Colorado Lifestyle: Upper Pennisula

Showing posts with label Upper Pennisula. Show all posts

Friday, October 17, 2008

Day 3: Munising Falls

Munising Falls from the right lookout
On Day 3 of our trip, it was raining rather steadily, so rather than head out for a long hike we decided to hit a few car friendly sights. The first of these was Munising Falls.

The beginning of the trail
Nestled in a damp canyon infested with ferns and other water loving plants, Munising Falls is a pleasant destination in its own right. Around 50 feet in height, it dribbles water over a large sandy precipice. At one point, you were allowed to walk behind the falls, which would have been pleasant indeed. Now, the National Park Service limits the views to boardwalks on either side.

The boardwalk on the right hand side of the trail

Coming from Colorado, the dangers associated with walking behind these falls would have been minuscule compared to the western approach to Mt. Quandary;. The insurance weenies, who have probably never left their well padded offices, must have had something to do with this. Given that no one was around, I was sorely tempted to BREAK THE LAW and do it anyway. Dang it, but I am too good of a Soldier to, some might say too brainwashed, to be so brazen.

Munising Falls from the right

So, if you are near Munising or are planning a Marathon hike through Pictured Rocks, take an extra half hour and visit Munising Falls. Its idyllic setting won't disappoint.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Day 1: Summit Peak Trail Porcupine Wilderness State Park

Distance: 0.5 miles
Elevation: 1,678 - 1,978 ft
Elevation Gain: 300 ft.

View from the upper viewing platform
Summit Peak is 20 miles in from Silver City. It is a short hike of only 0.5 miles. Don’t bypass this trail for that reason oh seasoned hikers. The view is well worth swallowing your pride and strolling with the tourists.

Color at the trailhead

It starts out in the trees and ascends quickly uphill before transitioning to a series of boardwalks and stairs. There is an intermediate viewing platform, which is very nice, but the view from the final wooden tower will knock your socks off.

Maple leaves on the trail

I was schizophrenically alternating between jumping up and down like a child on Christmas day and pausing reverently to gaze if not drool over Mother Nature’s bounty. In the distance you could see the deep blue of Lake Superior. Out on the horizon was an ore carrier. We were able to see several of those up close on our trip later in the week to Sault St. Marie.

View from the lower viewing platform
The first hike we went on in the Porkies was near the Lake and so the colors there had yet to appear. We learned later that the areas near the lake turn last because it is warmer. Warmer?!! I beg to differ. A tree might have found the shore warmer, but we certainly didn’t.

Day 1: Visions of Lake Superior

Sunrise on the first day. Lovely but cold
Who ever called Lake Superior a lake was smoking crack! That body of water is an inland sea and cranky one at that. On this first day, the waves were steady and calm but within three days they would be tumultuous and downright dangerous.

Afternoon near the cabin we rented

White Tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). One of the few animals we saw. Considering that it was hunting season I was lucky to chase these two down.
If you had plopped me down on this western shore of the lake without my knowing it, I would declare I was in the Pacific Northwest somewhere. The water is dang cold, the shoreline is rugged, and driftwood decorates the beaches.

Canadian Geese along the shore

Geese take flight
There is something soothing about being on or near the water. I don’t know if all those water molecules are resonating with my water-balloon like (ok, say it water retaining…) cells or if all that coolness calms my hot-blooded Leo personality. Since water is almost always in motion, perhaps I am simply living vicariously through it and allowing my perpetual-motion-machine of a body to stop for a change. Either way, it was hard not to just linger near the shore and watch the endless waves grapple with eternity on the slopping sands.

Waves lap the shore

Vacation in the Upper Penisula of Michigan

Click on the image if you want to see the major locations from the trip.
I, and two friends, just returned from a week long trip to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We started in the far western side near Silver City, migrated to Shelter Bay near Munising, stayed on Mackinac Island, and cruised up to Sault (pronounced “soo”) St. Marie.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a rarely visited track of hard wood forest that is bordered on the north by Lake Superior and the south by Wisconsin and Lake Michigan. It is sparsely populated, contains only a couple larger urban centers, but contained some of the best kept roads I have seen anywhere. This is amazing considering their seriously harsh winters. The people were amazingly friendly and went out of their way to assist us in our travels. One of my friends grew up in the Midwest and indicated this was the norm. I have a new respect for Midwest values!

We chose the UP for the fall color. I have never been to an area of the country with hard woods and the UP’s color display did not disappoint. More than one scream was elicited by the vibrant red maples, which were just hitting their peak.

The primary airport in the UP is south of Marquette. The flight arrived at 6:00 pm and it was a two-hour drive to Silver City. We were advised to pick up our groceries near Marquette because the infrastructure was limited in Silver City. This was good advice and I wish we had also picked up supplies to cook dinner because there was only one restaurant in Silver City and its food less than pleasant. It was not until our last night in Marquette that we found a wine bar (Latitudes) that not only had a marvelous wine selection but also great food and service that exceeded even Midwest standards. After a week of unremarkable repasts, Latitudes was like stumbling onto Shangri-La, wholly unexpected, and an oasis in the wilderness.

Bordering Lake Superior, the air in the UP is damp and windy. Even though we had brought lots of winter-level layers, there were several days where we were butt-numbing cold. I can’t imagine what it would feel like in February. There was a 3-day gale while we were there, which made Lake Superior rage. Tell me this is not an ocean? I kept calling it that. It did rain during this period but not enough to prevent us from getting out and hiking. It did prevent long sojourns on the beach or on the decks of our cute Michigan cabins.

It was hunting season while we were there and every creature from the lowest newt to the mighty black bear was in hiding. We saw a few birds, a bunch of bald eagles, and a couple of deer and that was it. There are statues of Moose everywhere but very few real ones. I think their existence is anecdotal.

The natives of the UP call themselves Yoopers. There are independent, proud Americans and they should be. It takes a hearty soul to live there. We ran into one gal who said she moved to Marquette because there was not enough snow in Wisconsin!