Michigan Upper Peninsula

There is only so much meditation and so much gardening one can do before the lockdown lifestyle starts to get to you and you feel that that you might become a threat to your fellow humans without a break. Once my course on the Science of Well Being was over and the garden was growing practically on its own, I was crawling out my skin. I knew that escaping the house even if to practice lockdown in another setting would do much to improve my mood.

My first thought was to travel to the ocean where the smell of iodine and the sound of leaping waves would go a long way in making me feel better. I did not want to fly, therefore, a road trip was in order. The destination had to be to a place of easy access from where I live and in a state with measures in place to contain the spread of the virus. The closest shore that held some attraction was Cape Cod in Massachusetts, but with the border between the United States and Canada open only to essential workers, I was not about to drive extra hours down the highly commercial I-80 corridor. The Michigan Upper Peninsula (UP) was the next best choice, made easier by the fact that I had never ventured beyond St Ignace in the UP in all the years I lived in Michigan.

So, I pulled a map, went on the internet, spoke with friends, and started researching the area. I read about the Copper Country, the Porcupine Mountains, the city of Marquette, Pictured Rocks, Whitefish Point, the Tahquamenon falls and the Soo Locks at Sault Ste Marie. At this point, I only had to decide where to go and how long I wanted to be in the UP. The Keweenaw Peninsula at the northwesternmost of the UP intrigued me. I wanted to be on Lake Superior as high as I could possibly be. Isle Royale was not of easy access this summer because of COVID-19 and I did not want to risk it. I wanted to visit the entire peninsula and elected to stay at a Bed and Breakfast in the Calumet area.

I had planned to leave early on a Saturday morning, but it was noon when I finally left home. It was gorgeous weather the entire drive. I was traveling alone enjoying the drive and my own company, listening to music. I eventually turned the music off for it was interfering with my daydreaming and intruding upon the silence that I treasure. It took me nine hours to reach my destination. When I arrived in Calumet, it was past 9 o’clock and everything was closed. I went to bed on an empty stomach, but was nonetheless charmed by the two main cities of the Keweenaw peninsula: Houghton, home of Michigan Technological University and Hancock, home of Finlandia University. The two cities are located on the banks of the Portage River, with Houghton on the southern bank and Hancock on the northern bank at the foot of the Portage Lift Bridge that spans the river.

I spent three days visiting the Keweenaw peninsula. There are no words to describe the beauty of the place. Accessed mainly from US-41, the US route with a southern terminus near downtown Miami, Florida and its northern terminus in Copper Harbor at the northernmost point of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the Copper Country tugs at your heart and makes you wish that you had the power to suspend time.
On the shores of Lake Superior, I found peace and serenity in the calm and shallow waters at Great Sand Bay, felt excitement and a sense of adventure upon watching the raging waters crash on its rocky banks south of Copper Harbor, experienced wonder and amazement upon the discovery of the red pebbled beach near the Byzantine Church kept by the monks of the St John Society. I had never seen anything like it before, nor heard of it. I was wide eyed just like a kid who finally discovered where her parents hid the cookie jar. I took off my shoes, lifted up my pants, dipped my toes in the water and marveled at its clarity. I laid down on the red pebbles for over an hour in silence revealing in the moment and feeling like one of the last hippies from a bygone era, with no place to go, nowhere to be, but here, in the moment. Such peace, such quietness, such gratitude while I marveled at the work of Art that is the Creation. It was hard to get up and leave.

And there is so much more in the Copper Country: the prettiness of the canopied curving roadways in the thick forest, the breathtaking views of the Lake from the high observatory point of Brockway Mountain Lookout, the gurgling waters of the Eagle River Waterfalls and so many others, the visits seven-story underground to the now abandoned copper mines. So much more to see and do, but by Wednesday, it was time to leave and head east towards the Central Part of the UP.

Pure Michigan at its best.