A Down Day

Not down as in depressed, just down as in negligible sightseeing. We knew the time would come and had actually planned for it – it was *laundry day*. After a few wrong turns, we found the laundromat and did our several loads. Then back to the hotel to repack the big suitcase and the smaller day-to-day one.

After lunch at the Firehouse Brewing Co in downtown Rapid City, we decided it was too late to do much major sightseeing and just drove around the city a bit and headed back to the hotel for some catch-up time.

[written 12/12/13 – much after the fact. In fact, I had forgotten about it until I noticed the pictures skipped a day.]

Ground Zero of Pheasantdom

This was going to be a driving day, mostly on the interstate. While we were trying to avoid them, it couldn’t be avoided today. I wanted to drive through the Badlands NP and that’s right off I-90. It would have been a major pain to avoid I-90, do the Badlands, and still make it to Rapid City where we were spending Labor Day weekend.

But first, there was a stop in Gregory SD. Roadsideamerica.com said there was an outhouse museum there and who could pass up something like that? So off we went on the empty back roads. That emptiness proved a little too tempting to Ken. When we finally did see a car coming in the opposite direction, it turned out to be an officer of the law and you can imagine the result. We proceeded to Gregory at a more decorous pace.

Gregory turned out to have a couple of unexpected delights. As we were coming into town (actually bypassing it) on Hwy-47, we saw a big pheasant in a pocket park. Naturally, we had to stop and take a picture. Pheasants were introduced to South Dakota in 1898 and have flourished on the great plains. Gregory claims to be “ground-zero”.

Ring-necked pheasant. The state bird of SD

We found Main St and the Oscar Micheaux Center. The outhouses were supposed to be behind it. They were, but first we had to investigate the Center. Unfortunately it was closed, but next door was a lovely little garden walk which was billed as the “Black Walk of Fame”. Besides the star for Oscar Micheaux, there were stars for Hattie Davis, Tim Reid, and several others whose names I didn’t recognize.

The Black Walk of Fame

I don’t know how much longer this walk will be tended. The annual Oscar Micheaux film festival was cancelled this year and you have to wonder how much draw it had in this remote area anyway. Oh, Micheaux’s connection to the area? He briefly homesteaded in the region and was married here. He was away on business when his wife cleaned out his savings, left him, and his father-in-law sold his property. He then moved on to become a writer, film director, and producer. From the write-up in Wikipedia, he sounds like a remarkable man.

The outhouses were beyond the end of the walkway . They actually turned out to be a disappointment, but we dutifully took pictures.

Ken happy to be on the top half of the two story outhouse

The rest of the outhouses weren't too interesting...

Then it was back north to I-90 and west to Badlands NP. Ken had been through there in the past and wasn’t impressed (much more rocky splendor in AZ and UT), but I hadn’t been and I wanted to. So there.

In many respects, he was right – AZ has many more impressive rocks. But my imagination was caught by the idea of people migrating west. First they’re traveling across relatively flat, benign, and grassy plains. Then they’re in rocks. It must have been very shocking and discouraging.

Sights near the eastern entrance to Badlands National Park

Big Badlands Overlook

White River Valley Overlook

Roadside a bit west of Yellow Mounds Overlook

We finished off the Badlands with the requisite stop at Wall Drugs for some water and an ice cream cone. And this. I don't know how Ken talked me into riding the jackalope without reciprocating!

Mary Lou riding the Jackalope at Wall Drugs

We finally got into our hotel (Super 8) in Rapid City at 5:23pm. We will be staying here for the next four nights. I wanted to wait out Labor Day weekend and there is plenty to see in the area. Our luck continued to hold, however. Whenever we have an extended stay, either the room is so-so or the wi-fi is bad. It’s the wi-fi this time. The signal in our room (on one end of the building) is very weak, but if I walk to the other end, it’s strong. They obviously didn’t centrally mount their router.

380 mi, 9:14 hrs total, 6:02 hrs moving

[written 11/22/13 – long after the fact]

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Today was going to be a relatively short day with just two planned stops. The aim was to position ourselves in Mitchell SD for a longer drive tomorrow to Rapid City where we would spend Labor Day weekend. We would have gone further to better divide up the distance, but looking for hotels in smaller towns can be tricky. I’m starting to miss my motorhome.

Our first stop was gleaned from roadsideamerica.com – The International Vinegar Museum in Roslyn SD. It was my pick. I was really curious how an entire museum could be devoted to vinegar. Alas, my curiosity remains unsatisfied; the museum was closed. It’s only open T-F-S and we were there on W. So it’s on the road again.

The International Vinegar Museum, Roslyn, SD

We continued cruising south on Hwy-25 looking for a town to fill both the car and ourselves. Webster was too soon so we headed on to De Smet as the next town of any size. We filled up the car then stopped at a nearby diner (sorry, can’t remember the name now and neither Garmin or Google Maps show anything.) While eating, we noticed the placemats were making a big deal out of Laura Ingalls Wilder. So we asked at the register and it turns out De Smet was where she lived and they have a museum celebrating her.

I never read any of the “Little House on the Prairie” books, but Ken’s daughter really loved them as a child. We had plenty of time so we headed over to the “Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial” and took a tour. They had brought together several of the buildings mentioned in her books and were restoring them to the appropriate timeframes. It was a pretty interesting tour even though I didn’t know any of the references. It gave a great snapshot of a period in our history.

Surveyor's House - the house the Ingalls family lived
in the winter before moving out on the Prairie

“The House that Pa Built – 1887”

We ended up spending nearly two hours extra in De Smet but finally headed on the road to Mitchell SD and the Econo Lodge where we had reservations. That turned out to be a crummy hotel. Which is strange since the last two Econo Lodges we stayed in were pretty decent. I guess some franchise chains are not closely supervised.

After checking in and fiddling around getting the wi-fi to work, we headed out for supper and to see the Corn Palace (actually in the opposite order). The Corn Palace is a multi-purpose arena/facility that started out as a boosterism competition with Pierre. Each year new murals are designed by local artists. We were told that they weren’t as colorful this year due to the drought. All colors are from various plants – no dying allowed. Ken had visited it sometime in the past and said he remembers it as being more impressive. It’s still pretty neat.

293 mi, 4.33 hrs moving, 8:53 hrs total

[written 11/18/13 – long after the fact!]

Another mine tour and the Mississippi headwaters

We had a pretty short trip planned for today – only ~200 miles to Moorhead MN where we planned to see the replica Viking ship on display there. A couple we ate supper with at the Tempe Elks Lodge had highly recommended it and internet research agreed.

Now, in my full time RVing days, I considered 200 miles to be the maximum distance to travel per day. That would take me about 5 hours including a stop for a leisurely lunch along the way. I would get into my new spot early to mid afternoon and (usually) have several nice campsites to chose among. Then I would sit down with a nice cup of tea and a book. Preferably outside unless it was too cold or windy. Maybe a little walk first to stretch the legs. Civilized.

Ken, however, considers 200 miles to be just warming up for the drive. We also tend to get up early and arriving early at the next hotel isn’t productive since we couldn’t check in anyway. So he dove into RoadsideAmerica.com last night to see if there was anything we might be interested in seeing in northern Minnesota. Not surprisingly, there was.

We decided to backtrack ~85 miles northeast to Soudan MN and tour the Soudan Mine. It was interesting.

“the oldest and deepest iron ore mine in Minnesota”	A cage car like the one we would ride down ~.5 mi for the tour
Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to tour we go	Hoist tower

After the tour, it was time to head west again to another interim stop for the day – Lake Itasca State Park. Lake Itasca was officially declared the beginning of the Mississippi River in 1832 and has remained so even though modern definitions of the source would change it to one of its inflow streams.

We also gleefully participated in the typically tourist ritual of walking across the Mississippi River. Ken tried going over via the rocks but didn’t make it. He wisely turned back when the footing proved rather precarious. I, however, made it across because I wisely chose the path (demonstrated by these two ladies) and waded across and back.

This rocky crossing and pleasant picnic area are not natural. “The channel of the Mississippi as it emerges from the lake was bulldozed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps, to create a more ‘pleasant experience’ for visitors.” [Wikipedia]

By now, it was late afternoon, but we only had ~100 miles to go and we finally made it to our hotel in Moorhead MN around 6pm. We had supper then decided we had enough time to head over to the Hjemkomst Center to see the Viking ship.

When we got there, the admissions lady asked us if we wanted a tour of the replica stave church on the grounds. We hadn’t a clue what she was talking about but said “Sure!”. So we trooped out after the guide and came to this really incredible wooden church. The church is a full-scale replica of the Hopperstad Church in Vik, Norway. All carvings were done by one man, Guy Paulson, who started in January 1997. The church was finished and dedicated in 1998. Just amazing to see.

Front of church	Side of church
Interior	Painting in small chapel

Wandering back inside the Center, we took a quick look at the Hjemkomst and settled down to watch the movie about its creation. It was fascinating. This is another of those “one man’s dream” stories that has no rational purpose but is still inspiring. And it’s not just that he built a replica of an ancient ship, it’s that he inspired others to sail this very ship from Duluth, MN to Bergen, Norway in 1982. (Robert Asp, the builder, died in 1980 so he couldn’t make the crossing, but he did live to see in put in Lake Superior.)

After the  movie, we had just enough time to take photos of the ship and do a very quick run through the museum before the center closed. We could have used at least another hour. I am really glad we decided to add this to our itinerary.

368  mi, 6:07 hrs moving, 10.32 hrs total

[written 11/16/13 – a long time after the fact!]

Skeletal Moose

It was time to hit the road again. We left the Keweenaw and headed to Grand Rapids MN – a location chosen simply because it seemed the right driving distance for the day.  We had two planned stops along the way – Lake of the Clouds in the Porcupine Mtns and The Village Inn in Cornucopia WS.

The Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park has lots of old growth forest and many back country hiking trails. None of which we took. My objective was the scenic overlook of Lake of the Clouds. I was last here in 1959 on the same trip we took the photo of the Quincy Mine #8 shafthouse and I wanted to see it again. Not enough to make a special trip, but, hey, we were passing pretty close by, so why not?

Family shoot at Lake of the Clouds then, and panorama from further away on the boardwalk now. Beautiful, sunny days both times.

After that brief interlude, it was on to Cornucopia. Our purpose there was to stop at the Village Inn and hoist a glass to the memory of Phyllis Allison, a friend of Ken’s who passed away a few years ago. I never met her, but I understand she was quite the character. She lived in Cornucopia and frequented the Village Inn daily. We got there in time for lunch. I had the fish chowder – good but a bit salty. And the people there did remember Phyllis.

After that, it was just lazy driving for the rest of the day, catching a bit of serendipity at a rest stop in Floodwood MN. Floodwood labels itself as the “Catfish Capitol of the World”. And has the totem to go along with it. I wonder if any place else is in contention?

We arrived in Grand Rapids around 5pm local time. By the time we settled ourselves in the hotel room, I was getting pretty hungry, so we got a recommendation from the desk clerk to the Seventeenth St Bar & Grill. Most of the meal was pretty good, but the corn chowder was too salty to eat. I cook with little or no salt so am sensitive to it. There are some places where it belongs, french fries leap to mind, but mostly I prefer a lighter hand.

Afterwards, we decided to go moose hunting. Another Roadside America find. The GPS didn’t do so well, but I remembered the written directions and we ended up at the Garden Court Chateau, an assisted living facility.

From roadsideamerica.com: “The Skeletal Scrap Metal Moose was created by Dutch artist Thijs Trompert of Amersfoort, Netherlands.” and “Trompert built the moose in 2012 -- from scrap metal and old farm equipment – in memory of his girlfriend's grandmother, who stayed for a time at the facility. The moose stands 20 feet tall and weighs 1.5 tons.” We got there very near sunset so it was difficult taking pictures. I like it.

Quincy Mine

The Quincy Mine was another iconic symbol of my childhood and student years at Michigan Tech. I don’t have reliable memories for how many times I passed the mine, but this photo was taken in 1959. It was in our slides and, every time we had a family slide show, the image would be further burned into my memory. When I heard that the Quincy Mine had opened for tours, I wanted to go there.

This is the No. 2 Shaft-Rockhouse. The #2 shaft was in operation from 1858-1931. This particular building was built in 1908 and is open for viewing.

The interior is pretty much as it was left with odds and ends all over the place. On the right is the car the miners used to enter and exit the mine - 30 miners at a time. On the left is a water car. The shaft was over 9000’ along the incline.

The last hoist house for the #2 shaft (adjacent to the old hoist building) was built in 1920 to house the huge new steam hoist. The Nordberg Steam Hoist was the world’s largest steam powered mine hoist engine. The building (and engine) was also a showpiece for the company and was quite elaborate inside with fancy tiling and brasswork. The steam hoist (minus most of the brass) remains in the building. The old hoist building now functions as a museum.

The Nordberg steam engine and hoist

This is a 17 ton mass of native copper found in Lake Superior. Big masses of copper weren't desirable because it took too much time to break it up into manageable pieces via hammer & chisel.

We finally got dressed (coats and hardhats provided) for the underground tour. The tunnel we would be taken in was not an actual mining area. It had started out as a water removal tunnel but was enlarged in the mid-1970s by the Michigan Tech mining department for use as an in-situ lab. Students would come over for both classroom and hands-on instruction in mining techniques. I don’t remember when (or why) the University abandoned it. Or maybe the guide never said. The lady who took this photo said it should be our Christmas card. Whad’ya think?

The “widow maker”. This pneumatic drill was introduced into the mines in the 1890’s and produced a large amount of rock dust which led to various lung diseases.

Oh, the old picture at the top is of the #8 rock-shafthouse. This building was demolished in the late ‘60s because it was dangerously deteriorated. Not surprising considering it’s condition in 1959. And no wonder I don’t recall it from my college years.

Copper Harbor

Today was our day to explore north. I had many happy memories of childhood vacations spent exploring Fort Wilkins and the views along the Brockway Mtn Drive. I was also eager to add a visit to the Jampot to my list of new memories.

So we headed north on US-41. We were having a pleasant drive when we ran across the “snowmometer”. I had forgotten about it. The record high snowfall was 32.5’ in ‘78-‘79 and the average level is 20’. The highest snowfall while I was a student at Mich. Tech was 24'. Most of this snow occurs Nov through Jan. Then the lake freezes over and it just gets cold.

Fort Wilkins was built in 1844 to keep the peace in Michigan’s Copper Country but was abandoned just two years later. The hordes of miners coming in just didn’t create much trouble. Here’s a view toward Lake Fanny Hooe and a panorama of the parade ground and main buildings.

The next stop was Copper Harbor where we had lunch at the Tamarack Inn. We both had pasties and agreed they were very good. But really, it’s hard not to like something wrapped in pie crust.

There is a scenic overlook on the Copper Harbor end of the Brockway Mtn Dr that gives gorgeous overviews of Lake Fanny Hooe and Copper Harbor. Unfortunately, it was blocked off with orange barrels so we couldn’t park there. Luckily, we were able to find a wide(ish) spot on the road nearby so we could walk to it. Ken agreed that it was a beautiful view. The right hand picture shows Lake Fanny Hooe on the right and Copper Harbor & Lake Superior on the left. Fort Wilkins is on that strip of land between the harbor and the lake.

The rest of the drive was pretty, but not particularly photogenic. The colors weren’t really turning much yet, so it was just a mass of green. Pretty, mind you, just not photographable, at least by me.

After admiring Eagle Harbor a bit and deciding not to go to their lighthouse museum, we continued our way to Eagle River and the Jampot. Actually, in the reverse order. The Jampot Jam Shop and Bakery is owned and operated by the holy order of the the Society of St. John. One of the best blog reviews I’ve read on it is at the-jampot-baked-goods-from-the-hands-of-god. I particularly wanted to get some thimbleberry jam. I made some while I went to MTU and like it a lot. Wicked expensive to buy though because the berries aren’t plentiful and are hard to pick. They fall on the ground just as you are reaching for them.

I did get a jar of jam but also picked up a piece of fruitcake and a huge muffin. The muffin was OK but the fruitcake was to die for. Both Ken and I love fruitcake. I would have bought a lot more if I knew it was this good. [I’m writing this significantly after the fact so I can’t remember what kind of muffin it was.]

The next stop was Eagle River Falls, a favorite stopping place when we were kids. Unfortunately, it has been a very dry year so the falls almost weren’t there.

Finally, since there was a lot of day left, we decided to get back to US-41, head north, and take the Lac La Belle/Gay loop. It wasn’t as scenic as I had hoped it would be. Mostly just forest. There was a long stretch between Lac La Belle and Gay that had promise but the road didn’t run close enough to the shore to get good lake views. Still, it was a nice drive.

Manistique to Laurium

Our goal for the day was the Laurium Manor Inn where we would be staying for the next three nights. Pretty fancy looking, isn’t it? We had originally figured on staying in Houghton but all hotels were full – it was freshman incoming weekend at Michigan Tech. Something I never thought of as we were making our plans. I think we probably got one of the few remaining rooms in this B&B, it was a former maid’s room on the third floor. Walk up.

Leaving Manistique, we took the longer but presumably more scenic NF-13 per David’s suggestion rather than M-94 up to Munising. We were a bit concerned about the potential for bad road (the Charger is pretty fussy), but it was just fine. The scenery, however, was pretty much a wall of trees. I prefer a bit more variety. We took a left at Munising onto M-28 and continued to Au Train where there is a picnic area with access to a lovely, sandy beach on Lake Superior. Ken wanted to stick his toes in the water. I had better sense (and experience). The day promised to be pretty hot so maybe that water would feel good in the afternoon.

Then it was onward, ever onward. To Ishpeming, where we planned on stopping at Lawry’s for a pasty. Have to have at least one of these iconic pies while in the UP! Yelp had good reviews for the place and it was in a good location for a lunch stop. BUT. We couldn’t find it! I plugged the address into the GPS, drove past where it said it should be, didn’t see it, so continued on down the road through West Ishpeming and into country. Finally decided to turn around and give it another go thinking the signage might be poor. Still couldn’t find it near where the GPS said it should be. Shrugged our shoulders, gave up, and turned around to continue on our way figuring we’d stop to eat someplace else. Wouldn’t you know it? Shortly past our original turn around spot, we saw the sign and pulled in. The pasties were very good, by the way.

The rest of the drive to Houghton and thence to Laurium was uneventful. I had been a student at Michigan Tech 1969-1974 and had been over this road several times a year in that period. Since leaving, however, I had only been back once – in 1998. I remember being struck the same way then – by how familiar everything felt even though I couldn’t really predict what was coming up next. But, when I saw it, I knew it was right.

We arrived in Laurium mid-afternoon, checked in, lugged our gear up one flight of family stairs and one flight of servant stairs, and turned the room AC on. It was HOT in there. After relaxing and wandering about the house for a bit, we checked out the menus and decided on the Michigan Café & Brew Pub in neighboring Calumet. An excellent choice. Ken liked his beer and I *loved* my food. Citrus-bourbon trout and a salad with a fantastic green goddess type house dressing.

On our way back to the Inn, we stopped by a little corner park we had seen and were curious about. It turns out that George Gipp of football fame (“win one for the Gipper”) was from Laurium and this is a memorial park. Very nice.

Mackinaw to Manistique

Today was another picture perfect day. We were on the road and crossing the bridge by 9:15am. Our next overnight was Manistique – only 90+ miles away. We would have plenty of time to visit the two attractions in the area I wanted to see – Kitch-iti-kipi Spring and Fayette State Park – before having supper with Ken’s friend Dave who lives near Fayette SP.

The first half of the journey was along the shore of Lake Michigan. Very scenic. If we were interested in swimming, there are several pullouts to park along the beach. But we’re not beach people. We don’t even use the swimming pool at his house.
We did make one stop at the Cut River Bridge. This is a lovely roadside park I can remember stopping at many times.There are steps and trails down to the river 147’ below and along the river to Lake Michigan. We just stuck to the paved trail that leads under the bridge to an overlook.

We got into Manistique late morning, far too early to check in, so continued on to Kitch-iti-kipi Spring, only 10 miles away. “Two hundred feet across, the forty foot deep Kitch-iti-kipi is Michigan’s largest Spring. Over 16,000 gallons a minute gush from fissures in the underlying limestone.” They’ve strung a cable across the spring and there is a raft with an open center that runs along the cable. A neat little attraction.

Raft pulling up to the dock

Ken moving the raft

Ken peering into the depths

Trout

We went back to Manistique for lunch at the Upper Crust Café Bakery & Deli. This was a Yelp suggestion. Very good half sandwich and soup. We sat outside and watched a fishing boat across the river being prepped.

The afternoon was spent at Fayette Historic State Park. This park was built around the company town of Fayette, “once one of the Upper Peninsula’s most productive iron-smelting operations.” The blast furnaces were in production from 1867-1891. “Today, twenty structures, including the furnace complex, business district and employees’ homes, recall the daily life of this industrial community.”

		Fayette VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

After leaving the park, we headed over to David’s for a visit ending by going over to Sherry’s Port Bar for supper. I had the pan-fried whitefish.