Due to the price of gas this year, we decided
to economize and hit the state parks to save expenses.
Not only did we end up saving substantially, this was
probably the best vacation we've taken.
We started out with an overnight stop in Wisconsin
at a lovely place in Milton; we all enjoyed a dip
in the pool and spa. The first leg of the trip was
to Fort Wilkins Historic State Park in Copper Harbor, Michigan,
on the Keweenaw Peninsula.
We were just across the road from Lake Superior and at night
you could hear the buoys ringing in the big lake...awesome!
The old fort could be toured daily and was very interesting.
The weather here proved to be quite unpredictable,
with howling gales one day, all day long, not mentioned
on the weather station!
We arrived just in time for berry picking, and were introduced
to the thimble berry, which we continued to find
throughout our U.P.stay. Yummy!
The road to Eagle Harbor was lovely and the lighthouse tour very memorable.
You can take a small wooden boat to the Copper Harbor
lighthouse and tour it, but we did not go to save $$.
The Eagle Harbor lighthouse was free for the kids.
The next leg of the trip was to Porcupine Mountain Wilderness State Park.
A huge park in bear country, the dumpsters had to be
locked down at night to prevent bears from scavenging
through them. The park programs ran throughout the day and
some late at night; we took a star-gazing trip up at the
highest point in the park where we were guided through
the summer constellations.
The laundromat in town was also an ice cream shop where
the proprieters also fed the local bears from the dumpster. How sad.
We did not let the kids gawk at these poor bears; we did the duds and left.
Many, many beautiful and interesting trails covering old mining sites abound here.
Camping right on the shores on Lake Superior was magical,
the sunsets beautiful; we even took a swim in the Big Lake!
The last leg of the trip was to Wisconsin Dells;
always a treat for the kids, Noah's Ark was of coarse the highlight,
but every time we go there's something new to do!
We again stayed at Sherwood Forest, which is right in town and
kept up fairly nicely.
My favorite Polish Buffet was turned into an expensive seafood restaurant!
But we had no disappointments here this trip.
Wizard Quest was a definite thumbs up!
For more information on
what to do in the U.P., click here
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