Out on the town

(This post is backdated - I will add photos soon!)

I drove out to the campground for breakfast. We had fried eggs, instant oatmeal, and blueberries I had brought. We left my car there and drove toward Marquette, then detoured south a little to get to Laughing Whitefish Falls. The road I directed us to turned out to be a gravel road, through part of Hiawatha National Forest – so even though we had to go a little slower, it was a beautiful drive.

Laughing Whitefish Falls is part of the state recreation system, so we had to put in money for a day permit. While Mom was doing that, Joanne and I were picking raspberries! There were bushes growing all along the edge of the parking lot, and we each got a nice little handful of ripe ones that we shared with Mom. Then we started out on the trail to the falls. It was a nice hike, an easy trail. When we got to the falls I was surprised at how big they were – the photo I had seen hadn’t shown the entire thing, just the top part of the cascade. It flows down over many thin layers of rock, like little stairsteps.

There were also stairs down to the bottom of the falls. Despite the knowledge that we would have to climb back up, we headed down to see the full view of the falls. We even took a timed photo of the three of us with the waterfall behind. Just as we took the photo we noticed drops falling in the water. It was starting to rain! Just a light sprinkling but we were hurrying up the stairs, which didn’t have any trees sheltering them.

When we got to the top, Joanne spotted something blue. She thought it was flowers at first, but when I saw them I recognized the berries of the bluebead lily! I had seen in the berry book at work what the fruits look like when ripe – a real, dark blue.

The rain faded by the time we walked back to the car. A couple more raspberries, and then we were off to Marquette. Joanne had seen in the paper that Marquette was having its annual Blueberry Festival today, so that was our destination.

Watching the Wrecks

Joanne and Mom came over for breakfast again. It went more quickly this time, because the cinnamon rolls were already baked! We didn’t spend as much time in the house this time because we had plans and we had to get there early.

The plan for today was to go on a boat tour. Not the Pictured Rocks Cruise, but the Shipwreck Tour – riding in a boat with glass panels in the bottom in order to view shipwrecks on the bottom of Lake Superior. We had reserved tickets for the 10 a.m. tour. (We chose to do this tour because I won two free tickets in a Fourth of July raffle, so we just had to pay for the third ticket!)

It was a little chilly so we sat in the enclosed cabin rather than on the top deck. It worked out well, because we were right near the sunken glass panels so we did not have to go very far when it was our turn to look down! The tour was very organized, with two people speaking about the various shipwrecks and other sights and coordinating the passengers.

Family, food, and fun

I have family in town again! My sister, Joanne, had been planning to come and visit me with a friend. The friend couldn’t make it, so my mom came instead and the two of them got to do a road trip together. They got into Munising yesterday. I had gone straight to town from work to go to the Farmer’s Market – it’s every Tuesday from 4-7, but there hasn’t been much yet besides baked goods and crafts. I did get some good spinach last week, but when there’s a limited amount it’s gone before I get there.

This week when I got to the Farmer’s Market I saw red – a table covered with fresh-picked strawberries! I got two quarts, and it was worth every penny. I got some lettuce, too, but that seemed like an afterthought compared to the fruit!

While I was there I checked my phone and found I had a missed call from Joanne, telling me they were going to be later than they’d thought. I went back to the house and mixed up some dough to make cinnamon rolls later for breakfast today. I had just finished when they called to tell me they were checking into the motel, and to meet them in town for supper. We ate at Pizza Hut, then went back to their motel for dessert – strawberries I’d brought, and chocolate cake they had brought, left over from a party back home. We talked a long time, then I went home, rolled out the dough, and made the cinnamon rolls to bake in the morning.

This morning I got up, took the cinnamon rolls out of the refrigerator to rise, and was on my way back to bed when I realized it was an hour earlier than I had set my alarm for. I just woke up and saw the clock and got it mixed up! I went and put the rolls back in the fridge and went back to bed for another hour.

The rolls turned out great! I was nervous because I hadn’t made them before, but it was perfect. With the cream cheese icing Joanne made they were even better. We also had coffee, scrambled eggs and ham, strawberries, blueberries, and Missouri peaches. It was so, so good. Then Mom did all the dishes. That was even better!

Once everything was cleaned up, the two of them went to go get checked in at Munising Tourist Park, a public campground just outside of town. I stayed at the house and made sandwiches for a picnic later. When they got back we set out to see Pictured Rocks!

Our first stop, of course, was Miner’s Castle. We walked to the upper and lower overlooks, and I showed them the Visitor Information Center where I work, so they got to meet Marc. We decided to go to the picnic area at Miner’s Beach for lunch before starting our hike. We got a nice table with a view of the lake, and then of course we had to walk down to the water before leaving. Then we drove to the east end of Miner’s Beach, where there is trailhead parking for the North Country Trail. (Then we drove back to the picnic area, because there was no restroom at the trailhead!)

I managed to get a video of waves splashing through the hole at the base of the cliff - it goes all the way through to the other side, so if the waves are big enough they shoot out into the cove!

Growing pains

Today I was working like crazy to get stuff done at home - laundry, dishes, cooking ahead for the week... When I was in my room, I heard something through the open window and looked out. There were a couple of ravens a little ways from the house, and one of them was making a strange noise.

Now, ravens making strange noises is not unusual. There are several of them that like to hang out at Miner's Castle, and they never shut up! Not only are they bigger than crows, but they have a much bigger vocabulary. Where crows just go "caw, caw", ravens make all kinds of sounds. Sometimes they sound like someone yelling. Sometimes it sounds like they are making fun of how the crows talk...

The thing is, they're noisy! And this one was not being loud. It just kept repeating this quiet sort of "creak, creak" and following after the other raven. And I suddenly had a hunch as to what I was seeing: a young raven who has left the nest and doesn't know what to do, and still expects Mom to provide food! I've seen it with robins and other small birds over and over - the young bird is adult-sized, able to fly, but acting like a helpless hatchling! I can't be sure that's what I was seeing - they were too far away for me to be sure - but one was definitely following another, making a plaintive sound and refusing to be quiet! It was pretty funny once I started to watch for the signs. I'll have to keep my eye open for such behavior out at Miner's Castle!

Sand Point Marsh Trail

It's only a half mile loop, but the Sand Point Marsh Trail is a neat way to get out and see something besides the beach. I didn't feel like doing another big hike this week, but I wanted to get outside - and this is just down the street for me.

Every time I've walked this trail it's been different. Very distinctly so, because I've only done it a few times. The first time, there were no leaves yet; second time, leaves but not too many flowers. Just a couple of weeks ago there were a lot of bushes blooming; now they have berries. Including blueberry bushes - I made sure to inspect those! At this point there are still only greenberries, but there were a couple that were starting to get a tint of red...

I went at around 5:30, getting some of that late-afternoon glow in the lighting. Part of the loop at the end was blocked off for maintenance, so I went the other way along the North Country Trail, and cut over to the house when I got near the shore. It took a little longer than I expected, but it was fun seeing another aspect of my "neighborhood" here at Sand Point!

This may be a domestic iris that escaped into the swamp, but it sure was pretty!

Wild roses were just starting to bloom - it's going to be really pretty in another week or two!

Today when I was taking photos at work, the weather didn't cooperate at first. It was overcast, and very windy. The clouds were so dark that when I went to take more pictures of the orange hawkweed blooming around Miner's Castle, they were all closed up! The wind was making a lot of waves on the lake. When I went out again later, the flowers had opened up again, so I got before-and-after photos!

There's a large bank of raspberries growing right near the visitor center! I am watching them carefully,
because I suspect once they ripen they will not last long at all, and I want at least a taste! It's funny, but
I never even noticed them blooming...

In a fog...

Today the weather did what it likes to do around here, and changed dramatically! It started out mild and humid, growing warmer throughout the morning... and then, in the middle of the afternoon, the temperature started dropping. I was inside the visitor center and noticed that it was starting to look a little hazy outside; almost that exact moment, a visitor asked, "Does it often get misty like this?" There were wisps of fog visible between the door and the trees at the far side of the picnic area.

By the time I went out to the overlook at around 4:15, it was dense fog. Grand Island was invisible across the water. Even Miner's Castle was extremely difficult to see, although the fog kept lightening up and then coming back thick. So there were glimpses - sometimes just the outline of the rock outcrop, sometimes almost a clear view. I think my eyes adjusted, as well, and were able to look past the fog somewhat. The water directly below the overlook was visible, but the kayaks that came out from behind Miner's Castle were fuzzy outlines, barely distinguishable as red or yellow.

I stayed at the upper platform, talking to visitors about what we were and weren't seeing. There was a group with about five young kids - I think it was two families traveling together - and I was having so much fun with them! The kids kept getting so excited when they could see the rock, or the water down below, or when the kayaks came around and they were screaming and waving! At one point I noticed swirls of fog between us and the trees - much closer than the trees earlier had been - and pointed out that we were standing in a cloud. The kids ran toward the swirls, jumping around and shouting, "I'm in a cloud! I'm in a cloud!"

This is one of the best things about my job - I get to watch kids being kids. It is an endless source of entertainment!

Mosquito Beach

I have been wanting to do a longer hike for a while now. The Mosquito Loop Trail is just under five miles, not too far for a day’s walk. I had planned to do it a few weeks ago but there was too much rain. There was a lot of rain this week, too, but I really wanted to get out there! I did wait an extra day, going Thursday instead of Wednesday, so there would be one more day for some of the water to drain away.

The trailhead is at the end of Chapel Road, which is unpaved and can be pretty rough. They’ve filled in the worst of the holes from this winter, but there were still some good-sized potholes. It took a while to drive down to the trailhead.

There are several interconnecting loop trails that start at the Chapel trailhead. I took the one that goes to Mosquito Falls, then follows the Mosquito River to Mosquito beach, then goes back to the start. (Don’t be fooled by the name – they’re everywhere. Equal opportunity, that’s what I tell visitors when they crack a joke half-seriously about the name of that particular trail…)

Flowers and a new feature...

I took some more photos at work today. A squirrel, a lot of new flowers, and a beautiful insect struggling very hard to hang on in a strong wind! I'm posting the photos below, and hopefully a short video of the insect - if it loads you can see its antannae blowing in the wind and its wings getting pushed out of place. I haven't tried this feature until now, so we'll see how it goes! Testing in one, two, three...

This cute little squirrel was taking advantage of the snack bar - elm seeds blown up
against the grass at the edge of the parking lot. I've also seen chipmunks going for these.