Our travels today took us only 150 miles from Mackinaw City to Empire where we had reservations at Indigo Bluffs RV Resort. This is the last leg of the trip before starting home.

We arrived at Indigo Bluffs, checked in, and were escorted to our site in the ritzy “owner” section. It exuded luxury, with stamped concrete pads and adjoining patios, fire pits, well manicured lawns, wildflowers, cascading rock pools—you get the picture. It was so nice we almost felt guilty. Set-up was easy, with no leveling required, and electrical, water, and sewer hook-ups were easily accessible. The satellite dish had a wide open view of the southern and southwestern sky, and found the satellites quickly.

After a quick lunch, we drove to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Visitor Center, talked to a seasonal ranger, and picked up maps, etc.  he 7.5 mile Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive was our first foray into this National Lakeshore. The drive was mostly through thick forests and was up, down, and around steep hills. We couldn’t believe the large number of people visiting the area—almost bumper to bumper—and predominantly from Michigan. A wide-open view of Lake Michigan appeared at the first major overlook. The next couple of overlooks provided views of vegetated sand dunes as far as the eye could see. And the last stop on the drive proved the most awesome of the trip, with dunes extending from the shore of Lake Michigan upwards to a height of 500 feet at about a 60° angle. Many folks were slipping and sliding their way down the steep sand slope while many others were trudging back up after making the quick descent. It was a pretty awesome sight, and photos cannot do it justice. I walked down a short distance and ascending the slope really stressed my hip joints.

From the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, we made our way a short distance north to the Dune Climb, where many kids were enjoying the biggest sandpile they had ever seen!

We wrapped up the afternoon by driving along several natural lakes and through many small villages along the National Lakeshore area. The countryside contained many orchards, vineyards, and corn fields, and reminded us of Door County, Wisconsin. Of course, Door County is only about 50 miles to the west, across Lake Michigan! We were amazed by the clarity and turquoise color of Lake Michigan, and of the natural lakes in the area.

Indigo Bluffs RV Resort hosted a “meet and greet” in the evening, meant to provide a very low key sales pitch; and it was so low key that we were never approached, nor heard anyone push sales of the luxury RV sites. We met most of the couples occupying sites in the park (some owners, others renting either seasonally or by the night). We really took a liking to our next door neighbors, from Magnolia, Texas. He’s a beginning fly fisher, and they are quite active in their large Methodist church in The Woodlands in Magnolia. I volunteered to provide fly casting instruction to him when schedules permitted. Two other couples with whom we became acquainted were from Quincy, Illinois, and Conroe, Texas, respectively. By the way, heavy hors d’oeuvres were served and included dips, chips, cheeses, pastry, and pork barbecue sliders with wine, beer, and/or soft drinks—dinner!

With one more day in Mackinaw City, we both stated our desire to pack up and depart for new horizons. Regretfully, we have reservations and a schedule (a lesson to be learned). Digressing a bit and waxing philosophically, we’ve done most of the RV-related items on the bucket list, except for Washington and Oregon. I’m at a point in our travels, and life, where it’s great just to take the RV somewhere for several weeks, establish semi-residence, and really experience the area; I think Kay feels the same way. And we like spending time at home and with family, particularly in the spring, early summer, and early fall. This might account somewhat for our “hitch itch.” Having said that, Door County, Wisconsin, really struck an accord with us, and it’s a place to which we definitely want to return, perhaps for 6 weeks or so.

Last evening, wind from the northwest began after the partly rainy day, and continued through the night.  It was in the low 50s this morning, and winds were gusting at 15 to 20 miles per hour, making it seem even colder.  Isn’t there a happy medium somewhere?  We drove south again today—our third time—for Kay to further explore Petoskey and Charlevoix, and for me to ride Michigan’s Little Traverse Wheelway. The Little Traverse Wheelway is a paved bike path extending from north of Petoskey south some 23 miles to Charlevoix. Locals reserved much of the waterfront in the 1880s and 1890s for a walking and bicycling path before the railroad claimed it for a railway after the turn of the century. Then when the railroad abandoned it, locals reclaimed it and converted it into a great bike trail. The Little Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan (shown above) shoreline is visible from much of the trail. Just before Petoskey, we pulled onto a side street, unloaded the bicycle, donned helmet and day pack, and bid each other farewell. The trail through Petoskey was awesome, with the high seas crashing against the shore. Winds on the order of 20 miles per hour were forcing the 4 to 5 foot waves directly onto the rocks, and made for spectacular views, but made for very difficult riding when the bicycle trail changed directions and the wind blew directly towards me.  Bicycle traffic was heaviest near Petoskey and Charlevoix, but sparse in between. There was little foot traffic. Though only 16+ miles, this was an incredible ride, taking about and hour and a half. It’s definitely worth doing. Kay had just pulled into a parking space at trail’s end as I arrived—great timing.

Kay’s exploration and the bicycle ride ended our activities in the Mackinaw City area. Back at the RV, the tanks were emptied,  the RV interior cleaned, and most items stowed for the short trip to Empire, Michigan, tomorrow. That leg of the trip will end our Wisconsin and Michigan tour.

P.S. Michigan has some 1200 miles of bicycle trails, and those we’ve ridden have provided an enjoyable riding experience. They also have a large number of campgrounds, and their residents take advantage of the camping opportunities. We saw lots of young families camping here, in Munising, and in Copper Harbor, and the family units are large by our standards, with each young couple having 4 or 5 children. The Little Traverse Bay area of Petoskey, Charlevoix, and Bay Harbor exude wealth and affluence, and one can only guess that the large houses are mostly summer places for Michiganders (almost all license plates in these places were from the state of Michigan) since there are lots of exclusive golf courses, the summer weather is coo, there doesn’t appear to be any significant business enterprises except for tourism, and the weather here is very cold and snowy from October thru mid-May!

The owners of the RV park, Mill Creek Camping, also own significant stock in one of the companies that ferry people between Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island. Consequently, they sell tickets, and have shuttle stops for transporting people and bicycles from the campground to the ferry landing. We were the only riders for the 8:40 AM pickup, and arrived just before the big jet-powered boat departed for the island. The first couple of trips of the day usually follow a route that includes passing under the Mackinaw Bridge, and it is an awesome structure, with the main span larger than the main span of the Golden Gate Bridge by 2,000+ feet.

Upon arriving at Mackinac Island, disembarking, and picking up our bicycles, we loaded up and began an 8-mile ride circling the island with bright sunny skies.  The number of people and horses made for a too crowded condition in the pier area, and the stench of horse urine and manure was overwhelming. This changed as we left the shopping and residential area, but the number of bicyclists was significant. And, many of the riders, and particularly the children, had no idea of cycling etiquette, with many near crashes almost happening—enough said as I shall not dwell upon it! Since no automobiles are allowed on the island, the highway is actually a pedestrian and bicycle path. Most of the island is a national park, the nation’s second in fact, operated by the state of Michigan as a state park.

As we neared the end of the circle ride, it began sprinkling; we stopped at the library, parked and locked the bicycles, and dug out raincoats. As we began perusing the various shops, a full-blown rain began, making the covered sidewalks and shops even more crowded. Kay walked through several shops, and we both sampled fudge at a few of the many candy stores. As the rain intensified, the pungent aroma of fudge, horse urine, and liquefied horse manure was unforgettable! We both had to take showers to get the odor out of our noses.

Fort Mackinac was one of our favorite destinations on the island. Established by the British in 1780, the United States took control in 1796. It was the scene of the first land engagement of the War of 1812, and the British recaptured the fort. Despite attempts by the United States to retake the fort, the British maintained possession until returning it after the war. It was used as a prison camp by the Union during the Civil War when then President Andrew Johnson had 3 prominent Tennesseans held captive there. The fort was deactivated in 1895. Some of the fort is original, other parts date back to the late 1700s, and the remaining parts date to the late 1800s. While we were there, re-enactors demonstrated period music, held a court martial, and performed a marching and shooting drill.

From Fort Mackinac, we walked the manure-littered roadway to the Grand Hotel, famous for the longest porch in the world, and site of much of the 1979 filming of Somewhere In Time starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. For a small fee of $10 each, they allowed us riffraff to have run of the place, consisting mainly of shops and cafes, and of course the famous porch and chairs—pretty expensive sitting!

We walked back to the library, unlocked the bicycles, and caught the next ferry to Mackinaw City. We’re sure glad we visited Mackinac Island, but we don’t understand all the fuss. Our favorite part of the experience was the 8-mile bicycle ride.

After horse urine and liquefied horse manure odor cleansing, i.e. showers, we drove to Cross Village for dinner at the historic Legs Inn, so named for the inverted wooden look alike stove legs forming a border above the first floor roof.  The Polish food was as good as advertised, and we were delighted to have made a second attempt to eat there.  After dinner, we walked the beautiful gardens overlooking Lake Michigan.  Kay will give them an outstanding review on Trip Advisor. We highly recommend it, and would eat there again.

After a long, leisurely morning followed by a late hearty breakfast, I succeeded in getting a partial satellite signal so we can at least record some of our favorite summer television shows.

We drove across the Mackinaw Bridge to St. Ignace, Michigan—except for ferry transportation to Mackinac Island, there’s not much to do in St. Ignace. The state park offered a nice vista of the Mackinaw Bridge, and there were hotels, shops, and restaurants on the waterfront, but not too many people. It appears that the primary appeal of this area (St. Ignace and Mackinaw City) is for access to Mackinac Island. Of course, there are attendant facilities such as hotels, shops, and restaurants, but…

Driving back across the bridge—$4 toll each way—we stopped briefly at the RV park, loaded the car with laundry, soap, and quarters, and Kay took off for Cheboygan to do laundry and buy Sudafed at the nearest Walmart. (Different states, and even different counties within states, treat the sale of Sudafed differently.) In Cheboygan, it can be bought over the counter, but through the pharmacist. Kay’s doctor recommended that she take the Z-pacs, Sudafed, and Tylenol to fight this CRUD thing. Meanwhile, I donned a daypack and began what was to be a 16+ mile bicycle ride from the RV park to Cheboygan. One thing great about most of the places we’ve visited this trip is the availability of hiking and biking trails, and this area has the Northern Michigan Rail Trail which runs along the upper shoreline of Lake Huron. The trail was mostly level, with a smooth small crushed limestone surface. At Cheboygan, I exited the trail and called Kay to get directions, twice, before finally hooking up with her at the laundry near Walmart. The average speed of just over 10 mph was slow, but sure beats walking.

Afterwards, we drove the short distance to Mackinaw City, and walked around the various shops which hawked T-shirts, fudge, caramel corn, and Mackinac Island souvenirs.

Tomorrow, we go to Mackinac Island; consequently, we spent the rest of the evening packing lunch and riding gear for the all day trip.

It’s moving day again as we leave the south shore of Lake Superior to the north shore of Lake Michigan.

Kay woke up sick this morning, as she still has not recovered from the crud that’s been plaguing her since before we left. She began another round of antibiotics and Sudafed as the doctor ordered. Hopefully, this will pass quickly.

Without hook-ups, there’s not too much to do to get ready to move: retract the slides, lift the jacks, stow the jack pads, connect the car, and check the lights.

We were off at 8:30 for the 140-mile trip south and east to Mackinaw City, Michigan, on the shores of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Kay routed us south and the roads were very good. At Manistique, Michigan, a left turn took us to US Highway 2, one of American’s most scenic highways, crossing the US and passing on the southern border of Glacier National Park in Montana. Weekend traffic increased along the way, but abated near St. Ignace where we paid the $14 toll to cross the Mackinac (also pronounced “mackinaw”) Bridge. Tall enough to allow ocean-going ships to transit, but narrow enough to be scary, it was a stress inducer because of the expected high winds blowing across Lake Michigan. Fortunately, this proved to be unfounded, but one could imagine the possibilities.

We were quickly at our RV park, Mackinaw Mill Creek Camping, and Kay registered at one of many “windows” (it’s that big of a campground) while I unhooked the Honda. Making the way through the campground, an idiot driving from the opposite direction glared at me for not giving him the right of way and yelled “back up” as if moving the 35-foot motorhome was that simple. The dusty gravel roads were narrow, and the directions were unclear. After much consternation, we found our site, and set-up. Despite trying a myriad of locations, we could not find a satellite signal; no television for 4 days!

Lunch was leftovers from Thursday’s Walmart deli, and Kay followed with a brief nap.

We opted to spend the late afternoon driving south to Cheboygan, a quaint little city on Lake Huron, then south to Indian River, west to Petoskey and Charlevoix, and returning north along the shore back through Petoskey, to Harbor Springs, Good Hart, and Cross Village where we planned to eat German food at the famous Legs Inn; regrettably, the wait was an hour and a half, too long for too late in the day. Along the way, the signs of extreme wealth and affluence were obvious at the small lakeside cities and villages. Even the RV parks were expensive at $70+ per night—too much for an Arkansas redneck—and they probably wouldn’t have let us enter anyway! A paved bicycle trail follows the lakeshore the entire way from near Petoskey to Charlevoix. The large, old, historic, and well-maintained houses overlooking Lake Michigan reminded me of St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans, complete with well-manicured grounds. Lots of folks were scurrying around at the open-air markets and galleries—Kay’s kind of place, but definitely not mine. From Harbor Springs north, we drove a lakeside road that is called a tunnel road because of the trees overhanging from both sides. It’s unique, but of course we have River Ridge Road in Norfork. Much of the property and many of the houses were for sale—perhaps a victim of the economy. In Mackinaw City, we found the center of action with lots of hotels, shops, and restaurants, but that was all. Maybe we’ll go there tomorrow.

Up early, we had coffee in bed and read the news of the day on smartphones; what would we do without them! When quite hours lifted, we ran the generator to recharge the batteries from yesterday afternoon and last night’s use—our first night of dry camping in this motorhome.

At about 9:00 AM, we drove to Munising, purchased tickets for the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Cruise, and waited in line. The excursion provided a good overview of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, but except for the multi-colored sandstone bluffs and a few unique formations and caves, the shoreline was overshadowed by the clarity and turquoise color of Lake Superior, the world’s largest body of fresh water. And, of course, it is the lake itself which create these formations with it’s constant battering with swells and waves which can reach 30+ feet.  And there were dunes, over 100 feet high.  

Subsequent to the 2+ hour cruise, we ate lunch at the recommended Muldoon’s, which specialized in homemade pasties. Kay had beef, I had chicken, we both had slaw, split a side of gravy, and added a cherry pastie to go. They are a very hard dish, and as the Cornishman from Eagle Harbor said, best served when the weather is lousy.

After the filling—and heavy—lunch, we drove to Grand Marais, the eastern terminus of Pictured Rocks National Lake Shore, turned around, and drove back west, stopping at the various viewing areas along the way, including those we saw on the cruise. Also, there were many waterfalls in the lush forest with heights up to 70+ feet along the lakeshore making their way to Lake Superior.

Back at camp, we ran the generator another hour, and I hiked the 3-mile Songbird Trail. Though there were not many birds along the way, it was a good hiking trail through the Hiawatha National Forest, and the last mile or so was adjacent to the Au Train River.

With no television, Kay read while I wrote new entries for the blog to end the evening.

P.S. Lake Superior was indeed awesome as we had been told:

• Able to see clearly to depths of 40+ feet
• Cold, with surface temperatures ranging from 43° to near 60° 
• Docile at times, then quickly raging with 30+ foot waves

The Uppers (pronounced “you pers”, people from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan) were friendly, with few signs of wealth and affluence; just good, hard-working folks dispersed with a few rednecks, just like home. We found them to be very likable. On the other hand, this is another case where we’re glad we came to this area, but in all likelihood won’t return; just not enough to do. And while the views of the lakeshore were good, they did not compare to those in Lake Powell, in our opinion. Would we have come had we known what to expect? Probably not. But, we can now check it off the bucket list!

Today was travel day, and involved driving from Copper Harbor to Munising, Michigan. We reversed our route, driving south to Houghton, and then turned east, somewhat following the south shore of Lake Superior. We stopped at a great Walmart in Marquette, Michigan, for groceries and supplies, and met and talked with a nice couple from Kerrville, Texas, who were originally from Michigan. After shopping we returned to the motorhome only to discover a 2008 Jayco Melbourne 29D with South Dakota license parked next to us. In our wildest imagination, we wondered if it might be our “old” motorhome. Upon closer inspection, it had the GPS mountain disc on the dash where we left it, and it had a Lichtsinn Motors sticker on it. We concluded that it WAS indeed our old motorhome, and waited for the new owners to return. We had lunch from the Walmart Deli, but the Jayco owners still had not returned, so we departed for Munising. What a small world!
As an aside, the roads and streets in Marquette are terrible, and road repair work has resulted in huge sections of pavement being removed, and lanes narrowed to the point of our barely being able to negotiate through the town. I wanted to fill up with gasoline before dry camping in Munising, and began pulling into a station before realizing that the short turn was 90° and the exit turn was even shorter and 90°. I had already committed, and entered the station without any problems, but at a 45° angle from the pump. We filled up and I realized that we could not make the turn to get back on the highway. As an alternative, we pulled across traffic, drove in the opposite lane (going back east), making a quick turn through a restaurant parking lot, back across traffic, making another short turn, and finally headed in the right direction (east)—unbelievable for a resort town to be so short-sighted.

The roads improved after leaving Marquette, and we made the short drive to Au Train Campground in Hiawatha National Forest. We had paved roads the entire way into and through the campground. Our site was not level, but the jacks took care of that. With no electricity, water, or sewer hookups, set-up did not take very long. We met the campground host, and his accent had a familiar twang. He was from Morristown, Tennessee, and his wife was from western Oklahoma; they talked like us, with a slow Southern drawl! We visited with him, and then her, for some time, and got the low down on places to see, things to do, and best places to eat.
Afterward, we walked and biked around the campground and attendant US Forest Service recreation facilities. Taking a recommendation from the campground host, we drove to an adjacent village and a great dinner—whitefish almandine for Kay and a whitefish sandwich for me. With no television—we are in the woods—but cell service, we caught up on email and social media, and then read until early bedtime. By the way, we’re on Eastern Daylight Savings Time, so it wasn’t quite dark when we went to bed!

Fog shrouded everything, though today was supposed to be clear and sunny. It formed a ceiling a couple of hundred feet above the ground. Nevertheless, we wanted to experience the Brockway Mountain Drive, and found the first viewing area to be under the ceiling, allowing great views of Copper Harbor. Further up, the fog provided a giant curtain for views in all directions. Consequently, our drive atop the mountain was almost all for nought. After descending the mountain at Eagle Harbor, we drove back up the coast to Copper Harbor, and then on one of the few city streets to a nice waterfall, the highlight of the morning’s road trip.

Back at the motorhome, a couple of retired Industrial Arts educators looked at the auxiliary brake and Honda CR-V setup and gave some suggestions for a possible fix. Both had similar set-ups. While talking with them, I noticed the hood hinge had popped loose from the body of the motorhome, likely from the very rough roads in Missouri and Wisconsin—another project for when we get home.

We ate a quick lunch, donned bicycle helmets, and road a 4-mile circuit that took us to the very end (or beginning) of US Highway 41, and along the coast for yet another waterfall.

Having discovered Wi-fi at the shower house, I uploaded a couple of app updates on the iPad, sent a few email messages, including one to Lichtsinn Motors about a fix for the motorhome hinge, and uploaded several blog entries. It was very slow, taking almost an hour, but it worked!

This evening’s interpretive program was on Hunter’s Point (see Tuesday’s blog entry), given by a representative of the Copper Harbor Historical Society. He explained the purpose and scope of the protected area, and presented several “gee-whiz” facts. He mentioned a couple of locations for watching sunsets, and that caught our attention. Also, he used an iPad remotely attached to a projector via Apple TV and a wireless network to give a real jazzy talk; I asked him about the hook-up procedure, and this is something we’ll try at home!

After the interpretive program, we walked back to the motorhome, got in the car and drove to Hunter’s Point for the first sunset of the evening. It was awesome, but not quite in the same league as Egg Harbor in Door County, Wisconsin. We then drove back towards the campground, parked at the dump station, and walked/ran to through the woods to the lakeshore for another awesome sunset. 

These two sunsets proved a fitting end to our stay in Copper Harbor, Michigan. P.S. We had heard much about Copper Harbor and the Keweenaw Peninsula, and it became a “bucket list” item. It was quaint, but lacked the sophistication of Door County, Wisconsin. We liked Fort Wilkins Historic State Park, and the restoration and re-creation of the fort was great, but we erroneously expected a living history type of experience. We were a bit disappointed in this part of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; unless one used it as the drop-off for a ferry to Isle Royale, there was not much to do, though many people come back year after year to just hangout. We’re glad we came, but probably won’t come back, and would not have come had we known what to expect.

Known as the Lake Superior Copper District, the Keweenaw Peninsula was a significant copper mining area, with a population of close to 100,000 people. Remnants of several old mines, many which operated for more than 100 years, can be seen from the highway. Most of the communities supporting the mines are now ghost towns. The miners were largely immigrants from Cornwall and Finland, and many of the current residents are of Cornish and Finnish decent.

While Copper Harbor is a unique little village, there is not a lot to do. It appears that most visitors come to Copper Harbor to be transported to Isle Royale National Park as it is the closest harbor from which ferries depart. Otherwise, the only other notable attraction is Fort Wilkin’s State Historic Park.

Today, we drove and biked around the Copper Harbor area. Our first stop was to view the lighthouse from the highway as it is accessible only by boat. We then drove through Copper Harbor to see the Lake Superior shoreline from Hunter’s Point Park. Hunter’s Point Park is a protected natural resources area comprising some 100+ acres jutting out on a narrow peninsula point at Copper Harbor. Hunter’s Point, a part of Hunter’s Point Park, is 9.4 acres with almost a mile of shoreline and a mile of varied trails. Hunter’s Point connects to Copper Harbor via hiking and biking trail, and also via road. The shoreline contained many colorful and unique rock formations in the otherwise rounded, reddish brown sand and gravel. Lake Superior is incredibly clear, and one can see down to depths of 50± feet; surface water temperature of Lake Superior is currently 43°! As we hiked one of the short trails, we noted still ripening blueberries and picked a few of the tasty morsels.

Our drive then took us along the north coast in a westerly direction. A light fog and mist began as we departed Hunter’s Point Park, significantly impacting visibility. Consequently, we bypassed Brockway Mountain Drive and the panoramic views it offered. Along Lakeshore Drive, we saw the often rugged shoreline interspersed with sand and gravel beaches on the Lake Superior side and lush boreal forests with lakes and waterfalls on the east side. Near Jacob’s Falls, a small bakery and confections shop lay among the woods.  he Jampot, operated by the monks of Holy Transfiguration Skete, exuded the cacophony of aromas from the many preserves, fruitcakes, breads, and confections prepared on the premises. Kay bought fresh made caramels, jalapeño caramels, and “monk bread”, the latter which must have been soaked in alcohol. Eagle Harbor had a number of notable historic sites including the Eagle Harbor Lighthouse built in 1871 and Eagle Harbor Life-Saving Station Museum (Life-Saving Service was a forerunner to the US Coastguard). Further down the road, Eagle River Falls contained remnants of an old dam and sluice constructed to power a factory which made fuses for the mines. Just downstream from the Eagle River Falls was an old wooden-arched bridge, still in use. We stopped at a small store for lunch, and ordered a pastie—a meat, potato, and rutabaga pie. This delicacy was brought to the area by the wives of the Cornish miners so that the miners would have a hot meal at noontime. We mispronounced it when ordering, and the proprietor said we would have to go to New Orleans or Las Vegas for a “pasty”; however, he had pasties (pass tees). The store’s owner was a 4th generation Cornishman, and the store was built before Abraham Lincoln’s presidency. The Cornish gentleman gave us a great oral history of the area and showed us photographs of Eagle River during its heyday as a major international port on Lake Superior. I asked him about snowfall in the area, and he said they received 390 inches last year—that’s over 22 feet! Turning around, we drove back the way we came, stopping at Silver River Falls for a photo.

Back at the motorhome, I donned a daypack, uncovered the bicycle, and rode into town and then to Hunter’s Point Park, stopping there to hike a short 1-mile trail along the coast. Returning to the RV, I was drenched despite the mild temperatures after the 8+ mile ride on mostly off-road, and seemingly uphill, trails.Upon our return to Fort Wilkins State Park, we walked the short distance to the historic Fort Wilkins for a more thorough tour. We expected a living history type of experience, but there were only two young “role players”, and they were more interested in socializing than in providing history. The fort is definitely worth seeing, if one makes a trip to Copper Harbor.

The evening interpretive program was about an historic ship wreck in the early 1900‘s off the northeast coast of Copper Harbor—good but brief.

After a quick light breakfast, we pulled in the slides, lifted the stabilizer jacks, unhooked the satellite cable, and unplugged the 50 amp electricity—we were ready to depart. Up the street at a wide place in the road, we hooked up the Honda, and the Brake Buddy, and were off, driving west on Wisconsin Highway 22. Just a short distance up the road the Brake Buddy failed again; that’s it for this trip! A quick stop along side the road allowed unhooking it, and we continued the short westwardly drive to US Highway 141 north. A steady rain began, and after not many miles, the terrain began to change to a more wooded one, and there was practically no traffic. The roads were rough until we crossed into Michigan, where the best roads of the trip welcomed us and we shifted to Eastern Daylight Savings Time. The short 238 mile drive was uninterrupted only by a stop for gasoline and groceries a couple of hours south of the day’s destination of Coppery Harbor, Michigan. We drove through Houghton, Michigan, and found it to be an interesting small city, with lots of old buildings, narrow streets and various changes in elevation. It is home to two colleges—Michigan Technological University and Finlandia University (since 1890). We expected a small town on a flat expanse of ground. At Houghton, the rain abated. From there north, the narrow peninsula of Upper Peninsula of Michigan was sparsely populated and the roads were narrow with a canopy of trees in the boreal forest. I din’t know what to expect but this wasn’t it. We finally pulled into Copper Harbor about 1:30 PM, and it is a very small village on the point of the peninsula. There were lots of bicycles, and we later found out that the Tour da UP, a charity ride of about 200 miles, was ongoing.

Kay checked us into the west campground (50 amp electricity, no water, no sewer) at Fort Wilkins Historic State Park, we found our site (150), and set up, including satellite TV. We were pleasantly surprised by the view out our front window, Lake Fanny Hooe. After a Healthy Choice lunch, the bicycles came off the car, the chains were oiled, and we headed into town. Again, there is not much there, including no cell service and no internet.

We rode back through the campgrounds, and to Fort Wilkins. Fort Wilkins is well-preserved, partially reconstructed US Army post. It was built in 1844 to keep peace in Michigan’s copper country, and abandoned two years later, only to be regarrisoned in the late 1860s for a short time. One can only imagine the long, hard winters! The re-enactors had left for the day, but we walked around the grounds and peered into some of the buildings. Our bicycles took us back to the campground where Kay prepared “poor man’s jambalaya”, a combination of rice, onion, Rotel tomatoes, cabbage, hamburger, and smoked sausage.  fter dinner, we walked back to Fort Wilkins for the evening’s interpretive program presented by the captain of the Isle Royale Queen IV, one of several ferries to Isle Royale National Park. He talked about things to do on Isle Royale, the wolf-moose relationship, and had lots of pretty photos. The route from Copper Harbor to Isle Royale is the quickest available, but takes 3 hours each way and costs $110 roundtrip per person, plus $60 for kayak or canoe—no wheeled vehicles are allowed on Isle Royale. Consequently, unless a person plans on spending a night or two at a rate of $250 night, the 3-hour passage to Isle Royale, 3 hours on the island, and the 3-hour passage back is not worth either the time nor money to us.

A recorded TV program finished our long day. Tomorrow, we will drive to Eagle River and Eagle Harbor, and perhaps do some more cycling.