Fall Travels

I am so far behind in our travel blog and for no good reason either. After all, Covid has kept us pretty much home bound so I should have plenty of time and, truth is, I did....and do. It appears I have had a reading and writing block! I love to do both but it seems for the past 6 months I have had difficulty concentrating to do either. I finally managed to finish one of the several books I have started but failed to finish. I think I am over whatever it was. I am now ready to bring my blog up to date or it will be forever “never up to date”.

After we left my sisters place in East Jordan, we spent the next 3 weeks in the UP covering areas we had not visited, or at least, not in long time. Our first stop was Copper Harbor, MI. Wow, what beautiful country. I had never been there before and I can understand why it is called Gods country.

The place we called home for the next 5 days was Ft Wilkins SP where we were able to watch the fish jump and the birds find their dinner on the shore of Lake Fanny Hoe. From there we were able to travel to many points of interest, which included lighthouses, waterfalls, parks,etc.

Our first stop was Brockway Mountain. The views were phenomenal even though it was quite windy and a cold spell had come through.  You could see forever it seemed.

We were blessed to have great weather almost the entire time we were up there.Thank goodness because all our plans for the next few days would take us outside.  We visited the lighthouse in Eagle Harbor, the Mendoza lighthouse in Copper Harbor, Jacob falls,  Haven Park falls and many sights in the Keewanaw forest.  Needless to say, we were busy for those few days but we knew we would not be out this way for awhile. So much to see, so little time. I know so many of you have experienced these sights, but if you haven’t, it should be on your bucket list.    

                                           

We all know it snows a lot in the U.P. But do you know how much? We have proof of why so many head “up north” during the winter months. Keewanaw County is proud of their record snowfalls.

Our time in the Keewanaw Peninsula has come to an end and are headed to Iron River for a few days. We have been there before and are looking forward to exploring more of the area. We had driven by several towns on our way and decided we could go back to see what we were missing. We drove to L’Anse where we took a hike to see more falls and then on to Baraga and visited the Ford Museum and Forest , the Snowshoe Priest monument. While at the Ford Museum visitors center, they had rocks on display. They had a large collection of “Yopper Rocks” so of course I had to buy one. In case you don’t know what a Yopper Rock is....they glow when a black light is shined on them. They are very cool.

   

On Saturday we drove to Moran Mi to stay at the Gourd Barn. It is a registered Harvest Host that we get great pleasure visiting. We are happy to call Rick and Clarlyn, the owners, our friends. This is a must stop place if you are ever in the area.  It’s an amazing place. While we were there we were pleased to be able to spend some quality time over dinner with them and learn of any new adventures they may have experienced. Clarlyn had given us several ideas of places worth going to visit so the next day we headed to St. Ignace where we had lunch by the water, strolled along the boardwalk to see the lighthouse, and had an ice cream cone before we went to the Ojibwa Cultural Museum. It was a fun packed day to say the least.

We covered a lot of ground in those few days but there is a lot more ground undiscovered by us. After packing up and saying our goodbyes, we once again hit the road, destination Bay Bills RV Resort in Brimely, MI. We will be spending a couple days there exploring and enjoying the fresh air.  After we settled in, had dinner and checked out the area we decided to visit Tacquamenon Falls the next day. We have both been there before but I had only seen the lower falls and it was many years ago. After we spent most of the day walking the many different trails at the falls, we ventured on over to the Oswald Bear Ranch. It is a center for rescued black bears.  It was late in the day so we didn’t get to spend a lot of time there but enough that we could grasp the intent of the work that was being accomplished  to protect these beauties.

On our way back to the MH we looped around to take the scenic route back to Brimeley. It took us along the shore line and we were able to get out at a Day Use park and put our feet in the sand.

The following day we went to Sault St Marie and boarded the Soo Locks tour boat for a trip through the new Locks. It was very informative and interesting to see first hand how it all operates. The details in the architecture on the power plant building is amazing. We ended up downtown for lunch and back home for a relaxing evening. 

 

  

   

          

           

        

That just about sums up our travels in the U.P. for this year. We actually have a timeline to follow as 2 of our granddaughters are getting married on the same day, and the same time, October 1. What are the chances of that happening! Neither of us want to miss the glorious day, and can’t be in 2 places at the same time so we will each go to our own granddaughters wedding...alone.  We are just so thankful to be in  the area to be able to attend. So with that being said we still have about 10 days or so to explore before heading to southern Michigan for the big day. 

The Until I return, which hopefully will be in a few days, get outdoors, explore the places around you, stay healthy and happy. And while you are outdoors, look up, it’s amazing out there.