Wrapping it up in and around Houghton -- Final Part THIS Season!

Houghton, MI     6:45 PM EDT:  Currently 66   Considerable cloudiness, areas of patchy fog. Winds 10 to 15 MPH

                           

Of course one cannot leave this area without talking and sharing pictures of the many lighthouses along the shore. Technology has brought many changes, but still some of these old structures are maintained for the "heritage seekers" among us to seek out, to explore, to marvel and wonder about those times of old. This link on "Digging the Keweenaw" will help explain why we enjoy this area so much!

Eagle Harbor Lighthouse

Eagle Harbor Lighthouse

Sand Hills Lighthouse Inn

The Sand Hills Lighthouse Inn is now a bed and breakfast lighthouse, and according to their web site, a fine one to visit!. This lighthouse is on the western side of the peninsula. We found another lighthouse on the eastern side which we understand, from Bob and Jo's blog, is another private one. What would it be like to live in an old light house?!

Copper Harbor Lighthouse

We "toured" Copper Harbor from a distance. Rupert was glad we did!

In our meanderings, we came across some falls; and stopped along our meanderings so Rupert could run around--it seems we all need to stretch our legs (even short Corgi legs)!

Eagle Falls

County Park along shore of Lake Superior

Eastern Shore - Lake Superior

Rupert playing "hide and seek!"

We learned of the "Trolls"--those Michiganders living "below the bridge," through our geocaching. So if we come to the Keweenaw from the west, then we are not trolls....?    Lindy may qualify, for she spent two years in Southfield, MI as a Teacher in Residence at the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards...!

We enjoyed geocaching around Houghton and throughout our travels. The Measure of the Keweenaw is a virtual geocache! Fun! We had a hard time imagining that much snow!

Float Copper

And of course this was another geocache! It is a piece of "float copper"-- a mass of copper exposed and transported by Ice Age Glaciers, found in 1970 four and one half miles west of Calumet buried in three feet of soil. It weights 9,392 pounds! We learned a lot about this area through geocaching and had great fun!

For any history buffs reading this, we wonder how much of the Keweenaw copper was traded by the residents of Chaco Canyon National Monument in north west New Mexico....!

Fall Colors!

We did see some color--as it is late August! Realizing that fall is coming, we once again wondered about this country in the winter.

Note that the bridge has two decks, which they lower in the winter so snowmobiles can cross using the lower deck. A unique bridge indeed! Check out this link for a brief history and more information on the double decker bridge!

Waterfront Bike Trail  along Portage Lake

What makes this RV park special is that we can "saddle up" our bikes, with Rupert in tow in his chariot on the waterfront pedestrian and bike trail. Four miles is paved which makes it really nice for the casual rider. We rode out 7.5 miles, finding the gravel trail easy to navigate on our bikes. We ran into two problems:  water where we had to "portage" our bikes; and preparations for a special occasion (wedding perhaps?) that would limit access on the trail should people be present....! We turned around shortly after encountering the preparations across the trail!

Lindy tried to take pictures using her phone, but when she almost dumped her bike and ran into Rupert's chariot, the feeble result was one very blurry shot...so above is a picture from the web.

We depart tomorrow--heading to South Dakota to renew Driver's License, then on through Wyoming (depending on weather!), down through Utah and finally Arizona.

We leave you with this shot.

We are the Roving Riders, SWIRVIN on down the road! Tune in later for more of our adventures....