BACK U.P.
We
arrived at Marsha and Ian’s in St. Joseph, Michigan late Saturday night. At that point, I began to realize that it was
going to take us a LOT longer to get from one place to another than Google Maps
suggests. I was expecting that to a degree,
but I still underestimated the magnitude of it.
We
spent Sunday and Monday with Marsha and Ian.
It was a relaxing couple of days, which is exactly what we needed. It had been a stressful week prior to the
trip, trying to get everything ready. That
weekend was the ideal opportunity to catch our breath.
Christy
and I did visit a new park at Whirlpool World
Headquarters on Monday. Christy went
mountain biking while I pushed Jackson in our stroller. Afterwards, they relaxed in the shade while I
did a trail run.
I
had originally planned to take Jackson to see the fireworks in St. Joseph that
evening. However, enthusiasm for that
plan was limited to just me. We ended up
playing Catan, which is always fun. We
would have another chance to see fireworks the next evening in Marquette.
Our
goal was to leave early on Tuesday (July 4th) for the long drive
north. However, repacking
the car was a major undertaking, and we didn’t really achieve “early”. We eventually hit the road and made decent time.
However, the late start meant that it was nearing dusk when we arrived
at the Au Train Campground. Any hope of
making it to Marquette to see the fireworks was long gone. Our arrival coincided with the eruption of
numerous fireworks displays and an approaching thunderstorm. I managed to get the tent and a tarp up
before the storm hit. The tarp enabled
Christy to cook dinner while I entertained Jackson. Unfortunately, the long car ride, followed by
lots of noise and excitement led to one of Jackson’s fussy evenings. That’s understating things a bit. Taking him to the tent failed miserably. A screaming fit ensued. I took him to the car, but that didn’t
help. Eventually I put him in his car
seat and took him for a drive. He
quieted down, and before long, fell asleep.
Yes! I returned to the campsite,
but when I opened the door, every light in the car came on, and a variety of
unnecessary bells began to chime. He
stirred a bit, but I thought I could still get him to the tent.
I
opened the tent and passed him in to Christy. However, he woke up at that moment and
wriggled violently. He slipped from my
hands, and Christy didn’t quite catch him, either. He was only a few inches off the ground, but
the bumpy landing was enough to wake him again.
That started the second screaming fit.
This
might be a good time to mention that this was the first time we took him
camping. We had fully intended to try a
practice run somewhere local – even in the back yard. But time galloped by in the usual way, and before
we knew it, it was time to leave for our trip.
So, we would practice on the fly.
Practice? Who needs practice? We’ve been doing this most of our lives. Of course, we’d been doing it without a baby…
It
was Christy’s turn. She took him to the
car. Took him for a drive. It almost worked, again. Once again, getting him into the tent without
waking him eluded us. For the third
attempt, I took him to the car, reclined the seat, and cradled him in my
arms. We slept, more
or less, like that for a few hours.
Well, he slept. At least one of
us did. Eventually I got out with him,
carried him to the tent, and got him in without setting off the dreaded Jackson
alarm. It was only 4am, so at least I
got a few hours of sleep.
I
woke early, just in time for another round of thunderstorms to roll
through. We hunkered down in the tent,
and Jackson slept right through it. It
was mid-morning before the storms finally cleared. I made us a late breakfast and planned out
our day. Due to the lack of sleep and
late start, I immediately eliminated everything ambitious from our plan. Ultimately, we decided to head up to Pictured
Rocks National Lakeshore for a couple of short hikes. First up was a visit to Miners Falls. This is a short but popular hike to one of
the more popular waterfalls in the area.
The parking lot was overflowing, and Christy wasn’t in the mood to deal
with crowds. She decided to skip the
hike and hang out with Jackson.
I
made quick work of it. The trail was
busy, but it passes through a lovely forest with lots of greenery. The trail ends at a platform with a view of
the waterfall across the gorge. It’s a
good view, but the platform is small, and there were a lot of people. I set up the tripod, took a couple of quick
photos, and hurried back. We had lunch
in the parking lot before continuing on to the
trailhead for our second hike.
Miners
Castle is on a cliff towering over Lake Superior. Our plan was to start there and hike a small
part of the North Country Trail. The
North Country Trail is one of the longest trails in the country, running from
Northern Minnesota to upstate New York.
If it were extended across northern Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana and part of New York, it could theoretically connect
the Appalachian Trail with the Continental Divide Trail and the Pacific Crest
Trail.
Lake
Superior was fogged in when we arrived.
I was undecided on which direction to hike, and Christy voted for the
easier option. West looked easier on the
map, so we headed that way. The trail
follows the tops of the cliffs above Lake Superior, but it is heavily
wooded. We only passed one viewpoint,
and it was fogged in. The view of the
water 100’ below was lovely though, and the forest we passed through was
gorgeous. The only drawback was the
abundant mud. That became tedious, and
after an hour or so we decided to head back.
We visited Miners Castle, but the persistent fog eliminated the
views.
We
needed ice, so we stopped at a gas station.
That’s when we found out that the entire Munising area was completely
out of ice. Apparently
the Ice Man had failed to show up all weekend.
Welcome to 2023. I asked the
clerk at the gas station if we could get ice in Marquette, which is 20 miles
away. She looked at me like I’d asked
her if we could get ice on Mars. I don’t
know, maybe people in Munising refuse to go to Marquette? That’s like saying that people in Brevard
refuse to go to Asheville…oh. Well never
mind.
I
had planned to spend a few hours checking out the waterfalls on the Dead River
in Marquette, but it was already getting late, and we were exhausted. We headed straight back to camp and spent the
evening relaxing. Unfortunately
the relaxing ended with another Jackson screaming
fit. Christy took him to the car this
time, where he screamed and cried for an hour or two. It was heartbreaking. He had enjoyed the hike earlier, as he always
does, but a lack of napping seemed to catch up with him. He still isn’t a fan of napping – it’s almost
like he’s afraid that he’ll miss something fun if he falls asleep.
Christy
made it back to the tent with him closer to midnight, and he slept through the
night, so that was a big improvement.
Packing
up the next morning was a challenge. In
the old days, we would split the chores between us for efficiency. Now, one of us packed while the other played
with Jackson. Two people packing up
stuff for two people is a bit more efficient than one person packing up stuff
for three people. In other words, it was
a slow, tedious process. We eventually
got on the road and headed to Marquette, where we stopped for groceries, and
ice.
Back to Michigan
Back to Hiking and Backpacking Trip Reports
Please remember to Leave No Trace!