Joey and Meg vs. The Porcupine Mountains - Part IV - The Porkies

Alright, Destination 4; the main focus of our trip...

This is going to be a LOT of pictures because, as we've previously addressed, I have a problem.

The Porcupine Mountains (The Porkies) in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan did not dissappoint.  We WAY underestimated the bugs (the flies drew blood in swarms, folks.... they were waiting for our bodies to feast upon), but besides that, the landscape and the nature was breathtaking!

We camped at the "rustic" Presque Isle campground.  Here there was no running water (only a hand pump off in the woods) and no electricity or plumbing.  That meant no showers, but there were non-plumbing bathroms (like a porta-potty type structure, but prettier than a porta-potty).  It was quiet, beautiful, the campers were all very respectful, and it was very close (within walking distance) to some of the most amazing trails in the park.

 The forest behind our campsite was SO beautiful at dusk.

 Cheers!

My favorite place to wake up in the morning... my tent.

The first area in the park that we hit up was "The Lake of the Clouds".  Here we walked to the overlook, soaked in the views, and then started down "The Big Carp River Trail" for about a 1/2 a mile.

After a PBJ lunch, we backtracked to hop onto "The North Mirror Lake Trail", which ended up being close to 7ish miles round trip?  

One thing that we wished could have been a little bit clearer were the "grades" or the descriptions of the trails.  When we found a sign that gave details about specific trails we had already been on, we didn't quite think that they were as accurate as they could have been.  The "North Mirror Lake Trail", for instance, was one of those trails where you find yourself in the middle of thinking, "Holy sh*t, we're going to have to hike back through this mess...".  It wasn't an awful trail, in fact it was a great hike, we just had no way of knowing ahead of time how steep a good majority of the trail was.  Anyway, we marched onward to check out Mirror Lake and weren't disappointed with the payoff at the trail's main destination...

These big orange guys were everywhere!  Also, here's a shot of my fractured finger and splint... sexy!

 Mirror Lake

 Going for a dip in Mirror Lake...

We found out later that there are apparently leeches in this lake, so we were glad we didn't stay in for too too long...

 Post Hike Portrait.

Inch Worm!

Back at camp...

 A baby yellow finch gave us a visit.

The next day, we decided we would canoe Lake Superior.  This leg of our adventure is undocumented and also mostly forgotten.  We were attacked by swarms of flies on the Lake--like, drawing blood biting flies.  So, our highlight of that day was going into town, recovering, and enjoying a delicious meal at a local cafe, catching up on emails and current "going on's", and buying insect repellent that we hoped would help solve our bug problem.

Our time on the lake went something like this scene out of Amityville Horror...

That night we discovered the "Presque Isle River Trail" which was hands down the BEST trail we did during our time there.  I had forgotten the camera (missing some incredible--INCREDIBLE--shots...), so we vowed to come back the next day to really soak it in.

So, the next day we hit up 4 areas of the park: Beaver Creek Trail, The Union Mine Trail, a Lake Superior Beach, and then the Presque Isle River Trail.  It was a fantastic day!  I would definitely recommend all of these trails and destinations within the park; they were great!

Mystery Marks...

 We got to see a few bald eagles!  They are indeed a majestic bird.

We ate our lunch (leftovers from camp dinners) here on this little bridge.  The walking stick that Joey found for me was perfect, so I brought it home with me and plan on decorating it just a bit to differentiate it from other sticks and hiking with it again.  Perhaps this is the start of a beautiful relationship...

 and Joey also found himself a walking stick.  This particular walking-stick-and man relationship did not work out so well.

 The Union Mine Trail.  It ain't gonna "mine" itself...

 This is how Joey bathes in the wild....

And this is how he "Last of the Mohican's" it:

 ... and that was the last thing I remember.

The Presque Isle River Trail...

Mesmerizing and Majestic, this was the best trail to end our trip on...

There were 4 falls along the trail at this section of the river.  Each waterfall had it's own characteristics that set it apart from the rest, making each stop equally mesmerizing and hard to move on from.  Near the Presque Isle Falls, though, at the mouth of the river, was a stone island, which made for excellent views, exploring, and which provided an excellent spot to take a break and enjoy the moment.

I couldn't get a good picture of them with the lens I was using (and from where I was standing), but there was a family of otters swimming/playing in this pool.  When they realized that they were being watched, they began squeaking at one another, but kept on playing.

 Lake Superior Horizon...
This was one of those shots I was talking about that were INCREDIBLE the night before.  There were clouds mingling with the sunset and rays of sun shooting down into the water while the sky melted into a sherbert dessert.  Lesson learned... always grab your camera. 

 We went for a dip at the mouth of the Presque Isle River and Lake Superior.  The water was warm and amber colored.

Our sunset-watching-log that we occupied two evenings in a row.

Aside from the bugs, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan was stunningly beautiful and such a wonderful adventure to explore.  We would recommend to anyone to check out this corner of the country, but to keep in mind that summertime=bugs... but summertime also = swimming.

We set out the next morning for Chicago to hang out with Joey's sister Cheri.  My memory card was full at that point, so there are only a few pictures from the last leg of our trip, but our itinerary for the day was a great one and I would love to share it with you in a another post.  

Goodbye for now and in the meantime, Happy Wednesday!

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part V