Minnesota, Wisconisn and into the UP

We were up early and out the door. We grabbed some coffee and hit the road across Minnesota. Initially we had thought we might have some stops in that state, but the cool things I had found were much farther south and we kind of just wanted to get to Michigan so we decided to just drive across the tops of both Minnesota and Wisconsin and get to the UP (Upper Peninsula).

I saw on the map that there was a pier place in Duluth and something that said brewery so we decided to check it out for lunch. The place was a traffic nightmare and loaded with tourists, but Aaron was very patient and found a parking spot. We walked toward the water to see Lake Superior and the lifting bridge (was not a regular drawbridge) that had been up moments before (probably creating the traffic nightmare). There was a visitor center there so I popped in and asked the lady if she knew of the brewery. She did, recommended it, gave me a map, and helped with directions. It was just along the lake a little ways, but too far to walk.

Fitger's has been around since the late 1800s and is a maze-like mega complex with shops and many restaurant options. We went for the straight brewery ordered a hefe for Aaron and a sampler of 7 for me and lunch. It was quite delicious. Then we got in the car to drive to Wisconsin and I slept practically the whole way across (mind you Wisconsin is not very wide across the top). Aaron laughed when he told me this story. "Are you going to take a nap?" Me: "No, I don't think so." Asleep.

I conveniently woke up a little before we crossed into Michigan so I was pepped and ready to go for the Welcome to Michigan sign. Aaron was appalled that the only experience I had in Michigan was getting off I80, crossing the border, taking my photo with the welcome sign and then turning around and getting back on the highway. That and it was no longer a welcome sign, it now says: Pure Michigan.

Michigan looks a lot like Virginia. So it was not the most interesting of car views, but it is pleasant. We headed pretty far across the UP, scored a decent hotel room, and went to Big Boy for dinner. I had never been (obviously look where they are located - 90% of them are in Michigan) and it was good diner food. We used our hotel time as internet time and made some progress plus enjoyed another evening sleeping with a mattress and sheets. :)

The next morning we did some free funny interesting things in the UP. Our first destination was the Michigan Iron Industry Museum in Negaunee (Ni-gone-eee Aaron laughed at me as I tried to pronounce all the ridiculous-don't-follow-any-rules-names of the UP). What an awesome place. This is a stellar little museum packed with interesting displays and information and probably only like 10 retired people go to a day (we had everyone there beat by thirty years). Iron mining is big business and before Minnesota got in the game, Michigan was the United States leader and probably beat out other nations. This is my favorite bit of information and I'm going to quote it. Think on it.

In the 150 years since 1833, the California gold rush produced less than a billion dollars of minerals. Michigan forests produced almost $4.5 billion of timber. The Keweenaw copper range generated about twice that amount. But these are dwarfed by the riches from iron, worth some $48 billion.

After that I convinced Aaron that we needed to backtrack and visit Da Yooper's Tourist Trap is Ishpeming, home of the largest running chainsaw (its powered by a car engine). People from the UP are known as Yoopers (apparently they picked that nickname). Apparently Da Yoopers are like a band or a comedy troupe or something... they sold the cds at the store, but Aaron says he has them on MP3 so I'll listen to it eventually. The place was hysterical and obviously someone spent a lot of time thinking of hilarious things to just throw together. A lot of it was these weird people in masks in silly scenes with deer and making jokes about how much snow they get in the UP. We giggled quite a lot and it was worth the stop. Say ya to the UP, eh! (I should have gotten the bumper sticker)

Next we went to the US National Ski Hall of Fame and Museum. The people were overly attentive because we were their first visitor of the day and maybe in a couple days (I always sign the guest book and no one else had for days). There were walls and walls of biographies of people inducted into the Hall of Fame, but presented in such a way that there was no way I was going to read any of them. The displays about the history of skiing and the changes in poles and skis were much more interesting. They even had a section in the changes on lifts and how people get up the mountain in the first place.

After that we went to Pictured Rocks National Seashore along Lake Superior. We stopped at a waterfall and did the supershort hike up to it. Pictured Rocks is known for its colorful banded cliffs, which we discovered, you can really only see well if you are on a boat. You could see a little, but apparently the views are better from the water. We went to a few overlooks and peeked around and then decided on a whim to hike down to the beach and check it out. It was a nice walk through the woods, but not the most level, so wearing sandals was not the wisest choice, but I made it. The water felt great and I enjoyed looking at the colorful pebbles. The sand on the beach was super fine and when I looked closely, round. I wanted some to take back for my class, but was unprepared. Aaron told me to just put some in my pockets, but I don't really like sand that much (Posse girls you know what I'm talking about), so Aaron volunteered to carry some sand for me. I loaded his pocket and back up the hill we went. Apparently I overloaded his pocket... oops, so I promised him a pepsi to thank him. :) But now I have plenty of sand.

At the gas station I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of soda choices (as well as specialty beers, liquor, snacks, etc). I got a Dr. Pepper and a Pepsi, but what I really wanted was a cherry 7-Up. Aaron smacked his forehead and told me I should have gotten a Vernor's. At some point, he did get me one, I just can't place when. Vernor's ginger ale is America's oldest surviving soft drink and had a very intense ginger flavor. In my mind it does not beat a Bundaberg Ginger Beer, but it's pretty close.

We still had a lot of the UP to cross so we drove through wooded areas, wetlands, and along Lake Michigan. We were looking for a particular campground and missed it, but found it when we turned around. Luckily for us, there were a few open spots, and we scored a campsite less than a hundred feet from Lake Michigan. I set up the tent while Aaron went back around to pay for the site and check out the bathroom situation (sometimes peeing next to the tent is not the best choice). Then Aaron prepared a camp dinner and we toted our chairs down to Lake Michigan to watch the sunset.

There were kids swimming, and Aaron decided we should go for a swim too. I was sort of against it, but Aaron said the water was pretty warm (I thought it would be ice cold), so begrudgingly I agreed. The funny thing is that when it came to getting in (after we changed into our suits), I was the one who was gungho, and Aaron timid. So I of course used this as an opportunity to splash a lot of water at him, tackle him, and drop him in the water. His retaliation was not that great because I was already wet. The water was refreshing and I felt cleaner and cooler after a swim. Though this was a small thing, this was one of my favorite memories of our trip.

Aaron posted Michigan photos - look here!