Blog

Laurie Healy 7/22/21 Laurie Healy 7/22/21

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.

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

Laurie Healy 7/20/21 Laurie Healy 7/20/21

Paradise, Michigan - Tahquamenon State Park

Welcome to Tahquamenon (rhymes with “phenomenon”) - and this place was pretty phenomenal. We realized that prior to leaving Munising (where we had full hookups, mind you), our next campsite had none of that - we were staying at the Rivermouth campsite at Tahquamenon in the “rustic” section. When we were booking campsites back in the February/March timeframe, it was nearly next to impossible to find open campsites, so we were taking what we could find when it came to the size of our rig. Given the spot we landed for the next few days, we were happy to survive without electrical and water hookups just fine. Since we’ve been tent camping for the good majority of our lives, we still feel like we’re walking into the Taj Mahal when we enter our rig. Our spot was gorgeous! Heavily wooded, and steps away from the Tahquamenon River, which empties into Lake Superior (thus, the Rivermouth campsite name). We also discovered wild blueberry bushes behind our campsite area, which made for a nice treat from Mother Nature (and good blueberry pancakes).

We decided to take to the water right away, and inflated the BOTE kayaks. The water was glass, and we paddled for about an hour, downstream from the campsite. We weren’t far from Lake Superior - perhaps a mile. Came across a playful beaver who was fun to watch as he would dive into the water with an enormous splash of his tail, as if we were trying to get us wet (or keep us away). That night, it rained from 9 am until 7 the next morning. There were quite a few campsites around us with nothing but tents and while grateful for our dry and warm spot to sleep, my heart went out to the tenters - we’ve been there before! Not pleasant.

Since the next morning was still a little overcast and wet, we decided to head up to the Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point. Located about 15 miles north of our campground, this museum has exhibits of 12 area shipwrecks, a restored 1860’s era Lighthouse Keeper’s Quarters, and a Lifeboat Rescue Station, detailing how rescues used to be attempted for sinking ships and their crew. This is also the oldest Lake Superior lighthouse still in operation.

The museum houses the original Edmund Fitzgerald bell that was recovered from the Nov. 10, 1975 sinking, as well as a second order Fresnel lens. Tom and Owen have a goal of seeing a first order, but we have to go to the East Coast in order to find one. The second order was pretty cool though. We came here on a relatively calm day, and it was still quite windy and you can just imagine what a place like this must feel like in the heart of winter.

Whitefish Point (the Edmund Fitzgerald sank about 17 miles northwest from here)

After our visit to the museum, we headed to the falls area, which is a main attraction in these parts. There are the Upper Falls and Lower Falls, both easily accessible by a paved footpath. Pretty views too:

On our final day, I (Laurie) decided I wanted to do a through hike from one spot to another and have Tom and Owen pick me up at the end. So I decided I would hike from a path that started near our campground and hike up to the Lower Falls area - about 8.8 miles. I’m calling this hike the “Muggy Buggy Uno” hike because it was hot, it was buggy and it’s likely not going to be the last hike like this. Tom and Owen dropped me off at the trailhead (about 3 miles down a dirtroad in the middle of nowhere), and I gave them about a 2.5 hour estimate as to how long it would take me. A mile in, I realized that maybe I should’ve brought the bear spray because if I was a bear, this is probably where I’d want to be. Complete silence, no other foot traffic, wild berries, lots of water….pretty remote. Oh, and no cell service. I really was on my own! The trail was quite tough - lots of different terrain, some switchbacks and overgrowth so I knew it wasn’t a heavily trafficked path but it was beautiful. I even found myself a “forest wand” to help clear my path. About a mile from the end, my support crew showed up and hiked with me the rest of the way. So nice! During my trail workout, they had found a local basketball court to shoot some hoops, followed by fresh french fries and rootbeer floats.

We finished up the day with a kayak out from our campsite to the mouth of Lake Superior. Between the hiking and the kayaking, I was pretty beat! Good way to wrap up our stay here.

People we met along the way: Two other couples in the surrounding campsites that camped often here - Ted and Norma (and their sweet dog), and Jeff and Sharon

Hiccups and hangups: No hookups was a hangup for Owen :-)
Grateful for: Seeing the Upper Falls (Owen), visiting the shipwreck museum (Tom), and time alone on a nature trek to reflect - and get a good hike in (Laurie)
Duration in Tahquamenon: July 14 - 17, 2021
Next stop: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan - home of the Soo Locks

Laurie Healy 7/17/21 Laurie Healy 7/17/21

Munising, Michigan (Upper Peninsula)

Pulled into Christmas, MI (about 3 miles outside of Munising) to, Silent Nights campsites, which was our home for the next few days. These sites were great - plenty of space, and full hookups (water, sewer, electric - yay!) The town is cute and kitchsy in its homage to the Christmas season in that the streets are named “Mrs. Claus Lane” and “St. Nicholas Avenue”, and the restaurants and businesses follow suit in their offerings - such as where we’re staying. Gorgeous weather, so we got situated, unhooked the Jeep (our tow vehicle for the trip), and decided to explore. Headed into Munising, which is the main town from which all activities around the area get booked and launched, it seems. We decided to drive up to get a few initial views of the terrain, which took us to Miner’s Castle. We were just starting to get a glimpse of how beautiful this area really is.

Miner’s Castle, Picture Rocks National Area

This area is well-known as the Pictured Rocks area, and plenty of hiking, biking and boating opportunities exist to experience. We planned to do all 3 during our time here! After a little more exploring around the Miner’s Castle area, we headed back to camp for dinner. A family with kids around Owen’s age pulled in next to us that afternoon, and he had fun playing tag and catch with them until it got dark. Hoping we will have lots of opportunities like that along the way. This family was from southern Illinois, and on a 3-week camping trip through Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa.

The next day, we were anxious to try out the new BOTE kayaks we brought along (inflatables) and check out the shores of the area. We headed back to the Miner’s beach area, where it was relatively accessible for the boats and also offered an amazing expanse of sandy beach.

Owen discovered a path that hugged the rocky shoreline and would take us 10-15 feet above the water’s edge. Outfitted with ropes along the way (it was not a place you wanted to slip into the lake because chances of getting back up and out weren’t in your favor), we sneaked along the path for about a quarter mile until we had to turn back as the path left no option except for cliff jumping. We did return to the beach and jumped into the chilly waters of Lake Superior - which actually felt pretty good! Spent most of the afternoon here, just taking in the beautiful weather and the sights. That evening, yet another family pulled into our campsite and Owen had new friends, once again. Hoping that we have lots of these opportunities for him along the way.

I think we were all really looking forward to our next excursion, which would involve a day’s worth of exploration around Grand Island. This recreation area is part of the Hiawatha National Forest and allows for camping, hiking, and biking - but no cars. You access the island via Grand Island Ferry service, run by Patrick, Marie and their deck hand, Kali. Super nice people, who gave us lots of recommendations for sites throughout the US, as when they are not managing the Grand Island Ferry Service, they’re traveling in their sprinter van around the country. They said Big Bend National Park in Texas is not to be missed. They also requested that we contact them at the end of the trip “to see how things went.”

Caught the first ferry at 9 am (which is a rather large oversized pontoon boat), loaded our bikes, and traveled a mere 1/2 mile to the other shore. And we were off - the first couple of miles were pretty tame and then we quickly learned that we were in for some true mountain biking - large rocks, steep inclines (and declines) and lots of rock. I won’t lie - there were frustration and tears at times from the youngest Healy member but he really hung in there and went the FULL 21 miles! Tom and I were tired out too - it was a great ride and we hardly saw anyone else out there. The views were spectacular and the water was so clear - and the cliffs - - steep!

Overlooking Lake Superior from Grand Island

Round-trip it took us 5 hours (we were told the average is about 4-6 hours, although I would say expert bikers can get through it pretty quickly (we took a few breaks to rest and take in the views). The island was originally inhabited by the first settlers in the 1800’s (the Williams family, who had 10 kids) - two of the boys died in Lake Superior, although not sure how. The original home was eventually turned into/expanded into a resort in the early 1900s. A few buildings, as well as private residences, remain on the island. The original cemetery (where the Williams family is buried,) is hauntingly beautiful. It is still an active cemetery and descendants of the families that lived here over the years are able to be buried here.

Our final full day in Munising included hiking as part of our plans. We headed towards the Chapel and Mosquito Falls area initially, where we hiked the 3 miles roundtrip to Chapel Falls (supposedly the more interesting one of the two). Easy trek, heavily visited as it is easy to get to - if you have the right vehicle. The dirt road leading up to it is very well worn, rutted out and has large potholes. While there are a couple of parking spots for RVs, we would NOT recommend this unless you want to risk smashing up your grey and black tanks (we took the Jeep). There was an option to check out Chapel Beach, but we wanted to see Twelvemile Beach as well, and that included another 3 mile hike. This was a far less visited hike - we only saw 4-6 other people - and the views and landscape had large, overhanging rock cliffs and was a bit more strenuous than Chapel. It eventually led us out to Twelvemile beach - exactly what it sounds like. We were treated to a beautiful expanse of sand, which rivaled that of Hawaii or Panama. We kept asking ourselves - where is everyone?? But realized that these spots are a little extra work to get to if you’re able….and we realize that not everyone is, so what I love about the Pictured Rocks area is that there are many beautiful areas that are accessible to all.

We also had some time to drive down to Kitchitikipee. The touristy website says it best: “Two hundred feet across, the 40-foot deep Kitch-iti-kipi is Michigan's largest freshwater spring. Over 10,000 gallons a minute gush from fissures in the underlying limestone. The flow continues throughout the year at a constant 45 degree Fahrenheit. By means of a self-operated observation raft, visitors are guided to vantage points overlooking fascinating underwater features and fantasies. Ancient tree trunks, lime-encrusted branches and fat trout appear suspended in nothingness as they slip through crystal waters far below. Clouds of sand kept in constant motion by gushing waters create ever-changing shapes and forms, a challenge to the imagination of young and old alike.” Here’s a photo below that is taken through the middle of the raft, and this video, which shows the fissures:

After all this, it’s time for pizza then, right? Yes! We were looking forward to the Pictured Rocks Pizza place in Munising (good reviews, and a cute patio) but it was closed, so we did carry out from Main Street Pizza and headed back to our campsite for a late and rewarding lunch.

Time to say goodbye to this beautiful area, even though I’m sure we could’ve found much more to do here. There are glass-bottomed boat cruises, kayak excurions, pontoon rentals and more. We pulled out of Munising on the morning of July 14, my brother Brian’s birthday. He would’ve been 46 on the 14th and he would’ve loved it here. He also would’ve kicked our butts on the Grand Island Mountain Bike trails…. RIP peace Brian - miss you so much.

People we met along the way: Patrick, Marie and Kali from Grand Island Ferry Service; the family from Indiana
Hiccups and hangups: None, really!
Grateful for: Our excursion around Grand Island (both Owen and Tom); perfect, amazing weather all week that allowed us to experience all of these places (Laurie)
Duration in Munising: July 9 - 14, 2021
Next stop: Tahquamenon State Park (Paradise, MI)

Laurie Healy 7/12/21 Laurie Healy 7/12/21

Rhinelander, WI (our transition travel spot)

Given that our plan is to head east, we have our sights set on Michigan - more specifically, the UP. We also plan not to drive more than 200 miles in any given day, so thankfully,my cousin Eric lives in Rhinelander, WI - provided for a good stop for a few days. Figure the first few legs are going to feel novel in many ways, so it was nice to be able to land there for a few days (even though we’ve done a couple of inaugural trips to get the kinks worked out).

Arrived on Tuesday evening and promptly set up our 38 foot RV in the front yard! They’ve got a great spot - right across the baseball fields sits Boom Lake. We were treated to some amazing sunsets each night - here’s our first official setup:

We’re quite familiar with Rhinelander as Tom’s brother and wife also lived here for many years, and it was where we celebrated their wedding. However, we got to a few new spots, thanks to Eric and Kristi:

CT’s Deli in downtown Rhinelander (the place was hopping for lunch on a Wednesday)
Holmboe Conifer Forest, where Kristi, Laurie and the kids went exploring - beautiful Hemlock forest and we found the coolest looking red mushrooms
Tom and Eric went fishing on the Wisconsin River - Eric is the founder of On the Fly Fishing, and offers fly fishing float trips, and all sorts of guide services for aspiring fish anglers
The World’s Largest Hodag Statue! We’ll be working to get photos with all the kitschy statues across the country because, why not?

CC, Chloe, Owen and Marlin at the “Real” Hodag statue

Kristi and Eric also took us out in their pontoon for a ride on Boom Lake. We even got over to Estabrook Island to explore a bit. This small plot of land offers a nice stopping off point to hike around and if you’re up for it, camp for the night. The land was donated by The Estabrook family and has become a public area for anyone to enjoy. There’s a great little campsite you can paddle right up to. We also found a homemade rope swing, but it looked a little suspect…

A fave part of the trip included meals cooked by Eric. As I mentioned in our first post, he’s an excellent chef! Some of the cuisine we were treated to included:

Crab rangoon stuffed and bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers (um, nightly….)
Fish ‘n chips: Fresh caught Florida grouper (flown in by a friend), deep-fried to perfection
Some of the best ceviche we’ve had, and grilled salmon tacos (sorry Eric - I’m not doing it justice here as I need a few more culinary details!)

To wrap it up, on the final night in town, we learned (through the power of social) that good friends of ours were a mere 4 miles away! Tom and Bridget Posta (Laurie’s high school and college friends) were staying at a cabin near friends of theirs, and we met up for hellos and hugs. That was super fun.

People we met along the way: Kristi, Eric, CC and Chloe, The Posta’s
Hiccups and hang-ups: one shoe that became a dog chewable, and problems with the RV door lock getting jammed by foreign objects (Tom deftly fixed)
Grateful for: Fishing with Eric (Tom), walking around town with the girls (Owen), and amazing food and the hospitality of the Thoreson’s (Laurie)
Duration in Rhinelander: July 6 - 9, 2021
Next stop: Munising, MI