Day 4: The Drive to Grand Marais
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| View from our campsite |
Epic Meltdowns: 1.5
Times worst parent in the world: 3
Times very smart parent: 1
Things that weren’t as advertised: 1 - Houghton Falls: not a waterfall and, according to Danny, not fun at all.
Recipe disasters: 1
Woulda, coulda, shoulda: I would definitely leave more time for Amnicon Falls exploration on the way to the North Shore - beautiful state park in WI.
Memories:
Grace: Seeing the Big Dipper; Little Dipper and the North Star
Danny: Grace building a banana island; the beach
Therese: The beautiful Amnion Falls
Gordon: The death march to “My Sister’s Place.”
We had a quick breakfast of camp oatmeal which is a pre-made mix of brown sugar, quick cook oats and powdered milk with toppings of choice. I’ve used this recipe before and we love it. I printed it from the same website but for some reason, on the recipe, the ratio of water to oat mixture is flipped. It didn’t seem right adding 1/2 cup of water to one cup of oats but I followed along, adding 3 cups of the mixture because we needed about 4 cups of oatmeal. It was quickly evident that much more water was needed. We ended up with about 9 cups of oatmeal and believe it or not, we ate every bit of it!
We had not seen a waterfall during our stay and since there were so many in the area we decided that on the way out of town, we’d stop for a quick hike. Grace was appointed the leader of the .6 mile round-trip. Danny quickly expressed his frustration with this and we ended up on a grueling, complaining hike which included a very slippery sandstone decent to the bed of the nonexistent falls. Most likely, they are beautiful in the spring.
We dragged our sweaty selves back to the hot car and headed out. Tempers cooled with the air conditioning and in about an hour and a half, we made our lunch stop at Amnicon State Park in Wisconsin, just south of Superior.
It was clear, even driving in that this was a beautiful place. From the moment we arrived we could hear the roar of the falls. Our picnic site was next to a bridge which is one of only seven of its kind in the country - but I can’t remember exactly what the kind is. The falls featured an easy walk to a shallow pool at the base of the upper falls with wonderful opportunities for wading and exploration. We didn’t explore the lower falls but could see people swimming in a still pool at the base.
The park also featured an old fashioned water pump which fascinated the kids and they spent a lot of time filling everything that needed filling with water.
We will definitely be coming back to camp here.
Off to Grand Marais and our campsite on the pebble beach. Our campsite was right across the public access road along the beach. We looked out at the lake between twin lighthouses. The campsite was a bit different from what we were used to. It appears to be party central. The road was open to visitors at all hours of the night and many families staying at the campsite had seasonal spots and their gatherings went long into the night.
Another thing interfering with my sleep has been my poor choice of pillows. The next time I see a pillow for sale, I’m snagging it so I can have a decent night’s sleep. All the work I did in researching and testing camp mattresses and it’s wiped out by a poor pillow!
After we set up our tent, we went in search of dinner. The kids were frustrated and no one could agree on dinner. We took the short walk into town but the walk got longer and longer as we rejected place after place for either the wrong food (shrimp with legs still attached) or a wait that was too long.
Finally we headed to our last choice: “My Sister’s Place.” It was another four long blocks and by that time the kids were fried and we were all steamed by the 90 degree heat. Lo and behold - this restaurant had a beautiful patio with a large play area for kids that included hula hoops, corn-hole toss and much more. After Gordon and my beers arrived, we were all in our happy place once again.
Adding to our bliss, Gordon and I each were able to grab HOT showers at the bathhouse. A perfect end to a day that went from less than perfect to perfect.
Next stop: Canada!
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