A Little Slice of da Harbor...: A Berry Update

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

A Berry Update

Happy August!

Oy, I can tell it's August by the amount of people and heat. Not complaining, just saying.

There are a few people, however, that make me excited to see. A handful of times this summer, my blog readers have come into the Harbor Haus for dinner or what not, and introduced themselves to me as some one who reads my blog. Thank you! I appreciate knowing that you are out there enjoying my adventures and musings. I try my best to keep you entertained and informed. Just you wait til I get more creative energy stored up!

Now for a berry update. If you were with me last summer, you'll remember that berries of all kinds were huge and plentiful. This year, that is not the case.

The bilberry bushes are quite empty. I scouted my four best spots, all to find that I am walking more than picking. I mean, I've got almost two gallons already, but it took a lot of searching and time. They are my favorite because they are tasty and they freeze well.

The thimbleberries, however, are rocking. I'll be out tomorrow picking their little magenta buttons with Aaron's family. So pumped.

The blueberries seem a little late, but they're out there. Delicious too.

Cherries are doing well. I just need to find a ladder to reach them all. There are some nice trees on my way to work at the HH, but I try not to eat too many because my mouth gets all purple like I've been drinking merlot. Ha!

Sugar plums are a little late too, and not as juicy as last year, but I have a feeling I'm going to pick a bunch again for wine. Mmm.

Buffaloberries were more than I've ever seen, but I didn't pick any this year because they are so tart, and I really don't know what to do with them. They are mostly gone already -- maybe the birds ate them all!

I haven't checked out the chokecherries, raspberries or plums too much to see how they are doing yet. What? I'll find out soon enough.

Thanks for reading, and if you see me behind the bar at the Harbor Haus, say hello, and remind me to autograph a CH pamphlet for you!

4 comments:

AnonymousAugust 2, 2011 at 11:04 PM
Of course your blog is popular! You're a great way to keep track of what is going on in Copper Harbor when we can only visit once or twice a year. I would really like to sit there all summer near the lake but that isn't realistic do
the blog is the next best thing.
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AmandaAugust 4, 2011 at 11:06 AM
Oh, thank you! I surely appreciate it. I'm nostalgic for my writing (and video making) time again. October 15th is only two and a half months away....
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DeeAugust 4, 2011 at 9:22 PM
I'm in the log house next to the HH and planning to come in next Monday or Tuesday for dinner. Will introduce myself then...love this blog.
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AlexAugust 9, 2011 at 9:28 PM
I found thimbleberries in two places in Wisconsin (but I'm not telling where)
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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!

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

A Berry Update

4 comments:

Unofficial Overview from a Resident's Point of View

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