July 13, 2018 – I was adopted in Harbor Springs, MI, by the wonderful Nancy Cook.

She just came into the public library to renew a book and ended up taking us both home.

Nancy was widowed several years ago after her husband Bob passed away following a battle with Parkinson’s. She said her eight kids, grandkids and great grandchildren keep her busy.

“I took myself out for a little picnic supper tonight,” said Nancy. “I even bought a small glass of wine.”

An avid traveler, Nancy loves adventure and downhill skiing. Years ago she and Bob went everywhere in their Fifth Wheel camper, traveling to Seattle and California; they even toured Alaska and Rome.

“I even took my turn behind the wheel,” said Nancy, a diminutive woman of 5’4″ with spunk, “I tell you I thought some pretty blue words trying to maneuver some turns in that thing.”

We became fast friends, exchanging stories of adventure and mishaps.

“Oh, glory,” said Nancy; her favorite expression when listening to my 26-days-without-luggage-tour in New Zealand.

In the morning Nancy fixed a lovely breakfast of yogurt, fresh berries, whole grain toast, rich coffee, and “a hard boiled brown egg for protein.” We ate amongst the chicken/rooster decor in her charming kitchen.

The neighbor’s dog came over to visit and Nancy prayed it wouldn’t water her flowers. She hurried to the screen door. “Time to go home now, Skip. Think you should go home now.” It was like being yelled at by Mary Poppins.

Nancy was just so genuinely nice and warm hearted, even when she was shoo-ing the dog out of her yard.

Exploring the History of Harbor Springs

The Harbor Springs Historical Society is a fun step back in time with photos detailing everything from the Native Americans to the industry surrounding the Shay locomotive and its impact on the timber industry.

Also well documented is the automobile and how it changed the tourism industry along the shoreline.

Below is a photo of the Harbor Springs Police Chief directing traffic from a crane.

Harbor Springs also had a committed retail industry.

Rose Rosenthal was a fixture at her Main Street clothing store for 60 years.

Rose started in Business with her husband Phil in 1923. She was not only known for her ability to make the sale but also for passing out homemade fudge to her customers.

The Mayberry atmosphere of Harbor Springs hasn’t changed and the homes along the shoreline are elegant with their wraparound portches highlighted by red, white and blue bunting.

Little Traverse Wheelway

Found a gem of a paved bike trail from Harbor Springs 23.4 miles south to Charlevoix, MI.

The Wheelways runs adjacent to Little Traverse Bay and mostly along M-119.

The path is well marked and scenic. I stumbled upon Beards Brewery in downtown Petosky and purchased a couple 12-ounce Grizzly Adams IPAs for after the ride.

Just down the road was the St. Francis Solanus Indian Mission built in 1859 by Bishop Frederic Baraga.

During a renovation of the church in 2005 there were 60 graves found around the church.

Many of the graves were marked with white crosses. Mass is still held on Sunday at the church.

Just before reaching my destination of Charlevoix, there was this adorable little cherry stand.

$5 a pint…. and, yes, I paid the man.

Wrapped up the day on almost a mile-long boardwalk as I rolled into Charlevoix.

A note of thanks to Community Reform Church in Charlevoix for providing a safe space to stay.

July 9, 2018 – Sault Ste. Marie, MI – The Chippewa County Historical Society has well documented Sault Ste. Marie.

Photos and and a timetable are laid it out in storyboard fashion along Historic Water Street overlooking the gateway to Lake Superior.

Commerce surrounding the shipping canal is a huge part of the start of the community and construction of the locks in 1853 put 1,600 men to work; the population of the Sault was temporarily doubled.

The canal contained a pair of locks in tandem each providing a lift of about 10 feet to an upbound ship.

The canal opened in June 1855 and tonnage in the first year was 14,503 but by 1860 the tonnage increased to 284,350; almost 20 times that of nine years earlier.

Defense efforts during wartime

The barrage balloon (above) is ready for deployment at Brady Park. The balloons typically floated up to 2,000 feet with cables suspended from them while flying.

Airplanes threatening the locks would have to avoid gauntlet of the cables

Frank’s Place is a must for eats in Sault Ste. Marie, MI 

There were families at Frank’s and food enough to tide you over through lunch. Veggie omelet, homemade raisin toast and coffee for under $9.

A place as remote as the moon

French explorers visited Sault Ste. Marie around 1620 but the area remained isolated from the US population centers.

In the mid 19th century Senator Henry Clay called the upper Peninsula “remote as the moon.”

In the 1880 with no railroad connection mail arrived by schooner but when the ice closed the shipping, native Americans used dog teams to run the mail between the Sault and Saginaw or Marquette.

A trip to Saginaw took from 10 days to over three weeks depending on ice conditions.

Men averaged almost 30 miles per day and usually slept out in the elements.

A unique method of fishing the rapids teeming with whitefish attracted the Anishinaabeg people centuries before the first European explorers arrived.

A first-hand description of the fishing technique was written in 1669 by the Jesuit missionary Rev. Claude Dablon

“Dexterity and strength are needed for this kind of fishing for one must stand upright in a bark canoe and there among the whirlpools, with muscles tense, thrust deep into the water a rod at the end of which is fastened a net made in the form of a pocket into which the fish are made to enter.

One must look for them as they glide between the rocks pursue them and when they have been made to enter the net raise them with a sudden strong pull into the canoe.”

 

July 7, 2018 – Whitefish Point, WI – It took a week and A day but managed to reach my destination of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum in Whitefish Point, MI and it was well worth the ride.

The bell, also called ‘The Voice of the Edmund Fitzgerald,’ is displayed as a shiny tribute in the middle of the museum. It is surrounded by other stories of lives lost on the mighty Great Lakes.

Whitefish Point has been called the graveyard of Lake Superior. Since navigation began on Lake Superior there have been approximately 550 wrecks.

Prior to wireless radio, ships communicated passing intentions by whistle signals which were often misinterpreted. To make things worse, Whitefish Point became infamous for poor visibility conditions due to fog, blinding snow squalls, and even the occasional smoke from forest fires that conceal ship movements.

While many talk about the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the worst disaster was actually on Lake Superior on August 20, 1920 about 24 miles southeast of Whitefish Point. On that date, the SS Superior City (the largest boating vessel ever built on freshwater at that time) was rammed by a much larger steamer vessel the Willis L. King after some passing signals got crossed.

Twenty-nine lives were lost; four crew survived to be rescued by the Willis L. King. To this day, The bones of the victims still rest on the deck 265 feet below.

(Audio credit: Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum)

Lightkeepers had to wind the mechanism which turn the light every 2 1/2 hours.

Lenses and chimneys had to be cleaned, wicks trimmed, machinery oiled and equipment checked on a daily basis.

The keeper carried fuel to the lamp in cans from the oil storage house which had to be located 100 feet from the lighthouse in case of fire.