Our last night in Munising became quite interesting! While continuing to rain heavily the winds kicked up to 50 MPH or more, our plastic patio chairs and side table took off for parts unknown and water started to find its way in over the patio door and drip down. The front desk gave us some old towels to put down to keep it contained & minimize carpet wetting. After we had swum and hot-tubbed (chatting with a former resident who had grown up here and was used to family reunions in Calumet in the Keweenaw) we brought additional towels back from the pools.
At around 10 o’clock the entire hotel lost power (except emergency exit signs), pretty much dictating bedtime, although Marissa’s Kindle has a light. Right after we had each in turn fumbled our way to the bathroom around 2:00 AM the power came back and all the lights came on and suddenly seemed very bright. After we had reset the clock we settled down for sleeping part 2. By the time Zoe demanded to be taken out for her own morning bathroom break the rains had stopped and the winds had died down to merely “windy”.
The power had been on long enough for them to present the usual excellent breakfast although the breakfast room was more crowded than usual. Neither hurrying nor wasting time we organized for departure, brought the van up to the closest available spot and loaded up. We shot down into town and parked just outside the Internet Cafe there and Marissa checked weather, etc (the hotel network was up but they had lost their internet connection in the storm). We then started westwards and in between the two M towns pulled into a lay-by and took some pictures of a very rough lake, reminiscent of an early trip with Maria resulting in a picture that was our computer "wallpaper" for years. I think we took from the very same spot.
The whole journey was a struggle for me driving. Not only was I fighting fierce winds in a very large vehicle, but the skies could not stay consistent for what seemed (endlessly) more than 45 seconds at a time, from nothing & squeaky wipers, to "full-on" and everything in between. From that perspective it was a very tedious drive. As we approached Marquette Marissa suggested a side trip to Presque Isle where we not only saw an ore boat at the loading dock (first time one had actually been there since Maria & my very first time there). In various places wave action was spectacular and a great many pictures were taken from which to make a subsequent choice.
Eventually we headed back to the main road and in view of the weather conditions make no more stops until halfway down the hill at L'Anse closing in on Baraga. We stopped for a quick lunch of burgers and fries, slipped around the bottom of the bay and topped up with "cheap" (i.e. no-tax) gas on the "Indian Reservation". We cruised up the lower Keweenaw, slid through Houghton, over the bridge, up the hill in Hancock and stopped at Pat's Foods IGA where we shopped for basic supplies for the next 24 hours. Then we cruised up to Mohawk, turned off and headed to Gay and followed the necessarily detailed directions to our home away from home cabin, Loot's Lodge, which was simultaneously a wonder and a disaster!!!
The wonder was its location, the disaster was that it also had lost electrical power in the big storm and since everything, including water, relied on electricity we became instant pioneers. Soon after our arrival the "cleaning lady" arrived back with clean sheets from the laundrette and told us that she had called in our outage and had been assured they were "working on it"! After some debate we decided to chance that it would be fixed before we became desperate (the optional outhouse was indescribable & impossible) so we moved in and immediately set about lighting the wood stove so that we would at least have heat. We investigated the place & its surroundings, much to Zoe's joy although she blotted her copybook by disappearing for too long at one point & may have to pay for it by being leashed hereafter.
As the light started to fade we heated some pasties & gravy on the now scorching hot wood stove and prepared ourselves, despite the early hour, for going to bed in total darkness - and out here it is DARK! However, just as the light was fading Marissa heard the beeping of a reversing truck and shortly afterwards WE HAD POWER! The water pump kicked on, the toilet refilled, the fridge started to run and lights galore provided brightness. Now we could relax and settle in properly. We can also download pictures to the PCs, etc, but of course can no longer upload anything to the Internet, so anyone reading this will be seeing slightly "old news".
Saturday was a much prettier day with lots of sunshine and some diminution of the wind, in fact as Marissa photographed the dawn mist was rising off the lake. The cabin is an odd mixture. It has a great kitchen, decent Master bedroom, reasonable living room, somewhat scary stairs, a scary dormitory upstairs and a minuscule bathroom. Marissa has elected to sleep down by the stove on a sofa bed and after the first night we have dragged down a full-size mattress from upstairs to supplement it, making a reasonable bed. We are hoping it will stay cool enough that bathroom time can be minimized!
In due course we headed out, retracing our initial route through Gay to Mohawk but then turning up the peninsula to Phoenix where we turned off down to Eagle River. Our first stop was at North Country Crafts which was poorly stocked as in our usual chat with proprietress Bonnie she told us they are retiring and will close for good as soon as this season ends. They will still use the home behind as a summer place and invited us to call and say hello on any future visits. We did manage to find a few small things to purchase. Then it was down to the beach to exercise the hound although John was frustrated as the drainage stream, normally just a trickle, was wide enough and deep enough to limit our range, but we still had good run/walk.
We headed on to the monk-run Jampot, bought some jams and fancy muffins for home and here, looked at Jacobs Falls and then went on along the coast to Eagle Harbor, parking on the lighthouse side for a general look (little had changed) and a photo or two before heading inland and eventually down the main road to Calumet. We cruised an assortment of shops but only bought in Copper World and even there not as much as in prior years, but it was nice to look. We moved from ancient to modern and the huge Pat's Foods IGA there where we took our time buying a week's supply of potential breakfasts and dinners - our "big shop" for the duration - as we assume we will be out for lunch most of the days as the weather forecast is very encouraging.
Back at the cabin we ate our sandwiches & salads then settled down for a reading and somnolent afternoon. After tea we essayed forth and took a long hike along the beach, much to Zoe's delight. It was a good day.
Sunday was the kind of weather day we had hoped for and expected. Lots of sunshine, comfortably cool temperatures and not much wind. Today we headed up the peninsula on this side. We first stopped at a delightful rest area, beach, rocks, trees, etc seen several times before but always just in passing. We carried carried on to Lac La Belle, stopping briefly at Haven falls, pretty, but not much flow at this time of year. Then it was on to Bete Gris Bay beach where we walked and Zoe romped for a while, her second significant beach run of the day.
Back in the van we cruised through the "pretty" right on up to Copper Harbor, took a side trip to Manganese Falls, small, noisy and very deep in a narrow ravine. John took a couple of pictures before Marissa donned her "Maria hat" and decreed no further exploration on the treacherous paths with no guard rails! We then took a dirt road through some pine forest but a road closed sign spooked us and we turned around and ran back into town. We picked up some supplies, including sandwiches for lunch, found a pretty spot to eat them, returned, parked, and then did some touristy shopping (looking but not buying) on foot but eventually lost interest. This time we took the "other side" coast road cruising along through Eagle Harbor to Eagle River where we parked and Zoe had her third (and last) major romp of the day. Once home she gave every sign of being exhausted!
We returned to our cabin by the shortest (but still significant) way only to find that just one wall, the one with windows and patio door looking towards the lake, has suffered the Invasion of the Flies! We commenced a fly Jihad and in due course had achieved spectacular success ending with a vacuum cleaner canister full of dead and dying flies. The wood stove was again lit as the evening boded to be cool and we settled into our usual relaxed holiday routine.
Monday - For no particular reason all three of us slept a good hour later than usual so we made a pretty late start to the day's adventures, once again in cool sunshiny weather. We headed over to Lake Linden (the city) and made a mini tour during which Marissa spotted a store called Copperland Arts Crafts, about one third of which is a studio in which two or three artisans make a lot of what they sell. We browsed, and before we left I had bought a large and a small wall decoration (one for show, one for the "trips taken" passage wall) and Marissa had bought one.
Next door was a gas station and a large supermarket. We topped up (always a good idea up here) at the one and bought sandwiches and salads for lunch in the other. Then we headed to the bottom of the top (i.e. the southernmost point of the peninsula after the H-H bridge) the hamlet of Jacobsville and the public shoreside park there. After eating our lunch we walked along the breakwater between the main lake and the inland waterway, quite rough to one side and dead calm to the other all the way out to the navigation light - a distance that surprised us by being much further than it looked! As we neared the end Zoe decided it was too cold (the breeze was quite fresh along there) and sat down in protest and shivered, so she was carried back cuddled to a warm human, each of us carrying her about half the way. Back on the sheltered beach she regained her joie de vivre and scampered about, free of restraint for quite a while.
We returned to L.L. and went on to Laurium, found the Laurium Manor, paid a small fee to take a self-guided tour and did so. It is an early 1900's mansion, 4 stories, 45 rooms and 13,000 sq. ft. It has been restored and doubles as a high-end B and B as all bedrooms, including the staff's, had attached bathrooms. It was very interesting to see. Once we were done we called it a day and headed back to our cabin to light the stove ready for the evening and generally relax, apart from a late afternoon beach walk.
Tuesday - This was yet another gorgeous autumn day. Part of this day's "adventures" really were such. We took our side coast road until it joined US41 and then on to Copper Harbor. After some minor shopping we headed up to the official end of paved US41 (1994 miles from Miami, FL) but carried on up the decent graveled county road for a while before turning onto a track and bouncing our way down to the parking area (room for 3 vehicles!) for the Mary Macdonald Preserve (of the Nature Conservancy) and the start of the trail to Horseshoe Harbor. The trail surface was about equal parts dirt, tree roots and rocks, but passable. We reached the cove (not a harbor at all) and spent some enjoyable time in splendid isolation on the rocky beach and the rocks, enjoying the sunshine and silence.
Eventually we staggered back to the van, largely uphill, and then bounced our way back to the gravel road, down to 41 and on into Copper Harbor. Deciding we wanted a change to cold sandwiches for lunch we found a restaurant willing to give us carry out of hot sandwiches which we thoroughly enjoyed while overlooking the little park beside the visitors center. We checked out the remaining tourist shop and are now done with Copper Harbor from whence we embarked on the hill climb up the Brockway Mountain Drive which was very pretty. We parked at the top, took the usual ritual pictures, although the hazy day did not allow good long views, and John finally found a suitable memento of Copper Harbor in the small isolated gift shop up there.
We went down the other side, joined the coast road and cruised along all the way to the Jampot Bakery to replenish our supply of the truly delicious, Monk-baked, muffins for our breakfasts. Then it was on to Eagle River and the usual afternoon Zoe beach romp. We took the "coast road" out and down to Ahmeek, also a very pretty drive, and turned back up a little way to Mohawk where we stopped at the surprisingly well-stocked Superette and while in there decided to get tomorrow's lunch supplies as we plan to stick around the cabin for a day, just taking it easy.
Before we left and still after we returned we could hear heavy machinery running as it appears a nearby unimproved lot is being cleared and leveled no doubt prior to some sort of construction. However, it does look as though they are done so we should have a peaceful day tomorrow.
Wednesday - Although only appearing a little breezier at the cabin the wind must be up out on the lake as we have had wonderful crashing breakers all day long. Apart from a couple of threatening clouds appearing and then disappearing the day has remained pleasantly "partly cloudy". This has been our "day of rest" and the van hasn't moved at all. Everything has been done in a leisurely manner will small reference to the clock. We took a beach stroll in the morning then sat and read, when not dropping off for an extended late morning nap. In mid afternoon John took a couple of walks, a shorter one with Zoe who after a while made it very clear she had no interest in going further without Marissa! In fact we seem to have burned off much of Zoe's reserves of abundant energy. The second walk was a local exploration with much retracing of steps since the side lanes are like a delta branching and branching into many dead ends. Eventually the yard of an unoccupied cabin was snuck through and a return was made along the beach. We sat at the end of the "lawn", watched the waves, drank cups of tea and generally relaxed. It's been a lovely, peaceful, restful day. However, in the end our restlessness got the better of us and embarked on a tour of local exploration, the nearby mini-park and a beach area somewhat further afield, finally being driven to return home by a combination of hunger and sunset.
Thursday - Our last day in the Keweenaw was a perfect autumnal day. It is also the peak of color up here, almost everything turned but few leaves actually fallen as yet. We started off by taking a couple of new-to-us roads and the colors were magnificent. From Lake Linden (city) we headed to US41 and on towards Calumet looking for a place that apparently no longer is in business. We stopped in one or two places that caught our eye and then did a motor tour of Calumet but nothing there (other than where we had already shopped) seemed worth stopping to check out. We continued on up and stopped at the "snow thermometer" noting that this past winter was close to the least snowfall since they started keeping records.
A little further on we stopped at a combination Information and Local Crafts store and after much browsing John bought an attractive birdhouse largely crafted from driftwood - he must have been suffering from spending withdrawal! Our next stop was Eagle River, where the falls are almost non-existent at this end of a dry year, and down to the beach for a long walk (humans) and a very long, fast, erratic excursion (Havanese). From there we took the coast road and eventually found the "short-cut" to the one-lane, unpaved, lengthy Bumbletown road to Gratiot Beach. If we had known how to recognize an agate when it reached up and bit us we could have joined the few other people there as that beach is supposed to be a famous source. However, by that far into the afternoon food seemed more appealing so we bounced our way back and on to Ahmeek, getting a buffalo meat hot dog and an ice cream sundae each. Thereafter we meandered our way back to the cabin to take the rest of our time here nice and easy.
As we load up to start the run from the cabin to Iron Mountain the odometer is at 1559.3 miles for the trip so far. Pictures taken during the days described above will be added to Flickr at a later date.
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