Post by Jugglerguy on Jun 20, 2015 22:19:28 GMT -5
I got home today from my somewhat spontaneous trip to the U.P. I'm exhausted, but I had fun. I had to go alone this year because my son is has a job (yay!).
Going from Alpena to Grand Marais, I get to see three of the Great Lakes. First is Lake Huron. Alpena is on Lake Huron, but this is a pretty spot just north of Rogers City:
North of Rogers City by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Going over the bridge, Lake Michigan is on the left and Lake Huron on the right.
IMG_3671 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Woo-hoo, entering the U.P.
IMG_3676 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This is Lake Michigan from US 2, just over the bridge. Lots of people pull over here to swim when it's warmer.
IMG_3681 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Finally at Lake Superior near Munising.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Nobody to see in either direction. All the rocks to myself! Actually, I met another guy picking rocks in the off and on rain. He was really helpful in teaching me to spot agates. Agates are pretty few and far between and not that easy to spot. Most people find it easier to spot them in the dry rocks rather than in the water. When rain drops start speckling everything, it gets really hard to see anything.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
There is a ton of driftwood along the beaches, many times whole trees. I took pictures of some of the more interesting ones.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
After picking rocks for a few hours, I decided to set up camp. It was still raining off and on.
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
So I drove up the camp check in station where there was wifi and posted to the forum.
IMG_1803 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The next day it was back to a place called Perry's Landing for more huntin'. This sign was helpful so I knew I was at the right lake.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Shot from a rock picker's perspective.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This was the coldest day. The high was in the fifties, but it dropped to the mid forties by three o'clock. It was windy too.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Pretty much had the place to myself. I saw a kayaker go bye and gave him a wave. It was pretty rough at the time and I thought he must be crazy.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
More driftwood.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This was really huge.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Same log.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I went back to the campground for some lunch. Muskallonge Lake was steaming the way lakes do in the fall. The lake couldn't have been very warm, but it shows how cold the day was.
Muskallonge Lake by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The campground is on a small inland lake and Superior is across the road.
IMG_3721 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
No one around to impress with my fashion sense. I wore my Story Kromer to bed that night.
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I saw the same kayaker I had seen to the west a few hours before. This time he beached his boat and we talked for a while and he took a break. He had put in three days before in Munising and was headed to Sault Ste. Marie. The waves were at least three feet at this time, but the were at his back, so he was probably making good time. I still thought he was crazy. I saw this boat after leaving the kayaker (Brent). I guess the owners of the boat underestimated Lake Superior. Didn't they ever hear the song about the Edmund Fitzgerald?
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I nearly froze that night. I slept in jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, and wool cap. I really thought the wind was going to blow the tent over. It kept blowing in through the window flap that wasn't quite tight enough. I think I slept a little bit, but not much. The next morning I packed everything up and headed for Vermillion Point. It was over an hour drive.
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I think this beach has more rocks than the others. My son Bryan and I found more agates here than anywhere else last year, so I was excited to be back. I did about the same here as other beaches this year. Guess who I saw paddling by again? Yep, Brent the kayaker stopped for another chat and to ask where he was. He said he was ahead of schedule.
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Want to do some virtual rock hunting?
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Next it was off to my camping spot for the night and another agate beach. I headed to the Mouth of the Two Hearted River Campground. A couple years ago, there was a huge forest fire in this area. It's hard to get a picture of just how large the area that was burned was.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This used to be woods:
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The fire fighters saved just the campground. It was weird how it was burned right up to the campground, but not inside. My campsite was on the edge. Here's a bridge over the river.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Looking upstream.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The bridge was very bouncy. Weeee!
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Before setting up my tent, I hit the beach.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Here you can see the burned trees. It didn't bother me much because I was looking down the whole time.
Two Hearted Panorama by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Can you spot the unakite?
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I got back to camp, set up my tent, and then walked to the outhouse. This place has to electricity or showers. On the two minute walk, I saw five snowshoe hares. One ran about six feet in front of me. Later one jumped over my foot. I thought maybe they were used to being fed, so I grabbed some grapes (I didn't have any carrots). I tried to feed a couple, and even threw a grape at one. It didn't try to dodge the grape or go eat it. It was all really weird.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I think this one was possessed.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I had to have some Two Hearted Ale by the river it was named for. Yummy.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Selfie.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The next morning it was off to the Crisp Point Light House. Last year, I brought home some black sand to search for gold. I made the mistake of taking it from a beach that had very little gold in it. I had also brought a very small amount from a different beach that was loaded with gold. This year there wasn't as much black sand on the beach. I put about two inches in the bottom of my bucket at Vermillion Point, but I had to carry it about two miles, plus leave room for rocks, so I didn't take any more. The stuff is five times heavier than water. I was really hoping to get more here.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
There was no shortage of black sand, but I panned about six or eight pans and found no gold. So I didn't bring any home. Bummer.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I did add to my unakite stash here though.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Here are some of the spoils. Big unakite.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Medium unakite.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Tumbling size unakite. Look for some unakite in the buy/sell/trade section soon!
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Other tumbling sized stuff, except the big red one.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Snowmom taught me what omars were a couple weeks ago, so I picked some up. The guy I met on the first day mentioned them and I was glad I had just learned what they were called.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Tiny omar.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Omar within an omar.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I don't usually pick up jasper, but I decided to try a tumbler full.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Agate pictures to follow shortly.
Going from Alpena to Grand Marais, I get to see three of the Great Lakes. First is Lake Huron. Alpena is on Lake Huron, but this is a pretty spot just north of Rogers City:
North of Rogers City by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Going over the bridge, Lake Michigan is on the left and Lake Huron on the right.
IMG_3671 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Woo-hoo, entering the U.P.
IMG_3676 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This is Lake Michigan from US 2, just over the bridge. Lots of people pull over here to swim when it's warmer.
IMG_3681 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Finally at Lake Superior near Munising.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Nobody to see in either direction. All the rocks to myself! Actually, I met another guy picking rocks in the off and on rain. He was really helpful in teaching me to spot agates. Agates are pretty few and far between and not that easy to spot. Most people find it easier to spot them in the dry rocks rather than in the water. When rain drops start speckling everything, it gets really hard to see anything.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
There is a ton of driftwood along the beaches, many times whole trees. I took pictures of some of the more interesting ones.
Grand Marais - Past White Fence by jugglerguy, on Flickr
After picking rocks for a few hours, I decided to set up camp. It was still raining off and on.
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
So I drove up the camp check in station where there was wifi and posted to the forum.
IMG_1803 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The next day it was back to a place called Perry's Landing for more huntin'. This sign was helpful so I knew I was at the right lake.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Shot from a rock picker's perspective.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This was the coldest day. The high was in the fifties, but it dropped to the mid forties by three o'clock. It was windy too.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Pretty much had the place to myself. I saw a kayaker go bye and gave him a wave. It was pretty rough at the time and I thought he must be crazy.
Perry's Landing Near Munising by jugglerguy, on Flickr
More driftwood.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This was really huge.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Same log.
Perry's Landing by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I went back to the campground for some lunch. Muskallonge Lake was steaming the way lakes do in the fall. The lake couldn't have been very warm, but it shows how cold the day was.
Muskallonge Lake by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The campground is on a small inland lake and Superior is across the road.
IMG_3721 by jugglerguy, on Flickr
No one around to impress with my fashion sense. I wore my Story Kromer to bed that night.
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I saw the same kayaker I had seen to the west a few hours before. This time he beached his boat and we talked for a while and he took a break. He had put in three days before in Munising and was headed to Sault Ste. Marie. The waves were at least three feet at this time, but the were at his back, so he was probably making good time. I still thought he was crazy. I saw this boat after leaving the kayaker (Brent). I guess the owners of the boat underestimated Lake Superior. Didn't they ever hear the song about the Edmund Fitzgerald?
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Muskallonge Lake State Park by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I nearly froze that night. I slept in jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, and wool cap. I really thought the wind was going to blow the tent over. It kept blowing in through the window flap that wasn't quite tight enough. I think I slept a little bit, but not much. The next morning I packed everything up and headed for Vermillion Point. It was over an hour drive.
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I think this beach has more rocks than the others. My son Bryan and I found more agates here than anywhere else last year, so I was excited to be back. I did about the same here as other beaches this year. Guess who I saw paddling by again? Yep, Brent the kayaker stopped for another chat and to ask where he was. He said he was ahead of schedule.
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Want to do some virtual rock hunting?
Vermillion Point by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Next it was off to my camping spot for the night and another agate beach. I headed to the Mouth of the Two Hearted River Campground. A couple years ago, there was a huge forest fire in this area. It's hard to get a picture of just how large the area that was burned was.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
This used to be woods:
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The fire fighters saved just the campground. It was weird how it was burned right up to the campground, but not inside. My campsite was on the edge. Here's a bridge over the river.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Looking upstream.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The bridge was very bouncy. Weeee!
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Before setting up my tent, I hit the beach.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Here you can see the burned trees. It didn't bother me much because I was looking down the whole time.
Two Hearted Panorama by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Can you spot the unakite?
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I got back to camp, set up my tent, and then walked to the outhouse. This place has to electricity or showers. On the two minute walk, I saw five snowshoe hares. One ran about six feet in front of me. Later one jumped over my foot. I thought maybe they were used to being fed, so I grabbed some grapes (I didn't have any carrots). I tried to feed a couple, and even threw a grape at one. It didn't try to dodge the grape or go eat it. It was all really weird.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I think this one was possessed.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I had to have some Two Hearted Ale by the river it was named for. Yummy.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Selfie.
Mouth of Two Hearted River by jugglerguy, on Flickr
The next morning it was off to the Crisp Point Light House. Last year, I brought home some black sand to search for gold. I made the mistake of taking it from a beach that had very little gold in it. I had also brought a very small amount from a different beach that was loaded with gold. This year there wasn't as much black sand on the beach. I put about two inches in the bottom of my bucket at Vermillion Point, but I had to carry it about two miles, plus leave room for rocks, so I didn't take any more. The stuff is five times heavier than water. I was really hoping to get more here.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
There was no shortage of black sand, but I panned about six or eight pans and found no gold. So I didn't bring any home. Bummer.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I did add to my unakite stash here though.
Crisp Point Lighthouse by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Here are some of the spoils. Big unakite.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Medium unakite.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Tumbling size unakite. Look for some unakite in the buy/sell/trade section soon!
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Other tumbling sized stuff, except the big red one.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Snowmom taught me what omars were a couple weeks ago, so I picked some up. The guy I met on the first day mentioned them and I was glad I had just learned what they were called.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Tiny omar.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Omar within an omar.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
I don't usually pick up jasper, but I decided to try a tumbler full.
June 2015 Grand Marais Trip by jugglerguy, on Flickr
Agate pictures to follow shortly.