A Brief Report

Oh no.  My computer pooped out on me, so I am scrapping to find you.  I guess I just have to stick with with basics for now.

Color Report

The Covered Stretch is around 20% turned.  The colors are quite bright and florescent because they're mostly maples, of course.  I haven't seen a whole lot on M-26 or Brockway yet, but it could go fast.  Looks like people are ready to see some bright, shiny leaves because town is filling up this weekend!

Sorry to be so brief, but technology is against me momentarily.  I really do think about you much more than I am able to communicate.  Thanks for still reading, though!  Be well!

Down Under the Bridge.

 Though I have travelled over 700 miles since I left Copper Harbor, I am still in Michigan.  Man this is a big state.  I did go the Wisconsin route, however.  I have to get my fresh cheese curd fix. 

So, I don't mean to get all sentimental on you again, but it was really hard to leave this last time. Probably because I knew how great I felt while I was here.  Even though the town was overrun with visitors, my spirit was overcome with peace and inspiration.

Plus, the choke cherries were amazing.  For a wino, ahem, winemaker, choke cherries are a prime fruit.  Imagine bunches of cherry red grapes hanging from the trees -- almost ready to pick.  Sooooo close to being ready to shuck off those branches.  And I had to leave.  Choke is some of the best wine I have ever made.  Well, next year, I hope.  Just look at these babies.

Whopping bunches of chokes... for the birds

As odd as it may sound, this picture was in my mind as I turned up the hill on Highway 41.  Then I looked back at Lake Superior in my rearview mirror, and said See you later beautiful lake.  Sniff a tear.  Oh, she is such a beauty.  My heart longs to be there still.  Probably much like yours if you are not there right now.

Do you want to know where I am 700 miles away still in Michigan?  Sitting in a hotel in Ann Arbor.  It's not so bad.  I'd be a bit more adventurous if I wasn't so afraid to drive in cities with actual lines of traffic and stop lights.  We're here for Braeden anyway, my mother and I.  Don't worry.  He's doing fine.  Just needs some check-ups and testing, and Mott's is worth the drive.

I've been longing to tell you about something that I've seen lately.  Maybe others have seen them more too, but I haven't really heard anything.  

Wolves.  

Okay, so two wolves on two separate occasions.  That's really more wolves than I've seen in my whole entire life.  And what they were doing is what gives me that goosebumpy feeling.  Both times were in the U.P.  Both were while I was driving with my little boy in the back seat.  And BOTH times the wolf came out of the woods and stayed there, staring.  

The first time I was driving south just south of South Range.  I thought it was a deer at first because, well, that's what usually jumps out of the woods.  Then I saw that it looked more like a dog.  A huge prancing dog with no collar.  Oh my gosh, that's a wolf, Braeden!  He was probably sleeping by that time.  But the wolf, in it's tall tan and gray glory frolicked across the road, made a U-turn back across the road, stopped on the yellow line and stared at me.  Not a glare or anything scary, but a gaze as if to say, "I am here for you."  Then it trapsed off back into the woods where it came out.  Has this ever happened to you?  I think it's pretty strange behavior for such a beast, and though I thought it a bit incredible, it instantly put my mind at ease, and I knew everything was going to be all right.  Kind of like a sign of good luck.

The second time was less than two months later.  I was cruising north just north of Mohawk.  I noticed brake lights on the car ahead of me.  Slightly annoyed because this is where we get to speed up, I saw why they slowed down.  A wolf stood on the driver's left side of the road just looking around calmly.  You know, it watched us as we went by.  That same calming feeling filled me as we passed, and I hoped the car behind me got to bask in its majesty as well.

Now, when I think of wolves in the wild, I would be a bit more scared.  Especially if I was walking on a trail somewhere and there it was -- looking at me.  Yeah, I know I was in a car, but this was really different.  I think Braeden's energy is behind it.  Call me a kook if you want, but I try to listen to my intuition, and that's what it said.  That sweet little boy has already led me on quite a journey.  We'll see where this one goes!

Happy September, by the way.  I know you're probably biting your fingernails because I'm way far away from the Keweenaw, and I can't give you a good color report.  Oh, I bet you have other resources, who am I kidding?  But, if you like my report, I should be back by September 13th or so.  I am excited to show Braeden the colors in the trees.  When he was born, they were already brown on the ground.

Well, I'll see you when I'm back up Nort, eh!

Back to Myself

Last week I drove back to Copper Harbor.  After 5 weeks of somewhere else, I was eager to return.  But I didn't realize how much I missed it until I got back.  I'm sure you can relate to this.  It may sound cliche, but it's true.  Here it goes.

Once I got just south of Houghton, and I crested that hill, I got goosebumps.  I felt like I was truly back in the Keweenaw.  Coming over the hill into Copper Harbor, though, wow.  I saw the sign and the lake, and I cried.  Real tears trickled down my face.  I didn't even care as long as I could still see the road.

When I pulled into my driveway, I opened my car door, hit the ground on my knees and kissed the rocks and sand.  If I would have kissed it the way I really felt, I would have had a mouth full of dirt, and that didn't seem like fun to wash out, so I just kissed it with my lips.  When I looked up, I saw my thimbleberry plants bursting with magenta orbs of tang.  I ate as many as I could one right after the other until I remembered I had a sleeping baby in the car.  He was still sleeping, so I looked out at my little town and took a deep breath.

That's when it hit me.

I felt two feelings at that moment.  One was like someone inserted my "missing piece" somewhere in my body and soul.  A piece I didn't even realize was gone until it got put back.  I felt whole again.  The other feeling was like someone plugged me back into life.  I didn't realize I was unplugged until the electricity of the air energized me and made me feel alive.  Hello, Amanda!!!  There you are!!!  I missed you!!!

I am not exaggerating this.  I bet you believe me.  

I know that most people come here and feel like a weight is lifted off their shoulders and peace fills their soul.  That is wonderful too.  I would feel that way if my life away from here was stressful, but it's not.  It's just, well, to be polite, not here.

So there I was.  Completely Amanda again.  I jumped and cheered and Braeden woke up.  I tried celebrating with him, but I don't know if he fully understood my elation.  I showed him around the house and checked his reaction.  He was more observant than reacting.  Pretty typical for him.  He takes it all in, that wise little man.

Like at Hunter's Point.  He loves to sit in the rocks and chew on them.  Here he is picking out a tasty one.

B finding his next chew toy

That boy is tough, I tell you.  And just darling.  

We've gone quite a few places since we've been home.  Great Sand Bay where he took his first dip in Lake Superior and ate his first fist-fulls of sand.  Up and down Paul's Plunge.  Along the first part of the Keweenaw Point Trail.  Lake Manganese and Fanny Hooe.  Through Fort Wilkins campground on a busy weekend in August.  Atop Brockway Mountain for his first time.  Clyde's field.  Docks along the harbor shore.  Brickside Brewery where the bartenders always give him free beer.  Kisses!  I mean they give him kisses and hugs.  

So here is a picture of the beginning of the Keweenaw Point Trail.  I have told you this before, but this trail is destined to loop around the tip of the Keweenaw (hence the name) and Phase I is now complete.  It starts on Manganese Road just above the falls and comes out just east of Lake Fanny Hooe by the Mandan Loop near the beginning of Highway 41.  Got that?

KPT Trailhead!

I was intrigued by the suspended rock at the beginning.  Cool, huh?

And here is a part of the seasons that you may not have fully compared in your head.  The difference between the bottom of Manganese Falls in the spring and late summer.  Can you guess which is which below?  Hint: it's the same order I just mentioned.

Can you believe it?  It hardly looks like the same spot!  But it is.  I am not a liar.

The berries are pretty amazing right now.  Yeah.  What a tease this year.  I mean, here I am, actually here with all day to pick, and someone won't sit still in the bushes for hours at a time.  I don't blame him, though.  When he's ready to pick with me, I'll have him make up for it.  Tee hee!

So here is a bit of blatant truth into my life.  Raw Amanda.  I can't get out to pick berries to make, um, wine, so I just bought rice to make sake!  Ha!  I will find a way to make wine!  I think it will be a nice experiment.  I'm all about  fermentation experimentation.   See also: I like to make and drink wine.  

Guess what.  It's Art in the Park this weekend in da Harbor!  If you're coming up and you don't have a place to sleep, you'll be sleeping in your car.  Or on some nice person's beach, I don't know.  Sleeping on a pebbly beach is quite wonderful, actually.  Even if you don't have a tent.  Unless the bugs are out...

So, if you come up this weekend, stop by the bake sale.  That's where Braeden and I will be!  I'm running it again this year.  Bring some baked goods or buy some!  If we get to talking and I like you, maybe you can try my wine sometime.  See you in September!

Adventure Redifined

You're probably wondering how things are going in Duluth.  Well, I don't even know!

I've been west of Duluth a couple times this summer to see my sweet man, but I haven't really been in Duluth - the city.  But the times I've been to that area have been interesting and adventurous.

"Why haven't you been living in Duluth, Amanda?"  That's a fair question.  See, when you bank on the life of a contractor, you bank on chance and waiting.  We waited (and are still waiting) for some of those chances, so I am staying nearby at Aaron's parents' house for the month of July.  Then Braeden and I can book it the 100 miles each week to be a family -- in a house with a bunch of trail working dudes.

Here are some of the interesting and adventurous parts of Duluth, or, west of Duluth.

The flowers are quite similar to those of the Keweenaw.  I suppose you would assume that, but there some differences that I have noticed because for some strange reason that is what the essence of my being gravitates toward.  

• They have lots of dewberries (which are delicious).  I have only found a few of those in da Harbor.
• Like this western part of Wisconsin, where I currently reside, they have lots of water hemlock.  Cicuta douglasii.  Do you know what that means???  It means that it's a good thing that I don't hate anyone.  I know where the hemlock is, and I know how to use it.  But don't worry.  I won't.  That would be wrong, and besides, I just said this in my blog, so that's evidence.
• Their shinleaf is not as scarce.
• They have thimbleberry plants, and they may not even know it.  I have not seen a single flower or berry, but the plants are rampant in thimble-loving areas.
• I saw my first Michigan lilies bouncing in the breeze.
• I saw my first bloodroot leaves, but the flowers already dropped.
• Virginia creeper is common.

Wow, I am a nerd.  But most people fill their mind with useless information of some kind.  Some people have sports.  Some have Hollywood.  I have wildflowers.  Thank goodness for diversity on this planet.

Also, west of Duluth, I have hiked part if not all of the original Seven Bridges West trail.  I can recount most of those bridges though many of them have been crumbled by floods.

Then one day the president of Rock Solid Trail Contracting LLC. (aka my husband) asked if Braeden and I would like to go on an adventure ride in the side-by-side.  He was hauling lumber from the road to their new trail via an old ATV trail.  Well, what else did we have to do?  We went.

We buckled the little man in nice and tight.  I would have done this anyway, but the fact that Aaron did too should have set me off for what he meant by "adventure."  My definition of adventure is setting off into new or old places where one can always learn something new and expect the unexpected.  Aaron's definition includes something along the lines of hopefully not dying.

So we went on Aaron's "adventure."

Early in the trip, as we rounded a corner and I thought we might slide off and sink into the muddy clay, I said, "Whew.  That was an adventure right there."  Aaron laughed and said, "The adventure has just begun."  Still no red flags went off in my mind.  And I have been with this man for over 10 years.  Have I learned nothing???

A few branches whipped and ripped beside my head.  That didn't bug me, though.  I knew parameters were tight.  Some flesh-stinging wounds were just part of the ride.  But then he took us on some turns where I thought that maxly packed machine was going to tumble down the hill.  I tried not to envision us rolling down the hill, but I did.  And we didn't.  But the adventure wasn't over.

Have you ever been to Six Flags Great America?  They have this roller coaster ride called Raging Bull.  I've included a video that I found on youtube of some people riding this beast in the front seat to help illustrate how I felt.

Did you watch it?  Okay.  Now remember the first part as they chug-chug-chug up and up that first hill, but add the element of Oh-my-God-are-we-going-to-make-it-up-this-hill?  Even Aaron wasn't sure.  We were on one of his test runs.  After making it up one, I asked, "Was that the worst one?"  He shook his head.  I kept wondering why he would take his wife and  infant son (who was fast asleep) on such a ride.  That's Aaron for you.  Never a dull moment.

Then remember the part where they go straight down and you can hear the woman say, "I can't see anything!"  What she means is that you can't see what's in front of you because it is so straight down that it's out of sight.  I remember being on this roller coaster ride at Six Flags.  I thought that exact same thing.  Then I shrieked the whole way down.

And that is the experience that flashed through my mind when Aaron took us down the hill.  Again, I envisioned us tumbling down bumper over lumber.  But we didn't tumble.  And Aaron had to keep up his speed at the bottom in order to make it up the next hill... the worst one.

But I am here to write about it, so you know we didn't die.  We all stayed quite buckled in, actually, so I give that Kubuta 4x4 a lot of durability and safety credit.  Aaron ran that trip multiple times.  It was just a day in his work life, but a day that I thought might end mine.

Aaron's definition of adventure is forever ingrained in my brain.

You know what I miss?  I miss the cool Lake Superior breezes.  I forgot how hot Wisconsin summers can be, and my veins are no longer use to this.  I can't even lay out for a suntan because I feel like a slice of bacon ready to crisp up in a cast iron pan.  But a slice of bacon does sound good right about now.  Mmm, bacon.

The only picture I have that applies to this blog is the one I took of the Copper Harbor bell buoy just a few days before I left for Wisconsin.  Here it is as the sun set behind it.

Ye old buoy up close

Ding da ding ding!  Man, I miss that sound.

Picture Perfect

Every time I'm going to write, I think Okay, now Amanda, don't apologize for not writing in a while.  It makes you look bad.  Well, you deserve an apology because it's now been well over a month.  I'm sorry.  I hope to make it up to you.

So here's an inside scoop into my brain.  After so long, and so many adventures and so much to say, I feel overwhelmed.  What am I even going to say?  What order do I put it in?  How should I organize it?  And I just can't make a decision, so I just wait longer.

Luckily, I thought of a good way to do this.  Pictures!  I took lots of pictures, so I'll just show you them all and write a brief caption.  I hope that works for you!

Before I begin, here are a couple facts that aren't necessarily captured digitally.  The blackflies are almost gone already.  And the skeeters are coming out more.  The weather has been lovely -- a little cool, but we are not going to complain!  Weekends have been busy, and the weeks are still a bit slower until after July 4th.

Okay.  Moving on.  And yes, there are a lot of plants.

Early arbutus in May

Manganese Creek in May

Then I went to a Michigan Outdoor Writers Association conference in early June.  We stayed at Treetops in Gaylord, MI.  Really now, that part of the state isn't so scary.  It was a nice time.

It took us two hours to hike two miles here in Gaylord, MI

I was with true naturalists that day.

A Gaylord beech tree looking at us

My first partridge berry sighting ever!

Trilliums on their way out for the spring

A not-so-wild herd of elk in Aspen Park

"Tom" foolery in Aspen Park

Three awards won by yours truly at that conference

And back to da Harbor...

Starflowers on a mossy log

New growth on the balsam trees

Bunchberry flowers

Freshly sprouted cherries standing straight up!

Chokecherry flower clusters

I have two gallons of dandelion champagne brewing...

Freshly budded douglas honeysuckle

Gaywings!

Flowerless hepatica leaves

Lilacs in peak season!

Cream pea vine

The first wild rose I spotted this year!

Lonesome thimbleberry flower

Serviceberry/Juneberry/Sugarplum flowers

Wild sarsasparilla -- still tiny and red

Not sure what this one was... anyone?

Little man and me enjoying our hike!

Ducks in Fanny Hooe Creek.  See them?

The Copper Harbor Volunteer Fire Department spaghetti dinner is tonight from 5-8pm.  Bake sale and silent auction.  I'm going!

The Isle Royale Queen IV sunset cruise fundraiser for the fireworks is Wednesday, June 24th.  Boat leaves at 7pm sharp.  I'll be there too!

Catch me if you can!

The Harbor All Over Again

So remember, I have news for you.

Sunday, April 26th, I had a great hike with Annele and Braeden.  B had the easy ride in my backpack while I got to sweat extra.

Along the way, I saw those tough oval leaves trailing through the fallen brown oaks.  Arbutus?  Is that you?  Sure enough, it was another arbutus plant.  She even had buds!  Annele knelt down to smell them, but apparently they need to be open to be fragrant.

As we ascended the ridge, we heard a boat motor on the lake.  It was really loud, and it lingered.  Well, when we approached the top of the ridge at Stairway to Heaven, guess who we saw!  The buoy tender!  How cool.  I have been waiting to see it drop off for years, and by some chance it was out there while we crested the ridge.  B would have seen it too if he wasn’t snoozing the whole time.

The buoy tender from afar

But that is not my news.

Today was magical for B and me.  Only, he doesn’t realize how special it was (or does he?).  It was a day full of firsts for him.  Here are a few:

• ·      He got to see his first wildflower – hepatica.  I picked one for his stroller.
• ·      It was the first time we got to take the stroller on the crushed gravel trail beside Fort Wilkins.  Only a couple snowy spots.
• ·      It was his first real experience with Lake Superior.

Let me elaborate on the last one.  We journeyed to the shore by the lighthouse overlook.  The sun sparkled the water and the trees at the mouth of the Fanny Hooe Creek held the breeze at bay.  I decided to take B out of his stroller, so he could get a better look and feel of things.

I sat him in my lap and put a warm rock in his hand.  Then another and another.  We threw some for Duce, and he got to watch that crazy doggy splash around in the water.  I even sat him right on the rocks to warm up his tushy.  Then I laid him belly-side-down, so he could feel all those rocks underneath him.  He seemed to enjoy the scene!

We found driftwood, and noticed how the creek entered the Big Lake.  We listened to the buoy ding, and I even dipped his little fingers in the water.  He was taking it all in.  I realized that I didn’t have my camera to capture such inaugural events, but as we waved good-bye to the shore, I was actually glad that I didn’t have to try to pose him for pictures.  Our time there in the moment was really wonderful.  I’m so glad that I get to share this beautiful place with such a perceptive little being.

I realized right then and there how much I am going to love being a mom up here.  What a unique way to experience the Keweenaw – like it’s the first time all over again!

That is not my news either, though.  Here it is.

So, this blog is titled “A Little Slice of da Harbor.”  “A little slice” refers to the fact that it is only my perspective.  And “da Harbor” refers to Copper Harbor, a harbor town on Lake Superior.  Well, would you be mad if I was at a different harbor town on Lake Superior for a little while?

My little family is moving to Duluth, MN from July through September.  Aaron has a trail building contract out there, and he doesn’t want to miss us all summer again.  Awww.

At first I decided to do it for the family.  But now I sort of feel like it will be a neat change for me personally.  Duluth is a cool city (albeit a city which is scary), and variety is the spice of life.  Braeden won’t know the difference because he’s never had a summer anywhere besides in my belly.

So there you have it.  My slice of da Harbor will be from Duluth this summer.  We’ll be back, though, don’t worry.  Our hearts are in this little harbor.

Sparkling, Rushing Water

Hello!

Except for today, it's definitely springtime.

But that makes sense -- the today thing.  You know that saying that includes, "Red in the morning, sailors take warning?"  This morning, when B woke me up, I looked out the window to a spectacular sunrise.  Oh, man.  Red and magenta beamed from the sky.  I considered taking a picture, but the power lines were in it, and pictures just never do it justice. 

In general, though, the weather has been sunny and pleasant.  My cheeks are getting rosy from getting out pretty much everyday!  Here are some highlights.

April 12th, I believe, the ice left the harbor.  She was all open and sparkling like a freshly opened bottle of champagne in the sunset.  I don't know which is better.  Wink.  Here is proof!

Open water from Third Street Dock

The waterfalls are pretty great right now.  Well, I'm assuming they are.  I've only been to Manganese Falls so far, but it was sweet!  Here's a video from Friday, April 17th.

It's always enchanting there when the sound is loud, the air is wet and the ground turns green and woody.  I love to watch the mist suspended above the rushing water.  Surreal, you know?

Another cool thing about that day was that I got to go there with three other friends.  Kind of cool how our little group hike randomly came together for a magical experience.  We got up to Lake Manganese and the serenity continued.  At the mouth near the creek leading to the falls, we paused (mostly because the bridge was no longer adhered) and chatted away.  Who did we scare up?

At least 200 geese.

A fraction of the geese on Lake Manganese

Suddenly they flew east past us in many different V (and some not-so-V) formations.  We stood there in awe.  "Woah," exhaled from all of our bodies.  These geese then circled back west and east and west again.  Then we watched them land on the southwest end where they must have took off from.  

Silly humans, riling up the peaceful geese.

People must be coming up to see the falls because I feel like there are more people around than usual this time of year.  Usually it's just us local folk.  But people who come up this time of year often don't have high expectations for a little town that's half shut down.

I knock on wood as I say this, but I seem to be getting this mom thing under control.  Nap times are somewhat on a schedule.  Solid foods help the boy sleep longer.  We have not had a medical emergency in a month.  Life is good!

What's my point?  Well, don't hold me to this, but I hope that this may be the beginning of a break for me.  A break in favor of my writing.  I miss it so much, and even this blog helps me feel like a whole person again.  

So I hope you enjoyed this post with actual media besides my rambling words.  And stay tuned because I have some news for you...