Geek Speak – Upper Peninsula Odyssey, pt. 3 – Ghost Towns and Animals

by Daniel

During the last week of July 2011, I went on a road trip with my girlfriend from the middle of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, to the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula in the Upper Peninsula. 1,300+ miles were driven, hundreds of photos were taken, and dozens of Michigan beers were drank. Hilarity and misadventures ensued.

Day 3 – July 26, 2011

After a tasty continental breakfast (with waffles no less), Steph and I headed West for our first stop: Big Spring (aka Kitch-iti-kipi), located in Palms Book State Park. We were once again blessed with a pretty day, which was good considering our stops for the day were all outside.

Big Spring is worth a trip to the Upper Peninsula alone–it is a magical place. OK, I say that a lot about places in the UP, but go there and tell me I am wrong.

Big Spring, as the name would suggest, is Michigan’s biggest natural spring. It cranks out thousands of gallons a minute, and the water is super-clear. You can see fish swimming around, plain as day. The water is 45 degrees–year round. That’s right, the water doesn’t freeze! Too bad we can’t make a PC out of Big Spring water, AMIRIGHT?

Ahem.

Pictures and words do not do Big Spring any kind of justice. It is a sight to behold in person. You ride a raft to the middle of the spring and can see straight down–there, fish swim past as the sandy bottom churns and swirls.

Near Palms Book is the Thompson State Fish Hatchery, which makes for a fun, albeit short and free, side trip. Fish are born and bred there–and are used to stock lakes and such. On the premises you will find vats of baby fish. Thousands of the little things. One wonders what would happen if you fell into the vat–would you suffer the death of a thousand nibbles?

The Fayette Historic Townsite was our next stop.

Fayette is, in ever sense of the word, a ghost town. It had its hay day back in the 1800s, and the town boomed. Then, business dried up and this company town was deserted. It is preserved, to some extent, as a Michigan State Park. The empty buildings are still there, including the old furnaces and kilns. You can see all of this for only the price of a Michigan Recreation Passport. $10. That’s it. For $10 you get into Fayette and any other State Park (or you can save the $10 and just not bring a car).

Budget at least a couple hours here, as there is plenty to see and just walking along the beach and harbor is worth the visit. It is a gorgeous place. After Fayette, Steph and I grabbed lunch at DJ’s on the Bay. Four older guys were enjoying a lunchtime card game when we entered. We each had a whitefish sandwich and big cup of coffee. Tasty. With the weather being nice, and tomorrow’s being questionable, I decided to bump up our trip to the Seney National Wildlife Refuge to today.

I have been wanting to visit Seney since 2009, and it was certainly worth the wait. It is over 95 thousand acres of land set aside only for animals. While not quite the same as a National Park, the refuge has the same goal: preservation. You cannot camp in Seney, but you can drive (or walk/bike) on a 7-mile loop (there is a spot to fish too). The speed limit is 15 mph, but that is way too fast if you have any hope of spotting animals.

The folks in the visitor center made it clear it was possible we would not see any animals (it is not a zoo), but we had a good haul: Trumpeter Swans (Steph claimed to have spotted more than 70), Canada Geese, ducks, chipmunks, butterflies, an otter or two, maybe a beaver (or a muskrat, or a mink), Sandhill Cranes, Eagles (near their nest), and Loons. I was very ecstatic about spotting the Loons–and better still, we were able to hear a few of their haunting cries.

We spent around two hours making our way through the refuge, taking time to stop and get out of the car, with my binoculars and camera at the ready. Snapping a good shot posed a challenge, as the animals were so far away (the Loons were out of camera range), but at least I had binoculars. Seney, like Mackinac Island, is a place were you have to slow things down to get the most enjoyment. This is not a “zip through and see everything” place. Nature sets its own rules here. I could (and would) have spent all day at the refuge. Hell, I could go every day for a week and see something new each time.

We saw more wildlife outside of Seney too: a deer family crossed the road in the morning, wild turkeys near the shoulder, even a turtle in the road (which I managed to avoid at the last minute). But Steph had her own favorites: a pair of older couples dressed in matching clothing at breakfast.

Steph was sitting across from me, enjoying her waffle, when I saw her eyes lock on to something behind me. I knew that look. It was her bewildered “OH MY GOD, WTF” look. She leaned in, “when we’re in our sixties, can we go on vacations wearing matching red panda t-shirts?”
“What?”
She nodded to the couple behind me. I pretended to check if there were any more bananas left and took in the sights. Wow. One couple was, in fact, wearing matching red panda t-shirts. Another was dressed in matching shorts and yellow polo shirts, with some kind of logo.

After Seney, we returned to Manistique for dinner at Marley’s Bar & Grill (a recommendation from a friend). Marley’s had some great decorations: specifically the vast collection of Christmas decorations (I suggested to Steph that the Marley name may be a reference to A Christmas Carol). I also had one of the best sandwiches of my life: Cudighi. The menu said it was an Italian sausage type of sandwich, but I had never heard of cudighi (and I’m half-Italian with a large Italian family). I learned it is yet another Upper Peninsula dish, like the pasty. It was outstanding.

Post dinner, Steph and I photowalked a bit around downtown Manistique. They have an adorable main street with plenty of old buildings.

Next time: Munising, Christmas, and more.

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Daniel J. Hogan is the geek half of Ginger and the Geek. He is also a photoblogger and host of the Magic of Eyri Podcast. Just the good half. Follow him on Twitter, @danieljhogan.