  this would be a great place to be also! 

 Another walkway led us to the other side of the waterfall, and from here you could see the area where, until a few years ago, you could walk behind the falls on the sandstone! Unfortunately, due to crumbling rock, this is off limits for safety purposes, bummer! How serene that would be!



And now for some videos of Munising Falls and the stream it flows into!

Miners Castle

 After our hike to Au Sable Light Station, we continued east on H58 toward Munising and decided to check out Miners Castle. One of the more recognized and viewed vistas at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, this was our view. Miners Castle should have been on the lower left corner of the downward sloping trees. But, the fog pretty much obscured the view from here....wasn't there a Stephen King movie about fog???It was actually sort of creepy here, with the current weather conditions and all.

We followed a short trail, only

maybe 1/3 to 1/2 mile at the most

to another viewpoint that was closer

to the formations.  I was guessing that it was supposed to be more scenic than this. So, we left, deciding to check this area out again tomorrow, and hopefully the weather would be more cooperative.

And it was! Friday wasn't a perfect day, but, the weather was improving, the dense fog had mostly dissipated, a few showers remained here and there.  

 I think sometime I shall come back here and perhaps take a kayaking tour!

Looking east, toward Munising, I believe that is Grand Island in the background. As you can see, the weather was still far from perfect. We had originally planned to do a boat tour, but with the skies being so overcast and waves at a 6 ' chop, we decided against it. Maybe next time.

Au Sable Light Station

 Our very rainy 1.5 mile trek to the Au Sable Light Station began where Hurricane River empties into Lake Superior. These nice ladies pointed us in the right direction to find the trail and suggested a beach walk for a while.

 Since the sand was quite wet, it did make for easy walking. But by this time it was nearly 11 am and was still quite foggy! I would expect that on a clear day it would have been quite scenic!

 So, we opted to head back to the trail in the forest to see what we could find there. There was green everywhere but every once in a while I would find a tiny spot of color like this delicate Twinflower of the Honeysuckle family!

I spotted quite a bit of Canadian Dogwood all through the very shady trail, which actually helped to shade us from a great deal of the raindrops!

Occasionally, there would be a break in the

treeline and you could peer out onto Lake Superior, I paused to check the conditions,  yep, still foggy!

Found a large patch of one of my favorites, Prickly Rose!

 About every 1/4 mile we came across a natural drain where water from above was flowing, rather quickly, downhill. No one had thought to bring boots, including me, so navigating across these little rivers proved to be a little tricky in order to keep everyone's feet dry!

Our first glimpse of the Au Sable Light!

 Completed August 19, 1984, the 87 foot tall lighthouse was considered to be one of the most remote light stations in mainland America. I know what your thinking, if it took me 1.5 miles to walk it, why is it considered remote?? Well, a century ago there were no roads in this part of Michigan. The closest town was Grand Marais, 12 miles to the east. Provisions and transportation was only by means of Lake Superior. It was quite a lonely life up here, having little contact with the outside world except from visits from the Coast Guard resupply boat, rare trips to Grand Marais, and of course, rescuing crew of floundering ships.

After climbing the 98 steps to the top I was pretty disappointed that I could only see about 40 feet out into the lake. The guide however did point out an interesting feature in the water below! Looking down onto the sandstone of the lake bed, you could see the dark lines where eons ago glaciers had scoured the bottom of the lakebed!

 The view from the top of the light looking northeast out into Lake Superior in the direction of Grand Marais. I suppose on a clear day, it may actually be visible. At the end of the point, the fog horn station. No, it didn't go off when we were there.

 On the hike back to Hurricane River we found some remains of the 272 foot Sitka, a shipwreck from October 4, 1904! Over a century ago!

 Scattered all over the beach were thousands of pretty rocks! Oh how I longed to pick these up and take them home, especially the round speckled red one! But...NPS frowns upon that and I really didn't want to go to jail, or worse yet, be banned from national parks! I would have to pick up rocks later from a public beach somewhere.



Back into the forest, near the end, I

spotted something pick a few feet

back into the forest! A Pink Lady's

Slipper! A friend of mine recently

found some in Wisconsin and sent a

 photo, I knew immediately what it

was! I was definitely excited to find

this rare orchid on my rainy hike!

Nearby, I also found some Indian Pipe

 beginning to sprout up!

Yes, everyone was a bit damp, but as you can see by the smiles, everyone was still having fun despite the rain!

As we neared the parking lot, I spotted

 this trail marker, I was unaware that

 we had been hiking on the North Country Scenic Trail!

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore...Sable Falls and Log Slide

 Thursday June 23rd we awoke to a very overcast day that alternated between misty, sprinkles of rain and steady rain. Fog was ever present for the entire day! After checking in at the visitor center in Grand Marais to get information, we decided to dodge the raindrops and take a short 1/2 to 3/4 mile hike to Sable Falls. What better time to view a waterfall than when its being fed!

We continued to follow the stream for a while, but the raindrops came back with a vengeance, and we decided to backtrack to the car.

Here's my first attempt at putting a video on my blog, hope you can see and hear Sable Falls just as I did!

 But, I did stop to admire these pretty Forget-Me-Nots!

 Moving on down the road, we stopped again for another mini-hike at the Log Slide. Decades ago, loggers would harvest trees and, in the winter, have horse teams pull large loads of logs up this sand dune. The logs would then be unloaded and rolled downhill to Lake Superior where they would have been floated downstream.

Obviously we weren't the first ones here this morning!

Mike and Alyssa charging up the Log Slide in the wet sand.

 We were poking around at the top and I found some prints...I didn't have my cheat sheet for animal tracks (nor a ruler) but this one was bigger than a 4x6 photo, but not as big as my journal. Its hard to see in the photo, it was easier to see the detail in person, perhaps possibly a rear black bear print...I spotted a ranger and inquired of the nature of the print and he seemed to agree.

 Several yards away, I spotted this track. Dogs are not allowed here and the tracks led off into the woods. Perhaps a coyote??

Here we are looking down the

 other side of the Log Slide where the timber would have been rolled down to Lake Superior. We really wanted to go down and check that out, however there were several signs warning against such action. Apparently, walking UP such a sand dune is nearly  impossible and many rescues/injuries/heart attacks happen here somewhat regularly.  We really didn't want vacation to end on the second day so we decided against

 that one!

A few days later by Whitefish Point we saw one of the carts that were used to pull the logs to the log slides!



On the 1/2 mile trek back to the car I stumbled on this felled tree and was quite amused at the shape of its trunk! I'm not sure what kind it was, but interesting just the same!

Vacation Day 1: Super Spooky Mackinac Bridge & Seney Wildlife Refuge

After a night of horrible storms, I, along with cousins Mike and Alyssa, left for 5 days of fun in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan on Wednesday, June 22. We finally hit the road about 10am  as I wanted to stay ahead of the next (even worse) round of storms expected that afternoon. The sky that morning and early afternoon was quite bleak, very overcast and occasionally little spits of raindrops. Traffic flowed quite nicely and everyone enjoyed playing our favorite car game, "Rubberneckers", its a card game based on getting points for spotting things such as a smokestack, certain licence plates, swimming pools, bikes,etc. It's really pretty fun, especially when you have to make gestures, like thumbs up or ok sign, at other cars and get them to acknowledge you....so if you see a car full of folks trying to get your attention while making odd gestures...please, wave at them or do the gesture back....we're not weird, just having fun! Just so you know, I don't hold my own cards while driving...I just act as a "helper" to the player in the front seat...trying to spot items for them.

The trip was just going ducky, and even though I was pretty sure I conquered my fear of driving on the Mackinac Bridge last year, I had made up my mind that if the weather was severe, I would pull off at the exit and call for an escort (a really nice local person who will drive your car across the big scary bridge for you). But, the weather SEEMED acceptable, no rain or strong winds. So, I figured it would be a pleasant, but cloudy ride to St. Ignace. As soon as we passed the point of no return, I saw the sign about poor weather conditions on the bridge that were being monitored. Uh oh. So I turned the radio onto the "bridge station" as they warned of unusual wind currents and dense fog in the Straits of Mackinac and that they were closely monitoring the situation from multiple points along the bridge. Really, I had NO indication prior to this that I was in for a 5 mile white-knuckle drive!

Mike was in the front seat and held my camera and decided to document our 5 mile drive of....well, for me terror, for them..well, they didn't seem to upset about it, but the car was PRETTY QUIET , except for my hyperventilating and occasional muttering certain words that I will not repeat here! So normally at this point, you have a glorious view of the magnificent suspension bridge connecting the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan.....Looks like just another foggy road...so I figured I would DEFINITELY choose the inside lane, farther from the edge.... 

I can honestly say, that in all my

 years of going up north as a child,

 even in November, I have NEVER

 seen the bridge like this!

It was sooooo spooky!

 Signs were posted, and the radio warned, not to exceed 20 mph!

 Well, not too long after starting across, I realized that the inner lane has grating, not solid pavement. The wind currents were coming up through those grates and causing my Durango to actually "wiggle" and sway! I REALLY did NOT like what those winds were doing to my vehicle! So, I VERY cautiously eased into the outside lane where there was normal pavement! Visibility was maybe only 3 or 4 car lengths at best, and the kids did comment that they couldn't even see the water only a few hundred feet below! To say that I was quite relieved when we reached St. Ignace is an understatement!

We stopped at a few turnouts on Hwy. 2, it was mid-afternoon but we could hardly see a thing. But it was a good leg-stretcher nonetheless. I felt sorry for the freighter I spotted out in Lake Michigan. How eerie for them as well.  

Finally, about 5pm we reached Seney National Wildlife Refuge. I had planned on stopping here last year on my way to Isle Royale, but a late start put the kibosh on that. We checked out the visitor center, normally closed it was open late because it was Wildlife Wednesday! In another hour and a half, they would load up a bus, and take folks on a 2 & 1/2 hour foray deep into the heart of Seney NWR that cars (and most people) simply are not allowed! We thought about this, but we still had to travel to Grand Marais and I was reminded that we had picked up perishables nearly 2 hours ago, that were in the cooler. So, we wisely declined, but did choose to do the 7 mile auto route through the refuge.

There was a nice short hiking trail just beyond the parking lot, and a family of  Canadian geese seemed to be leading us down the trail!

When they reached their departing point,

 we also decided to head back to the safety of the car....we were being eaten alive my mosquitoes and the insect repellent was packed away!

Driving along the wooded paths, we didn't see too many mammals....a few chipmunks and we did spot a few muskrats swimming.

We mainly saw birds! Which was quite a delight to me! we had to stop the car while we had a "standoff" with these two Sandhill Cranes! After about 5 minutes of them going nowhere, I gently eased the car up a few feet, that resulted in a GREAT deal of squawking from them, I definitely had invaded their territory! But being a one way street, I had no option, they eventually flew off.

We saw dozens and dozens of loons! I was hoping one would "speak" to us, so that Mike and Alyssa could hear their lonely call, but no luck on that one. We were also fortunate enough to see several nesting Trumpeter Swans, Ring Necked  Ducks, a Northern Flicker, an Osprey and even a Bald Eagle sitting on the top left branch of a dead tree near its' nest!

 

It was just after 8 pm and we really had to get on the road! Not 5 miles out of the refuge, I see a car heading south pulled over and the occupants looking deep into the woods. This can only mean 1 thing...something interesting. So, I backed up and inquired as to the nature of their excitedness.....a black bear had JUST sauntered across the road, right in front of them! I scanned the thick brush for movement or noise, but no suck luck. It was a "nature moment" that they will treasure forever! I just wished I had got there to see it too!