Is It Still August?

Please pardon the absence of pictures in this post, but it feels like August all over again – with the weather and the rush-around-with-your-head-chopped-off feeling.  October 13^th (the day after the Harbor Haus closes) is my light at the end of the tunnel.

But here’s what doesn’t feel like August:

- Mushrooms are popping up all over and oozing their brilliant colors through the ground and old logs.

- The ponds and falls are finally starting to dry up.  Okay, well I guess that usually happens in August.

- The Isle Royale Queen IV is done with her ferry service for the year.  The last boat came back Monday... we danced out last cancan at the Harbor Haus.

- Mount Bohemia is offering chair lift rides this weekend!  Come on up, and look at the colors from up above!

Color report

Yesterday when one of the waitresses arrived at work, she said, “It was a gorgeous ride up today!”  What does that mean for you?  You might want to check the trees out!  I wish I could get out and take some pictures for you, but don't even think about asking right now.  Copper Harbor is still lacking in the color department, but you’ll miss the whole way up if you wait much longer.  I can’t say 41 is peaking right now, but it’s getting there, and after the gusts we had yesterday, the leaves won’t be able to hang on forever!

I am ashamed to say that I did this for the first time since I lived here.  “I don’t care about history,” was my excuse.  But I toured the grounds and buildings at Fort Wilkins in depth on Sunday, and I was blown away.  Their displays are well thought out.  I learned so much my head was swelling.  And the artifacts they display really take you back in time.  A couple of my favorites were the mine diagrams and the census from 1870.  If you haven’t been there, I highly recommend it.

On a history kick after the tour, a couple friends and I stopped at the Fort Store, and I found four out-of-print local history books bundled for $5!  What a steal!  The first one I’m reading is Mac Frimodig’s The Copper Harbor Stare … and Other Strange Things.  There’s even a story about the Brockway Hermit in there.  This book is a must-have treasure for any Harbor lover.  Get your soon because they are out of print!

I still hear the logging trucks cutting, slicing and hauling away the trees up by the Burma Road.  I think they started this last extraction two years ago.  Must be lots of trees left to cut down.  Careful if you drive around up there.  With the new logging roads, it’s easy to get lost, and those new roads are not on any maps.

Guess what.  It's October.  When I can feel October in my veins, I will truly celebrate.  For now I have to keep up with the grind.  The leaf peeper grind.  Hey, that could be a new dance!

Making Sticks

Oh, you are really going to get me into trouble one of these days.  Last night, because I promised you some footage, I ended up full of blackfly bites, soaked up to my ankles and with my face in the gravel.  However, the clips and stories I got for you made it all worth it.

Right now the logging company is actively logging up by Clark Mine Road.  Three of the CHTC singletrack trails have been demolished.  And as I watched empty double bed trucks go up, and logfull double beds leave town, I wanted to see for myself what it looks like up there.  Only I had to do it when the workers weren’t cutting, so I didn’t die.  Well, I didn’t die.  There’s another bright side to this adventure!

These are some of the first things I saw as I pedaled up East Vein Road.  The blackflies  swarmed me maliciously, so some of these were taken as I was on the move.

Something big has been here

East Vein Road as it veers off from Clark Mine Road 

Blue paint markings on the soil

Pink ribbon markings on the trees

Huge piles of moved earth

Another pile further up the road

Now let me interject.  Right around here is where I took a video of what it looks like to travel down these roads.  They are quite bumpy... I should have been hanging on with both hands.

You can laugh.  After I watched this, tears streamed down my face for way longer than the video itself.  I even laughed after I wiped some of the dirt off me on the road.  Oh, boy.  I need a hands free camera indeed!  Yes, I flipped right over the handle bars because I only had my hand on the front tire brake.  Stupid, stupid.

Shortly after that, I had to traverse a loooong puddle.  I geared my bike, so that I could pedal through without tipping over.  But this puddle was deep, so even on my bike, I got soaked up the pant legs.  Oh, boy, I thought.  What's next?

A marked stump

The site of Old Clark Mine -- Closed

 At this point, I was heading back west toward Manganese Road.  There were so many new side roads, that, if I didn't trust my gut, I might have gotten lost!

A tree marked in red

Decimation

Then I came upon the equipment.  Now I am not necessarily against logging.  I write in notebooks and wipe with toilet paper.  As long as trees are replanted, they are a renewable resource.  But when I saw these machines, my heart ached for the loss of life in my back yard.

Huge pieces of logging equipment

A close up of the red one's tool (it was as tall as me!)

Another view of the red one

The other side of the green one.  Those claws were scarily huge

Then I came to another site with stacks of logs.  I must say, I wasn't quite prepared for this one.

The blade on that saw was bigger than me!

The claws on the other side of this orange beast

Trees that were in the way

A close up of the freshly cut

Gravel in front of another "Closed" sign

At this point, I was next to the beaver pond.  It was alive!  ALIVE!!!  So here is a video of the sounds.  Crank it up, and you will be able to hear them all.

Oh, the pond made it all worth while for me.  I even saw a swimming turtle!  I thought that would be the end of my logging journey, but further down the Clark Mine Road, I saw another pile of sticks.

I did not obey this sign

The panoramic view of more logs

And that was pretty much it for my adventure of how one clears the forest.  As I coasted down farther, I stopped when I heard a strange sound.  Coyotes!  Ooh, they were howling like mad!  They weren't audible on the video I took, however, so this will have to do.  Owoooooo!!!  Ow ow ow owoooooooo!!  Yip yip yip.  Owoooooo!!!  

The sun was about to set, and I was up on the hill, so I decided to ride down to Lake Manganese.  Oh, it was so beautiful and still.  Ahh.  

On the way back home, I found some little friends!

Turtle digging to lay eggs

Turtle crossing Manganese Road

On my way down the hill, I saw a little mouse run across the road as well.  It was a good thing I was wearing my glasses because I got pelted with bugs as I coasted to Lake Fanny Hooe Resort.  

Thanks for coming with me.  Promise me you'll think of the old Clark Mine site next time you blow your nose!