Pictured Rocks, Michigan
October 1, 2023
The drive to our next destination was short and sweet--less than an hour and a half. If only all the travel days were this short! (But if that were the case, we'd probably still be back in Arizona or someplace.)
We got a few peeks at Lake Superior on the short drive east
Our new home for the next several days was an RV park on the shore of Lake Superior just outside the town of Munising and adjacent to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Several of the days we drove around the area to see the sights. Most of the days were mostly cloudy, although the sun came out to tease us every now and then.
One of our fleeting windows of sunshine. You can see a sliver of Lake Superior in the background. Clouds moved in shortly afterward.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Visitor Center This is the smallest visitor center we've been to (and there was no inside--just a window counter)
Short trail to Munising Falls
Munising Falls
Sand Point Marsh Trail
Sand Point Beach
A little sliver of sunlight to light up the trees for a moment
Wagner Falls
Miner's Castle overlook Despite the blue sky in the distance, it was cloudy overhead most of the time here
Miner's Castle
This part of the North Country Scenic Trail was still lushly green--no fall color here
Stairway to Miner's Beach
Take a look around the beach
Miner's Falls
More autumn beauty
Must be a thing up here in the UP
In the evenings, we enjoyed walking around the campground and along the lakeshore.
Sunset over Lake Superior
Sunrise at 8am (not too hard to get up for)
Friday was the nicest day (only an hour or two of cloudiness), so we chose this day to hike the 10 miles+ Chapel Loop. It was a stunning trail!
The morning started out foggy
Julie had difficulty resisting the urge to take pictures of ALL the trees 😉
The beginning of the Chapel Loop Trail
Chapel Lake
At the top of Chapel Falls
Look around at the top of the falls
Chapel Falls
Chapel Rock
Bridge over troubled water Chapel Creek
Chapel Creek flowing into Lake Superior Chapel Rock is in the distance
Chapel Beach
The log "ladder-stairs" helped to get up and down to the beach
We had heard that biting flies can be a problem here, and it was no joke. We ended up leaving after a few minutes.
We stopped for lunch and watched boats and kayakers float by
The main trail had lots of little spurs off of it that got you closer to the shore--lots of fun 😊
We saw lots of tourist boats
How many different pictures can Julie take of the same rock formation?
...Just one more!
Rick had to take one as well - so take a look around
The water was so clear!
Sometimes the cliff faces just collapse into the water. Glad it didn't happen today!
Mosquito Beach
Less than 2 miles to go to the parking lot--we were getting a little tired by now
We picked up carry-out at a local pasty joint --a yummy UP "delicacy"
The weekend was pretty rainy for the most part. We went to Mass on Saturday evening at a historic church in Munising and picked up some local smoked whitefish for dinner.
Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Munising
The local fish joint was a bit sketchy, but that made it more "authentic" 😉
The smoked whitefish was quite tasty!
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