A Little Slice of da Harbor...: Wild West

Friday, March 12, 2010

Wild West

Boy, did I miss you! I just got back from the Wild West, and the wildest part was the way home! But nevermind sleeping in an airport due to fog only to have the plane cancelled the next day anyway. Oh well, everybody had a great sense of humor and patience about the whole thing. And the bus driver was nice. I made it to Clintonville, WI at least!

When we stepped out of the Spokane, WA airport on Sunday, I was quite surprised to feel how hot the weather was. Sunny and hot! Not a flake of snow in site. Nevermind that the rest of the trip was rainy and chilly... one day in a tank top really hit the spot!

It was great to see my little brother and meet his snakes, rats, dog, roomates and friends. We even got to see a nice park area... you know, I like that sort of thing. I even saw Alice in Wonderlan in 3-D (the last time I saw a movie in a theatre was in Spokane 6 years ago). The coolest land area I got to see was on the drive to Portland, OR.

The interstate followed the Columbia River Gorge. Man, what a sight! Lots of the ridges reminded me of the Keweenaw, and the last ones on the way looked like the mountains and evergreens of Colorado.

Then Portland was a taste of Spring! Trees blooming, daffodils, primrose, crocus, forsythius and all sorts of beautiful colors! Once again, we missed the sunny weather, but the greens, pinks, yellows and reds sure made up for it!

Portland was a not-so-scary city. It seemed pretty progressive and liberal. And, of course, it was great to see my sister and her husband. Then the plane ride back to Minneapolis was quite amazing. At one point of the flight (pretty much the middle) I looked to the West and saw green and brown. To the East, the land looked like the frozen tundra! It was so cool how the climate changed with the turn of my head out my plane window.

The whole trip seemed pretty short-lived, except for the 17 hours in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport. That's how my dad spent his birthday. Guess it could always be worse!

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Unofficial Overview from a Resident's Point of View

“If you’ve never been there, you wouldn’t understand” is a quote printed above an outlined picture of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula on a t-shirt sold in gift shops in the area. Some people cock their heads in bewilderment of what this could mean. Well, if you’ve never been there (to da U.P.), then you wouldn’t understand.

It’s simple really. Where are you guaranteed to see more trees than people on any drive or walk? Where can you sit in a bar in April and know everybody’s name? Where can you wear flannel and Carharts anytime of the year without a flinch from a passerby? Where can you end most of your sentence with the colloquialism eh, eh? Where can you go to truly get away from the civilized world? If you answered “da U.P.” to all of these questions, why, you must have been there.

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula makes up one third of the state’s land mass, but only 3% of its entire population. It’s no wonder the average number of people per square mile is 19.3. Nineteen people per square mile! Its lack of inhabitants combined with a plethora of wilderness, unique geographical features and an abundance of water is a big part of what makes the U.P. so unique. In fact, it was included in the Sherman Travel worldwide “Top 10 Places to Go in 2005."

And unique in itself, at the most northern tip in the Keweenaw Peninsula sits the little village of Copper Harbor. “Tops in Michigan,” “the beginning of the road” and quite frankly, the hardest place to leave once your soul has found its peace. It’s the least visited and most revisited place in America. Returning visitors make an appearance at least once a year, no matter what gas prices are. And when they’re back at home, they dream of their next visit to the end of the world.

Why would people want to return to a place where their cell phones don’t work and they can’t get a Big Mac for at least 54 miles? Once you drive through the one and only blinking stop light in town, you are 99% guaranteed not to see any authorities. The town can take care of itself for the most part, and people respect each other and each other’s property.

To the local residents and the handfuls of returning tourists (of which some have been adopted), Copper Harbor is the only place where they can be themselves -- completely and shamelessly (at least until the next morning). Fashion does not exist, but comfort is a must. Possessions mean nothing, but attitude means the world. Loitering is encouraged, and talk is ceaseless. Fresh air is plentiful, and serenity is down the block on Lake Superior’s shore. Ahhh.

Only 90 people can bear to live there year-round (good thing because the post office only has 130 mailboxes), but the population peaks around 250 in the busy summer months when people reopen their business or their summer home.

Copper Harbor and the rest of the Keweenaw Peninsula average 270 inches of snow each season. Whether it falls consistently throughout the winter or all in one dump, it’s guaranteed to fall if it isn’t drilling sideways. Only four businesses stay open through these long months because sometimes, there’s just nobody there.

U.S. Highway 41, which runs all the way to Miami, Florida, begins in Copper Harbor, and yes, it gets plowed the whole way up. A half mile north, six miles east and five miles south of this landmark puts you in magical Lake Superior. I know it’s magical because I’ve caught myself and many other people staring, mesmerized by its pure vastness, undulations and crashing waves.

When you can enjoy every breath of Lake Superior air, wear clothing soley for funtion and not mind seeing the same people day after day after day after day, then, my friend, then, you’ll understand.

A Little Slice of da Harbor...

Copper Harbor, That is!

Friday, March 12, 2010

Wild West

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Unofficial Overview from a Resident's Point of View

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