Days 10 – 11, Clear Skies and Rest

It’s 7 PM and I’m ready for bed. A dinner of rice and beans has been made and enjoyed, the dishes are done, the food is packed up and safely stored in a bear box, and the bike is lubricated and ready for an early morning start tomorrow. It was a relaxing and picture perfect day at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, and the first day after ten in a row that I haven’t been on the bike.

Yesterday was my favorite day of the trip so far. It started in a comfortable bed with no camp to break down, and fresh coffee downstairs. I spent the morning working – yes, I do still have to do some of that – and prepared to leave my wonderful host Marybeth’s bakery around noon. As I packed up the bike, I saw that the rear tire was flat again. I guess the patch from the day before wasn’t my best work. I managed to swap out the tube with far less headache than the day before – having a garage to work in certainly helped.

Midtown Bakery and Cafe – my stop for the previous night

When I finally got on the road, it was already after 1. By that time the morning’s clouds had disappeared, and the sun was promising relief from the foul weather of the past couple days. I was considering trying for Pictured Rocks, which would allow me a full rest day Thursday, but that was almost 100 miles and I was off to a late start.

The ride into Marquette was an easy 10 miles downhill, and I stopped for another tube and a bite to eat. Getting back on the road around 3, I wasn’t optimistic about my destination. A light breeze was at my back and the sky was crystal clear though, which does wonders for your energy level (an adequate amount of coffee probably helped too)! My route followed the lakeshore almost the whole day, and the fresh crisp breeze coming in off the cold water never let me forget where I was. It finally really felt like I was biking along the largest body of freshwater in the world!

Old structure for loading iron in Marquette

Lots of themed decorations in the town of Christmas

Minimal hills and good roads put me into Munising around 5:30. Pictured Rocks was reachable, but I didn’t have any time to waste. A quick bite to eat and a stop at the convenience store for a few provisions and I was on my way. The road out of town started with a large bumpy hill which had me reminiscing about the hills from Sunday, but quickly turned into smooth asphalt winding through the UP’s endless forests of pine and birch.

The sun was getting low and I had the road mostly to myself at that point. I was feeling great and making good time, and decided to stop and rest on the side of the road since I was about halfway through the final stretch. As I snacked and stretched, I heard a car approaching in the distance, and then the steady fading of the tires after it passed. I realized after, that I could hear no other manmade sounds. No distant highways or machinery, no planes buzzing overhead, no children shouting in the background, only the faint buzzing of a few insects and the soft wind waving through the grass. It was the first time I had noticed that on this trip, and I sat there briefly enjoying the moment and remembering how rare it is to have that experience anymore.

Quiet winding Michigan road

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

The dust kicked up when a vehicle went by had a neat effect

By the time I reached the campground it was nearing sunset, and I was crossing my fingers that there would still be sites available. I haven’t had a problem with availability yet, and from what I’ve read it’s standard procedure at state parks to give hikers/bikers a makeshift spot even if a campground is full. Unfortunately Pictured Rocks is part of the National Park Service, which means both that it’s more popular and that apparently the hiker/biker policy doesn’t exist.

The first campground I stopped at was small and full, so I headed the few miles on to the next one hoping it would be larger. I saw a vehicle pull in behind me looking for a site as well, and when he passed me on the way to the next campground I realized that I was probably out of luck. I started eying up the wooded areas I was passing for potential “stealth camping” sites, knowing that was likely what I was going to be relegated to for the night. Darn, I was really looking forward to staying in one spot two nights in a row!

As I slowly rolled through the second of the three campgrounds in the area, the story seemed to be the same. I finished the loop of sites disappointed, when a couple in an RV yelled to me. “Looking for a spot”? Why yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing. “You can stay on our site, we have plenty of room”. Rob and Lori were from Canada, and Rob had done some bike touring in the past and was sympathetic to my situation. Shown hospitality by strangers two nights in a row, awesome!

I set up camp next to them, then walked the 100 yards down to the beach to catch the sunset. There were still no clouds in the sky, and the undiluted view of the sun slowly drowning in the massive lake was the perfect end to an excellent day. The combination of a productive morning, getting in a good feeling 100 miles, some kind and interesting strangers, and the beautiful weather which so starkly contrasted the past couple days made Wednesday an excellent day, and my favorite thus far.

My Canadian site buddies Rob and Lori

Clear beautiful sunset

The last sliver of sun

I woke up today to another beautiful day, with the strange but comforting knowledge that there was absolutely nothing on my agenda for the day. Rob and Lori forced me to eat some tasty pancakes – ok, it didn’t really take much coercing – and we enjoyed a laid back breakfast learning a little more about each other. They were extremely nice, and had some interesting stories about exploring and dealing with bears. They headed out to continue their journey and I simply grabbed the site for the next night. Good thing too, as it looked like it would have been difficult to get a site even if I’d been around the whole day. There was a seemingly continuous stream of vehicles driving through the campground looking for sites, and I never saw one stay open for more than a few minutes.

I decided to do a bit of exploring on my free day, and headed down to the Au Sable Point Lighthouse near the campground. The stretch along Pictured Rocks is known as the shipwreck coast, as there is a shallow reef that extends about a mile out into the lake, and the area is known for fierce storms as well as thick fog. Despite the presence of the lighthouse, there have been 47 wrecks along that stretch of shoreline! A couple of them have debris that is washed up on shore for the time being – pretty neat to see!

Shipwreck debris

Cool effect with the bolts protruding from the sand

Despite the protest from my legs, I decided to climb the 98 stairs of the lighthouse and check out the views. The sights on the warm clear day were excellent, and it was definitely worth the climb – no surprise there. After learning a bit about the history of the lighthouse and the wrecks in that area, I made the trek back to camp for lunch then headed down to the beach. I hadn’t been in Lake Superior yet, although I’d been tempted a few times. The clear waters seemed to be beckoning on the warm relaxing day, so I forced myself in despite the frigid temperatures. Lake Superior is always pretty cold, but is especially so this year with water temps only in the low 40’s for the most part. I spent a few minutes appreciating the refreshing temperature, and decided I’d had enough. Sitting on the warm rocks along the shore after and soaking up their heat, I decided this was a pretty good day as well.

Au Sable Point Lighthouse

View from the lighthouse

The original lens

After a few errands around camp and giving the bike the full schedule of inspection and lubrication, the day was pretty much gone. Amazing how quickly it can go. Even though most days I just bike all day, it sure seems like I do a lot. Despite knowing the distance I travel can be covered in a car in an hour or two, I generally feel very accomplished at the end of the day and like I’ve covered a lot of ground. Not quite the case on this laid back rest day, but I think it was what I needed after a number of long days. I’m hoping to get an early start in the morning and make it to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum in enough time to see it before they close. I haven’t seen the forecast in a couple days, but the buzz around the campground is that this stretch of nice weather should continue – good enough for me.

Day 10 Route