Winter in a Nutshell

Wow.  I think I picked the right winter to be a single mom.  With Aaron in Arkansas, and me taking care of B-man 24/7 (well, some hours I get a break!), taking care of the winter too sounded a bit daunting.  Luckily, when the snow was pummeling us for days in a row, Grammy and Grampy had my little guy in Wisconsin, so I could shovel every day and go to Mount Bohemia to shred some fresh pow.  Ow ow!

And bring in wood.  

I really should have put on my helmet cam this one time I had to bring in wood.  I mean, no time is easy, but some days are horrendous.  Like the one time I had to shovel off a three foot drift on my back porch just so I could get the wood-hauling sled off the porch.  But then, I had to pull it approximately 40 yards over undulating drifts (one as high as the top of the wood pile!) with my legs post-holing up to my thigh in spots and me swearing like a drunken sailor.  Then to dig out the flapping tarp and secure it up, so I could get to the wood, fill up that otter sled and haul the loaded sled like a scorn donkey back over the humps and finally up the steps to the porch where I could fill up my wood rack next to the wood stove.  Three times in a row to fill up the rack.

Yeah, that would have made a funny video.  Perhaps my neighbor John took one.  Hopefully he at least noticed my efforts.  Anyway, we stayed warm!

But back to my first point that this was a good winter to do all these burly chores myself.  This was certainly the mildest winter I can remember in my ten years here.  The harbor never even froze over!  Maybe a little sheet, but not for the walking!  Here are several pans of the Harbor with different ice statuses that I took throughout February.

Looking through "The Gap" early February

On the shore by the Fanny Hooe Creek exit mid February

Near the Harbor Haus later in February

So many times this winter I would look out and think, This it is!  She's gonna freeze for good this time!  But, nope.  Ain't gonna happen this winter, folks.  

And that is fine, I guess.  It's already March, so bring on the spring!

As the sun shines on my chair as I type now, I think spring is on the way.  Yes, it was a short, mild winter indeed.  But B and I made the best of it.  We got out for XC skiing, snowshoeing, pulling in the sled, shoveling, and walks along the ever-changing shore.  Oh, and here is a super fun one: ice volcanoes!

Me celebrating climbing the biggest one!

B erupting from one just his size!

I pan of the shore that day -- see which ones we were in?

No ice skating this year.  And no death-defying descents down Brockway Mountain.  Not this year.  Wink.

Nope.  B and I are headed to Arkansas to visit our hard-working man in some snowless weather.  For two weeks!  So we'll be gone for most of March and then lots of April to Portland, OR.  Spring is a good time to get out of here because there's often not a lot of do-fun-stuff opportunities while everything is melting, mushy and muddy.  Except see waterfalls...

So who knows where I'll be when I see you next?  Enjoy your life til then!

A Transition for the Shore and a Spirit

It's winter now!

Today I was getting ready for an adventure, and I asked myself, How should I turn the cuffs on my jeans so they don't get full of snow?  Then I laughed because it's time to wear snow pants!  And even snow shoes in some spots.  So yes, it's winter.  Smiley face.

So get a tissue ready because I'm about to tell you who didn't come with me on my adventure today.  Got your tissue?  Duce.  My handsome, sweet, goofy buttery boy has been released from his pain on this earth.  A tumor grew aggressively up his paw making walking and life in general very painful.  On Friday he stopped eating.  I took him to the vet yesterday, so he could be free.  He has all the rocks he cares to chase now.

Duce overlooking the lake at Great Sand Bay

Now he can overlook us anytime!  And work on the trails with Aaron -- something he surely missed when the pain arrived.  I have only great memories of that puppy.  A true adventure buddy indeed.

In fact, he led me to what is now one of my new favorite spots!  Can you believe I found another new spot around here?  And it's so close to my house, that I'm not worn out by the time I get there.

It started as a nice flat area overlooking the lake: the perfect spot to build a snow fort when Brady boy can help me.  But I realized that there were too many trees in the way for a great view, so we ventured further through the forest until we found a cool, flat spot with a clear view.  Well I'm not the only one who liked that spot because I saw the indentations of 4 deer in what little snow we had at the time.

Excited at this point, we went all the way to the shore, and Oh. My. Good-golly-miss-Molly. was it beautiful.  Check it out. 

The ice-covered shore in the sunshine

Okay, maybe you are thinking, "Come on, Amanda, that's not that spectacular."  Well, it was when I was there!  Here's another shot from (I think) the same day.  I love it when the sun shines exclusively on Porter's Island.

Sunny Porter's Island in the background

That was on another part of the shore.  I have gone out there day after day, and it's always different!  Thanks, Ducer, for showing me the way.

Another cool thing from out there is the ice couch.  I can just sit on the ice couch and watch the world go by.  Maybe I'll have to melt a cup holder in there to bring some tea!  In the picture below, my beautiful friend Annele is modeling the ice couch for us.

Annele on the ice couch!

I sit on it each day I go out there.  And now it's covered in snow, so it's a little more comfortable.  Snow cushions!  I bet it sits about 5 people if you ever want to bring a party out there...

Now let's take our ice adventure to Hunter's Point.  I went out there with my parents and little Brady boy.  Since it was almost 40 degrees with no wind that day, the little man was happy to join us.  My dad even commented that he had never seen the lake so calm as that day.

My parents were like little kids out there.  "Woah, look at this!" my mother would exclaim like a 4-year-old.  "Ooh, these rocks are dropping from their ice shelf," my dad noticed.  "Phil!  Take a picture of this!"  My mom would shout.  Just like kids, I tell ya.  That's one of the coolest parts of adventuring -- turning serious adults into curious children.  Let me know if you need a turn!

The ice was stunning that day, so they weren't being dramatic by any means.  Here is the ice parrot we found.

The perched ice parrot

And the lighting was so cool when I saw this ice-covered mass.  It reminds me of oozing lava, except the opposite temperature!

Hunter's Point ice formations

Today the journey was pretty amazing too.  I sat on that ice couch almost long enough for my buns to indent it.  But there was so much going on along the shore that I just couldn't sit still for long!

So remember that first picture I showed you of this shore that I made sound like it was unbelievable?  Well, now it's covered in snow, and the ice is growing out over the Big lake.  I saw several instances of ice volcanoes starting to form, only to be overgrown by other ones starting to form. 

That got my wheels spinning.  I remembered that I couldn't walk along the whole shore before because the ice was too slick, and the drop on the edge was too steep.  But today, ho ho, today that ice extended the walkable area and widened my margin of error.  However, I knew that not all that ice meant that there was solid ground underneath.

I am getting smart in my increasing-responsibility age.

Instead of walking along the edge of the icy shore that was constantly bombarded by frigidly swirling waves, I walked closer to the earth.  And I used icicled branches as holds along the slick spots.  I recognized that a false move would mean death, so I was extra cautious.  Oops, except that one time I slipped a bit down the ice mound.  Shoot, that woke me up!

Enough babbling.  Here is what it looks like now!

Waves changing the icy shore

At one point, I found a nice spot to sit and rest, and the sun was just right to light up these pieces of ice.  It looks like they're glowing!  At least one of my pictures turned out for you.  Pictures just did not do today's vistas justice.

Can you see that ice glowing?

In that picture you can also see that ice is starting to form on the lake.  Today it got broken up by the waves, but it started yesterday in the calm of the afternoon.

As far as inland lakes go, I think they are pretty well iced over.  I haven't ventured out on them myself because the last times I was out, I didn't think it was safe.  And especially when there is a baby on my back, I'm not going to risk it to check!

I always had the rule of thumb that if Duce wouldn't go on the ice, then I wouldn't go.  He had good intuition about that.  However, I would go out sometimes anyway because that's just how I am.  So today I asked him to be my ice guide from above.  I know he won't let me down.

On the Verge of Winter

Well, I was right about one thing: the bell buoy got stolen from right under my nose.  But today, as the sun shines brightly and the lake is calm, there is plenty of freighter action on the lake.  I saw three, and that's when I wasn't even trying!

That means winter is coming.  Sometimes, by now, we are already buried in snow.  Not this year!  Look what's on the ground in the woods on the last day of November!

Snow cover in the woods as of 11/30/2015

Not a whole lot.  But there are other signs of winter.  Just looky here at the frost I saw on my hike today.

Ground frosties!

And take a look over here at the potential first ice skating rink!

Clyde's pond icing over nicely

And wouldn't you know it, Donny K. Jr. is out in the park putting up Christmas lights so "we can have the best light display in the U.P."  Looks like he had some help from the big boys today.

Don sending lights to the top of that cedar

If you are up, feel free to help him out by decorating a tree.  He always needs volunteers.  We'll see how cheery things look this year.  Actually, you can see them too at Winter Wonderfest.  This year it's December 12th.  Crafts, gifts and goodies in the community building all day, then the park lights up at dark!  It's always a lovely time.

Know what else was a lovely time?  My parents came up two weekends ago.  One day my mom volunteered to watch Braeden (bless her heart), so my dad and I could get out for an adventure.  

On that blustery day,  we hiked the south shore of Hunter's Point.  Then we sat on the point for some time while we took it all in.  We hiked the north shore back, and each time we could jut out to the beach, we did.  We stood at each outlet and watched the waves crash.  It was neat because at each spot, the waves hit the shore differently.

Now I must say that my dad is really awesome because not everyone will stand there at each outlet on the beach and watch the waves crash on the shore and love every minute.  Thanks, Daddio.  We'll have to do it again sometime.

I also got to take my parents out to my new favorite rock.  That day was sunny and not as windy.  Though ice covered the stones up to the rock, and waves flooded the path between the icy stones, I timed it out, so I could sit up there and bask in the wonder of my spirit.  I just love that spot.  Here you can see my boots overlooking the eastern edge of Porter's Island in the distance.

The view from my rock

Now my goal is to get out there as much as possible this winter and take this photo. What will be different each time?  Lighting, ice, snow, my boots, my pants and whatever else will surprise us!  Now it may not be easy getting out there with little man and Duce through the blowing cold days, but I'll do my best.

So yeah.  I am pumped for winter.  Excited to see what it brings.  Hopefully I can show Brady Boy some ice skating moves before too much snow falls.  But I surely won't bet on that!

And want to know what's extra cool about this winter?  December 13th marks 10 years since Aaron and I moved up here.  Ten years!  I'm so excited, I just might have to celebrate!

Between a Rock and a Contest

Remember how I like to perch on intriguing boulders?  Well I found a new favorite one.  But I'm not going to tell you where it is; you have to guess.  I took a picture of it from an angle that you may only recognize if you've been there.

Where is this rock?

Do you know?  If so, leave a comment of where you think it is, and you could win a free signed copy of Touring the Tip!  The first person to enter the correct location of this rock wins.  Please bear in mind that you need to leave your name somewhere, and I must moderate all comments.  If you don't see your comment right away it's because I didn't get to publish it yet.  Okay, go!

Want to know something else really cool?  I got to go mountain biking -- true singletrack-ripping mountain biking for the first time in almost two years.  TWO YEARS!!!  That's a long time for a mountain biker.  But I am still learning how to give my son to someone else and say, "See you later.  I hope I come back in one piece!"

The weather has been lovely lately, though.  I think rain tomorrow, but we've had sunshine and sometimes no jacket weather!  We've had some clear night skies too.  I spent a couple evenings out watching shooting stars and constellations.  Man, it's great to be back.

Last I checked, the bell buoy was still out by the lighthouse.  But we know how quickly that gets swept out from under my nose.

Lucky for you (and me, of course), I am not moving away this winter.  You know, Arkansas just does not sound that appealing to me for four months.  Yeah I'll have to haul in wood and shovel and take care of a one year old and all that, but I can do it here!  I've had some unexpected adventures in the past, so I wonder what this winter will bring.  

I just love how outdoor activities depend on the weather.  Skating?  Parachuting?  Avalanche?  Okay, just kidding about the avalanche (I hope).  But life is full of surprises.

Otherwise, it's just nice and quiet here.  Oh, how I love it.  Well, I've seen some hunters up scouting lately, but other than that, just us.  What a gift.

Well, you're probably getting antsy to comment on where that rock it, so I'll let you get to it.  Good luck!  Maybe I'll see you out there sometime.

Winter Lull

Well, I just left you hanging like an icicle on a roof gutter.  I guess time flies when you feed and change and kiss a baby all day.

It's still winter here.  We don't really have a lot of snow on the ground.  Today I went for a walk in my hiking boots and jeans around the Ft. Wilkins trail, and that was all I really needed to ward off the snow.

The snowmobilers are up, though.  Especially on the weekends.  I think I saw almost 30 sledders walk into the Mariner on Saturday.  That's a lot of testosterone!  So the snowmobile trails started getting groomed December 1st, I believe.  The cross country ski trails are not groomed in da Harbor yet, but I bet they are at Swedetown and Michigan Tech trails.  They are so on top of things in the big city.

I really don't get out a lot for exciting excursions.  When Wee Man is able to enjoy the winter outside of my down jacket, I will take more liberties.  For now, we stick mostly around town.

But there are still interesting things in that close proximity.  Just a couple days ago I went down to the shore of Her Majesty.  I noticed the bell buoy was gone.  Well, I sure missed that brigade.  And I realized that I really missed staring out at that enchanting lake.

So I took a few moments and stared.  Just stared.  That feeling of peace came over me again.  Oh, that lake, she gets me every time.  I just need to get her in my sites!

I brought Braeden down to the lake several times, but he is always asleep by the time we get there, so I don't even think he's really gotten to see it yet.  When he's older, he'll be able to appreciate it more anyway.

Enough chit chat, I suppose.  I have taken a few photos of the world around me lately.  Here they are in no particular order.

Brockway's nose full of snow

Frozen waterfalls line the Harbor Haus dock

Duce and I ventured onto frozen Fanny Hooe

Reminiscence of big Superior waves

Tracks from the "civilized world"

This is definitely the time of year when a person needs friends or a partner up here.  Sometimes by 8 pm there's not an open sign facing the road.  If you want to be social, you have to call up your buddy and hang out.  Otherwise you're left with your dog or cat or Candy Crush game if the internet is working.  My point is that this is quite a realization if you get a wild hair.  You have no where to go besides out into the cold.  This, my friend, is one of the reasons we go crazy.

And just another reason I make my own wine.

But life is good here in da Harbor.  I'm participating in the town-wide Secret Santa game.  Though I really don't give much of a hoot about Christmas, I like this activity and how the locals get to interact.

Speaking of Christmas, the Winter Wonderfest is Saturday December 13th from 10-6 pm.  Lighting of the park, local crafts and artists, decoration station for the kiddies and a bake sale!  It's all right here in the township park.  Maybe we'll see you there!

Okay, the baby is waking up again, so I'll see you... um... maybe next year!

What's that number again?

29.5 inches.

That’s the official snow report from Keweenaw County for the last few days.  I couldn’t really guess how much it was when it was blowing around here because some areas drifted three feet and some were blown clean to the grass. 

29.5 inches is a lot.

29.5 inches on its way

So happy winter!  People are frantically trying to dig out of their houses.  They are slightly worried because they didn’t get their winter tires put on yet (we still need to order ours!).  I don’t think many people were ready for this.  Luckily, fingers crossed, we have all our firewood for the winter. 

If we don’t, we are going somewhere tropical.  Last night Aaron came in the door from the blizzard and said, “That’s it!  We’re buying our tickets to Hawaii right now!”

Luckily he got his plow put together yesterday, so he can push that mass of snow around in the driveway.  Last year winter started on Thanksgiving Day when we got that 12 inches.  We’ll see how all of us yoopers fair this year!

Luckily little Braeden doesn’t even realize what’s going on out there.  Babies can’t see that far out the window, let alone understand the change of seasons.  Well, maybe he does.  He did choose to live in Copper Harbor with us....

Today I got out for a snowshoe.  Oh, man was that amazing!  I even made a snow angel and watched the snow fall as I laid there enjoying the peace and wondering how I was going to get back up. 

Here are some wintery shots of the scenery.  Ehem.  The winter scenery since it really is winter now.

A nearly frozen bog

Bareberries with a new layer

Looking southwest across Lake Fanny Hooe

A handsome beast in the wonderland

Speaking of beasts, I saw lots of deer tracks on my shoe and also a couple otter slides!  The otters must have transferred from Lake Superior to Fanny Hooe.  Smart little buggers.

I guess I don't have any events to report at the moment.  They could possibly be going on, but I am out of the loop!

I guess it's time to dig out all my winter wear from the basement.  Take care!

Rock Ice

"Spring is coming!" I announced like Peter crying wolf.  No wolf.  No spring.

In fact, the day after my proclamation, all the slush and puddles froze up solid and jagged like the shores of High Rock Bay.  Unshovelable ice.  I think it did that just to spite me.

I knew winter wasn't over, but that was a quick shift.  And now we're in the middle of our second "winter storm" since then.  More snow is predicted than is actually falling, but that often happens with a south wind.

Did I do anything fun and exciting outside lately?  Not really.  Sorry.  But Aaron and his fishing buddies did.  They've been catching some beasts out of the Harbor.  Here is a picture of one that nearly went viral on facebook.

Aaron and the big pike

This bugger was 44 inches long and weighed 24 pounds.  Photo credit goes to Allan.  Guess they had fun on the ice that day!

I'm kind of, um, waiting for spring now.  Darn it.  I should never do that.  For your benefit, I will make it a point to get out more and embrace what is left of winter.  You deserve that at least.  And so do I.  And so does Duce, but he's ready for spring too.  I can tell.  He likes to lay out in the sunshine and absorb it into his black fur.

Business has slowed way down.  Especially during the week.  There are still some die hard snowmobilers, skiers and ice fishermen, but they don't come up in droves anymore.  We've got two weeks left of operation at the Bear Belly, so if you want a cup of award winning chili or the best reuben around, you better get there quick!  Tell them Amanda sent you!

What else can I say without boring you with life's insignificant details?  My writing is going well.  If you want to check out some of my latest work, you can find it at Actionhub.com.  Just search "Amanda Wais" in the top right search box to see my articles listed.  And hey, if you do that, it gives them more traffic, and my editor is more likely to hire me again.  Win win!

Also, my article about professional mountain bike coach (and awesome person), Lindsey Voreis is in Mountain Flyer Magazine right now.  I guess you have to find a copy of Issue 35 to read it.  I should have my copy soon!

Okay.  You probably don't really care about my writing stuff.  You care about da Harbor.  So do I.  The ice on the big lake is still seiching.  Now you see it.  Now you don't.  Everyday is a surprise.  Just another thing I love about this place!

The Blizzard Week

This past week shut the sunshine out behind gray clouds and let in consistent blizzard-like conditions.  Thursday seemed a bit ironic, as we listened to the blizzard warnings and looked out to blue skies... all day.  Before I get into blizzard details, I'll show you some of the pictures I took on Thursday -- the day before the blizzard struck.

That day I went out to Aaron and Allan's ice fishing shanty.  It sits at the mouth of Fanny Hooe Creek in the harbor.  If you've driven by there, you've probably seen it.  From there I snowshoed along the shore.  I caught a glimpse of this seldom seen sight.

A range light on the winter shore

Carrying on, I thought you might like to see the terrain I was walking on -- especially with Brockway in the background.

Uneven harbor snow terrain and Brockway Mountain

Along my travels, I saw a few glassy ice thingies that let the sun shine through.  I don't think it magnified the sun, though.  If it did, there would have been a hole where the snow melted.  Wouldn't that be something!

A window of ice

I guess I should tell you that my goal was to hike to Porter's Island and check out the lake to the north.  I heard rumors that there was open water in the distance, and I had to see for myself.  

I'm not going to lie.  The Big Lake just doesn't have the same effect when it's covered in snow and ice like the rest of the world.  I wanted to see some sparkling blue waves.

But before I got there, I saw a work of art that the snow uncovered.  Yes!  Put a little color in the day!

Lichen uncovered by the sun and wind

You know how it's really fun to take the South Beach Trail of Hunter's Point all the way to the point, then see your first glance of Lake Superior once you're out there?  That's what I tried to do that day.  I didn't want to look up too far, so that when I saw her open waters, I would be high atop Porter's Island.

That turned out not to be much of a challenge.  I was already on this shelf of Porter's, and I still couldn't see any water.

Another plate of glassy ice

 See what that shelf is made of in the picture above?  Bumpy ice.  That's what I got to climb to get to the top of the shelf of Porter's to take the picture below.

Open water waaaaaay on the horizon

I can't say that I was disappointed at how far away the water was.  And that I didn't see any waves.  Or that I couldn't even look at it for very long because the high winds seemed to blow right through me.  No.  It was marvelous to see a little bit of Her Majesty without all her winter layers on.   It gave me hope that spring will still come.

But not yet, as the blizzard reminded us.

So, this blizzard.  It was all over the news.  The Weather Channel people even came to Houghton to check it out.  "Over a foot of snow!"  "50 mph gusts and sustained winds!"  "All schools closed for Friday!"  "Stay in your houses!"  "Do not go anywhere!"  And so on.  

I remember the last time they predicted an actual system blizzard like this.  It was maybe 4 years ago.  It had all the same predictions.  And the next day, when we all looked out of our windows, it turned out to be a bust.  "I'll believe it when I see it," is always my motto.

This year was a little different.  I looked out the window Friday morning to see about 5 inches of snow.  But it wasn't the fluffy snow like we've been getting.  The warmer temperatures turned it into cement snow.  It would have easily been a foot of fluff.

Then, get this.  The winds have been blowing hard all the way until now.  They are still blowing nearly 20 mph.  This created drifts of monster proportions.  People's doors, vehicles and driveways were buried.  And here's the biggest doozy: M-26, near Great Sand Bay, was closed for four days due to 12 foot drifts.  FOUR DAYS!  Those poor people (and yes, people live there) were probably stranded.  At least they have a good story to tell!

According to Jeff at the Gas Lite, the Farmer's Almanac says that once March hits, this snow is all going to melt from 70 degrees and sunshine.  If that happens, we'll have floods and raging waterfalls.  I'll let you know how that goes... it's almost March!