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| Jim with our Camp Hosts, Pat and Doug |
September 4, 2012
Tuesday after a Monday holiday is usually a busy day most places. For Jim and I, it is just another day, strange as that feels. We have been in the Upper Peninsula or U.P. for the past two weeks. We feel like we are on the way to becoming "Yoopers" (U.P.'ers) as they are known. We even tried the regional food, a "pasty" the other day. (More on that later!)
We've done a few things since we've been here, attending the Florence County Fair in Florence, Wisconsin, being one.
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| Take home a Goldfish |
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We went on Saturday, expecting some crowds and excitement. What we saw was a very small fairgrounds, a pony ride, 3 midway games and a metal building filled with the traditional county fair fare that had been judged by the Fair Committee: vegetables, sewing projects, photographs, and art projects.
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| Prizewinning Rooster! |
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| First Prize! |
There was also another barn filled with 4-H farm animals: lambs, chickens, bunnies. Very quaint and sweet. Took us all of an hour to wander around and see the sights.
One of our favorite pastimes is taking car trips. Around here, there is a lot to see. There are so many lakes and rivers, many more than I would have ever thought. Coming from southern California and living in New Mexico for the past 20 years, this girl is not used to so much water.
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| Chipmunk Rapids - we never found the rapids |
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| Artesian Well at Chipmunk Rapids |
Sure, I had the ocean not far from my house when we lived in California, and in New Mexico, we lived really close to the Rio Grande River, but those experiences are nothing compared with these states we have been visiting lately. Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan are all full of water. Every car or truck we pass (seemingly) has a canoe or kayak attached to the roof. We are talking about renting some kayaks ourselves and taking advantage of our surroundings.
Last Friday, we took a trip to the "coast" - the shores of Lake Superior. Our ultimate destination was Copper Harbor but there are many great towns along the way. We traveled about 130 miles one way and had a glorious day filled with interesting and beautiful landscapes. Driving through Houghton, Michigan, we crossed over the bridge spanning Portage Lake. Houghton is a college town, Michigan Tech is located there. The main highway goes right through the campus and along Fraternity and Sorority Row. The frat houses were jumping with partygoers on this Friay night of the new semester. Fun to watch.
We drove through Hancock, Calumet, Eagle Harbor....all picturesque towns with tons of historic footprints. This area had a huge mining industry at the turn of the 20th century. Everywhere you look there are old mine shafts and tailings. Most were copper mines, with other minerals mined as well.
The ride up Highway 26 into Copper Harbor was so reminiscent of driving up Pacific Coast Highway in Newport Beach. I knew we were in a "seaside" community, down to the types of architecture of the cottages and bungalows on the shore. We stopped many times to take photos and check out the rocks in the surf....yes, there are actually waves on Lake Superior. Probably not surf-able, but waves nonetheless.
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| The "Coast" |
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| Great background! |
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| Steps to the beach |
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| Restored Sutler's Store at the Fort |
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Near Copper Harbor there is a Michigan state park, Fort Wilkins Historic State Park, which we decided to visit while we were there. The fort was originally built in 1844 and went through many incarnations before it was abandoned and then bought by the state and restored.
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| Parade Ground on the Lake Fannie Hooe |
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| Enlisted men's quarters |
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Jim and I wandered around in the fort for several hours, and I was very impressed with the restoration efforts. Many of the items we saw displayed were unearthed on the fort site. Some of the buildings were totally recreated, but the builders tried to maintain the integrity of the originals. Enjoyable day all around. Got back to the trailer very late.
This past weekend we were going to go searching for waterfalls in our vicinity. According to the internet, there are many close by. We took Highway 2 toward Iron River in search of a waterfall by Long Lake. As soon as we got in the truck, it started to rain. By the time we got to Long Lake, it was pouring so we aborted that plan and decided to go do our grocery shopping at the Walmart in Iron Mountain, 20 miles away.
When we got to Iron Mountain, both of us were ready for lunch. Jim had been wanting to try the local food specialty, the Pasty (pronounced "pass-tee"). We had seen them advertised everywhere, in restaurants and grocery stores. We had asked our server in a restaurant one time where the best ones were served and he told us to go to Dobber's in Iron Mountain. So, we did. Jim ordered the beef pasty and I ordered chicken, thinking they were going to be like pot pies. Well, they're not. They have the basic same ingredients: crust, meat, potatoes, veggies, but NO moisture whatsoever!! These pasties were the driest, blandest foodstuffs we've ever eaten. Jim doused his with pepper sauce and I tried mustard.....no help. Never again. Ugh. These people have never eaten tasty food and don't know what spices are.
The leaves are starting to turn. We see a little more color every day. We're told the prime color will happen around the end of September, beginning of October. We are patiently waiting.
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| Color is coming! |
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