A Little Slice of da Harbor...: Frosty the Harbor

Monday, January 28, 2013

Frosty the Harbor

So far I haven't come across any major ice volcanoes. However, while driving down toward the blinking light, I saw some nice white mounds by Porter's Island. I'll have to go check those out.

But that Monday I went hunting for them, I got another surprise.

Duce, Tiki, Steve and I went out to the lighthouse (a favorite past time) in search of the splashing beasts. Now this was one of those really cold days with a wind off the lake (which should have made it feel warmer, but Mother Nature must have been having one of those days). Instead, this is what we found.

A frosty little tree!

An eight foot high conglomerate covered in icicles

The spot where you can see the Chrysocolla

The crew battling the icy shore

Icicles on the end of the dock

Then we went to the shore by the Water Treatment Plant, but the Harbor was freezing over, so not much excitement there. Just cold!

I believe everyone in town survived the negative degree nastiness. Now we are relishing in the snow. We got so much consistent snow that I was inspired to write a few haikus (or at least my version of them). Here are a couple.

After busting through

Medora's drifts, one brown leaf

lays on the white ground

Calumet snowbanks

piled so high, the houses

look like triangles

Today was the first day I got to snowboard Mt. Bohemia. It was awesome! Five to six inches of fresh, heavy snow. I can't even really call it powder because it was so buttery! But I got fresh tracks on nearly every run I took, and some of them were mostly freshies!

It was great to get back into that game. I love watching the clouds spin over Lac La Belle. It was a gorgeous winter day. The sky was blue in da Harbor this morning. Temps warmed up to drips. The wind shook not a leaf. And, of course, we got more snow.

Well, let's see what this next week brings!

2 comments:

MichaelJanuary 28, 2013 at 11:34 PM
Oh how I loved the daily rhythm of snowfall back in the late seventies. ..it brings back fond memories. The poems were great Amanda, Thanks
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AmandaFebruary 5, 2013 at 5:08 PM
Hey Michael! Thanks for your comments. They are always relevant and thoughtful.
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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!

Monday, January 28, 2013

Frosty the Harbor

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Unofficial Overview from a Resident's Point of View

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