AN & JFP – U.P. 2014 – Day #6

This was a very much less strenuous day than those preceding it.  The weather is still being kind.  For once we lazed away the morning, following a delicious and extensive breakfast eaten out on the patio just outside the breakfast room, as this Holiday morning the hotel is full and busy.  Rested and relaxed we headed down to the harbor to see the status of the cruise boats.  Finally they were running, but due to the ice only about ½ to ¾ as far as usual, and for which they were only charging half the usual price.  We bought two tickets for the 2:00 PM cruise (which we later found went a bit further than the first cruise of the day as the ice is slowly moving away for the moment).  Odds were the next day would be the same but the forecast was for much cooler temperatures.

With time to kill before boarding we headed to the edge of town and went to Munising Falls, a slender but high one.  It has rather more flow than I have previously seen due to the different time of year.  We looked from the bottom, and then got a little extra exercise climbing a bunch of steps to get a bit closer.  The little visitor center was manned and open and Annie found the historical displays very interesting.

Back at the harbor we joined the boarding line and after a bit of a wait boarded and took second row seats on the upper (and open) deck.  For part of the cruise the sun was almost too hot, and for part of it (out by the ice) we put on the jackets we had taken – typical U.P.  As it turned out the shorter version of the cruise was just about right for us and of course the ice made it unique and fascinating.  The locals are stunned by this rare situation for the time of year and apparently a fair number of Yoopers with cameras came just to take the unique “ice cruise”.  We took some pictures, but not too many.

Back on land we gave the associated gift shop our full attention but not too much of our money!  While we were browsing a freak heavy shower hit the area for a few minutes, making us very glad it waited until we were off the fully exposed upper deck of the boat.  We then went and treated ourselves to a decadent sundae each before heading back to the hotel to sort out the pictures we had taken.  Later we went out for a so-so meal, came back, hot-tubed and swam, tried a few exercise machines (briefly) and then settled down.

As usual, such pictures as were considered “keepers” have been added to the end of our U.P. set here, and to the top of my “photostream” as well.