Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
We weren't too far from Sault Ste. Marie, so it was a relatively easy drive to our next campsite - Aune Osborn Campground, which amounted to a large, grassy field right next to St. Mary's River. This spot is well-known for the famous Soo Locks, where thousands of Great Lakes freighters pass through the locks each year. Our goal in choosing this spot was to witness some of this traffic and learn more about the area in general. The St. Marys River is the only water connection between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes. There is a section of the river known as the St. Marys Rapids where the water falls about 21 feet from the level of Lake Superior to the level of the lower lakes - thus the need for the Soo Locks.
After squeezing into our campsite spot (the sites are pretty stacked together here), we decided to take a drive into town to actually see the locks, as the Soo Locks Park provides some of the best viewing (short of being on the river itself). At the time we were there, we saw one of the Soo Locks tourist boats going through the locks, and watched that transaction take place. There is also a really great museum in the park, that has all the historical information on the locks being built, the damage and destruction because of natural disasters and wars, and lots of maritime facts and figures to absorb. Owen’s favorite display included a simulation that allowed him to open and close the locks to allow the boats through. I still marvel at the facts about Lake Superior - it’s size, depth and power.
Soo Locks in Sault Ste. Marie, MI
A typical “footer” freighter heading toward Lake Superior through the locks
Due to COVID, we still can’t enter Canada, which we had hoped to do by now. Maybe by the time we get to Niagara Falls we can (estimated date is August 9 at this point). There’s a really great museum that we can see from the US side, all about the bushplanes but unfortunately, we won’t get to it. However, we did visit two historical sites - the sadly named “Tower of History” and the Valley Camp ship museum (the latter of which was really amazing).
As we were walking up to the Tower of History, it actually looked vaguely familiar and reminded me of the St. John’s church on the campus of St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN. Sure enough - the same architect had been hired to design this structure, which was originally going to be a shrine for missionaries, but it never came through to completion. But you can now walk up 292 stairs to the top, which Tom and I did (because, bragging rights) while Owen took the elevator up the 25 flights. Maybe he’s the smarter one in our bunch. Of course, we were treated to some spectacular views.
After that, we headed over to the Museum Ship Valley Camp - a freighter that was used on the lakes for over 50 years but it is now a museum and it is very well done. The Smithsonian has rated it as a first-class Smithsonian museum (which sounds good in theory, although still researching to find out exactly what that means). The entire ship is pretty much on display and has been turned into a historical gem that contains so much information - from the mechanical aspects to the living quarters to information on so many different ships that frequented the waterways. A few highlights and key takeaways:
Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial and Exhibit - the two lifeboats that were recovered from the wreck are on display here (or more accurately, 1 1/2 lifeboats). These were stunning to see. The theatre here also shows a continuous loop of footage related to the ship, the wreck, the retrieval of artifacts, and the families of the survivors.
1200 gallon aquarium inside the ship, stocked with fish from the Great Lakes region
Dating back to the 1800s to present day, there still are not any women recognized in the Hall of Fame
The hull of the ship on the lower level is so uneven as all of the weight from past loads of iron ore buckled it
Back at the campsite, Owen has made fast friends with a number of kids as this seems to be a pretty family-friendly campground. The main activity involves challenging one another to climb up “the rock” without any assistance (picnic tables, for example)….
Finally, we just spent a lot of time chilling out, watching the ships and finding the best fudge!
People we met along the way: Damien and Karen, who are avid travelers and spent years traveling fulltime by boat! #lifegoals
Hiccups and hangups: Lost an ornamental lugnut off the hubcap on the trip over (minor issue!)
Grateful for: Watching the ships (Tom), seeing the locks “that was really fun” (Owen), and listening to Owen play the violin while the ships went by (Laurie)
Duration in Sault Ste. Marie: July 17 - July 20, 2021
Next stop: St. Ignace, MI