This Old Man, He Went Fishing

No fish caught today, but Bits learned "This Old Man" and got to walk back from the beach in his undies.

I Thought you Knew how Long the Trail Was

Oh by the way, what can happen sometimes if you come to visit, is I will take you to one of the many beautiful waterfalls in the area, forget to tell you how long the hike is out to view it, stay behind in the Jeep while Bits takes his

nap (maybe, close my eyes, for a minute or two), sip on your Iced Moolatte, and watch as you run back to the Jeep from the biting fly that was tormenting you on your 2 mile trek (seriously, Mom, Dad, and James, I really didn't know the distance to those falls, honestly).

I just can't seem to get enough of the Big Lake and Black River Harbor, so I drove my family to see why we can't stop talking about this U.P. It was a comparative photo opportunity as my Dad and I clicked similar images, but I kept bragging I captured the better ones (although he has a better camera with a better zoom, unfair competition, I think)

Orange Fingers and Backpacks Filled with Nature's Discards

After an indoor picnic with our neighbor friend Dan, we all headed to Black River Harbor. Dan frequents this treasured spot more often than our little family and likes to pick up driftwood pieces as much as me.

A perfect ever-so-slightly chilly sunny day at the Big Lake. The snow and ice removed most of their hold on the sand and driftwood, but have not yet given up their reign on the pebbles and sea glass, hiding underneath it's cold layers. There were piles of broken shale, appearing like shattered glass bringing about seven years of bad luck.

We had a great time exploring this ever changing beachscape and Bits had a great time with his Big Buddy, especially when Dan brings along the Cheetos popcorn. They threw a couples pieces of driftwood into the river from the bridge, keeping with Dan's tradition. McDonald's milkshakes on the way home, and we all arrived happily back with driftwood in hand, or rather in backpack.

*Sorry for all the pics., but my trigger finger can't stop clicking.

Treasures Peek Out from the Snow

When rocks break free from icy shells, driftwood breathes in light from beneath snowy blankets, and sand intermingles with it's numerous falling winter counterpart, you can feel spring will be here soon.

At 34 degrees, we ventured to the Big Lake and visited Black River Harbor, we hadn't been since November, so I was excited for this winter escape. The forecasters said it would be overcast and, true to their word, it was. The sun made an appearance as we left, but we benefited from it hiding behind clouds and keeping the snow from blinding us with brightness as we walked along the beach.

We took time to stop, without talking and crunching boots in the snow, to listen to the ice shift and crack, sometimes popping loudly, and sometimes with sounds like breaking mirrored glass. Mike threw a couple ice globulars at the "water", which, upon impact, turned out to be solid ice. At one point I gasped as Mike dropped a glove into a mini ice cave. He hollered "hello" before reaching his hand inside, which Bits thought was super fun. I was fortunate with the help from a little kick of my boot to find a couple pieces of driftwood. Large, burnt umber toned stones have surfaced from snowy spots, and as warm temps come, many more will be revealed.

A good number of cars showed up to enjoy the lake on this pre-spring day, but I secretly hope that when true spring comes, we can be some of the first people out there with my backpack on and treasure hunting eyes focused to find all the stock piles nature has hidden under the snow and ice.

One Hairy Comfy Pillow

My apologies on two things: 1) I didn't take any photos of the snow when it had freshly fallen, and 2) I didn't take any photos of Don's super secret mission surprise (so y'all will have to wait for posted pics come Christmas break).

I'm going to back track a couple days as an excuse to post a super cute pic. of Bits that Bop took (side note there are two Bops; Bop the Dentist and Bop the Gieschen (Bop G. for short)).

Saturday, Donald and Mike went hiking at Black River Harbor and viewed Rainbow Falls. Cindy and I used this as an opportunity to shop. We went to Ableman's which is the place to go for men needing jeans and about anything else rugged clothing wise. We really liked the store, but the extensive line of extreme winter gear caused Cindy some concern for our survival this coming season.

Bop stayed home with Bits so that he could get a much needed nap (Bits not Bop). Baconator ended up falling asleep on the couch cuddled with Scout.

Once Cindy and I returned from our shopping excursion, Don and I raced up to the Harbor to meet up with the guys. It was a less than spectacular photo op day, but Don did get a chance to view one of our much frequented spots.

After all of us returned home with tummies grumbling and one cranky hungry girl, we all headed out to eat at the Liberty Bell in Hurley. The wait was long, but the food was great. I needed a to-go box for my Chicken Cordon Blue sandwich and of course ended up leaving it for the bus boy.

A Pocketful of Lake Glass

We left for an adventure to BRH at about 2:00 and after a few stops, made it to the Big Lake by about 3:00.

More driftwood, more bunches of roots, and a handful of lake glass. Lake glass appears to be pieces of broken Heineken bottles and the like that have been rounded off and roughed up by the waves and sand, making them slightly opaque. It's difficult to find pieces of lake glass, they're usually pretty small and are found quickly by other beach combers. We walked such a distance, that I doubt too many people venture that far down the beach, allowing me to find multiple pieces of this "precious" stone.

As I was slowing scanning the beach for art materials, Bits pointed out a "heart". Can you guess which pic. it is?

Mike grabbed a large walking stick from among the driftwood to carry along in case we should happen upon any big, furry, black friends. Mike calls this a wild beach. The National Forest comes right up to the sandy beach edge. There are no million dollar homes, condos, or gift shops on those hills. Bacon Bits, taking a cue from Daddy, grabbed his own walking stick and stuck it into the ground with every step.

We walked and walked and walked , the sun casting long, low shadows in front of us. We drove out of the park just as the remaining sunlight was fading into the horizon.

*Check out the first pic. These are trees reflecting on the Black River. It looked so much like a skilled watercolor painting, I had to capture an image.

Sandy Winter Boots

The snow melted throughout the day and has left our yard with with spotted slushy handfuls.

Mike had gone out later to finish shoveling the drive way and was visited by our elusive red headed woodpecker. Bacon Bits and I got to see him and get a decent snap shot.

After the driveway was clear, we took a brief drive into Ironwood and headed to Black River Harbor. What a perfect day it turned out to be. Just one degree cold enough to need hats and mittens, but perfect for an exploration up the beach. The snow had not hit Lake Superior and fall colors were still hanging around. Of course, there was much driftwood to be gathered as well.

Bits is truly a great little hiker; we traveled quite a distance along the sand and he eagerly and happily kept right along. Whenever we hit up the Big Lake, Mike and I revert to being little kids. I get excited with all my beachy finds, and he skips stones and sneaks big tosses of driftwood back into the lake whenever Mr. Xenopus is not paying attention.

We love escaping to the lake on these special weekends.