Day 1 (Saturday, August 11)

Our plan was to spend four days camping at the Fort Wilkins State Park in Copper Harbor, but there was one thing I had to do before we could leave. I had promised my co-workers to be part of their Paavo Nurmi Marathon Relay team, which took place in Hurley, WI, on August 11.  This was the 50th anniversary of the Paavo, so it was a big deal.  It’s an hour drive to Hurley from our house in Ashland, and we would be leaving from there to head north to the Keweenaw.  We had just arrived home from spending a week with family in Republic, MI, so Jeff and I had a tight turn around time for unpacking from one trip and packing up for the next.  We made it easy on ourselves by keeping the meal plans very simple.

I would be running the fourth leg for our team, meaning that I would start running my five miles at about 9:30, easy enough, but Jeff was the team driver, dropping off and picking up runners, so we had to have the camper and everything packed up and ready to go before 7 am that day. We got everything packed up the night before, with just the refrigerator to load in the morning, so we were on our way with time to spare.

Me with teammates Amanda and Serena

The morning of Aug. 11 was sunny, hot, and humid, not ideal running weather, but everyone on my team was in such a great mood that I hardly noticed the heat.   We knew we weren’t serious competitors in the race, anyway.  The race was well supported by many volunteers and locals from the small towns along the race route. People lined the streets and sat in their front lawns cheering the runners on.  My leg of the race was particularly beautiful as it crossed the Gile Flowage.  At the end of the race, the streets were jam-packed with spectators, and there was free beer at the finish line for runners. We celebrated our accomplishment with a few beers and burgers at the Trailside.

Then it was off to Copper Harbor. The drive north from Ironwood is approximately 3 hours.  We stopped in Houghton at the Bonfire Grill atop Franklin Square Inn to meet up with friends.  In the restaurant, the views were terrific, but the air conditioning must not have been working.  It was uncomfortably hot and stuffy.  We were too hot to eat, so we just had a couple of Cokes and then said goodbye to our friends, ready for the final push to Copper Harbor.

Copper Harbor is only 47 miles from Houghton on US 41, but the highway winds through small towns and the final stretch is so narrow and curvy that it takes a full hour to complete the drive (and a few minutes more if pulling a camper, which we were).

We finally arrived in Copper Harbor at 7 pm.  We had reservations for the night at  Fort Wilkins State Park, East Campground. To get there, we turned right at the single flashing light in town and drove just a few miles to the park.

Jeff was unhappy to discover that it was a warm and muggy evening, not what we were expecting the weather to be in Copper Harbor.  We were hot, tired, and hungry, and we still needed to set up camp before darkness fell. Luckily, the ranger station wasn’t busy, and we were able to get into our site within minutes.

Site 81, privacy and a thimbleberry patch

We had reserved site 81, which was far back from Lake Fanny Hooe, because it appeared to offer the most privacy.  We weren’t disappointed!  While most other sites in the park are crowded in together with few trees or shrubberies for privacy, this spot in the corner of the East Campground site right next to the forest and offers privacy on two sides.  Plus, there is a small path that leads straight from the site, through a thimbleberry patch, out to the road, directly across from Lake Superior.

Leveling the camper perfectly is a must for Jeff

After getting our camper situated and leveled, we changed into swimsuits and walked down to Lake Superior.

The stretch of shoreline directly across from the park is stunning, with rocky outcroppings and views of the Copper Harbor lighthouse, which is inaccessible to the public except by boat.

 

The shoreline is rough.  There is no sand here, just a combination of rugged boulders and smaller rocks, so footwear is a must.  We wore waterproof athletic sandals so we could keep our shoes on while swimming.  The lake is also very cold, but by August, it is swimmable, with water temperatures reaching the low to mid-sixties.  Lake Superior was clean and refreshing, the perfect end to our day and the perfect beginning to our Copper Harbor vacation.