Sault Ste. Marie, MI – July 17 to 22, 2012 Our Current Location
Tuesday. We traveled from Munising to Sault Ste. Marie, the city where Michigan began. About half way between the two cities, is Newberry, a small community that is the gateway to Tahquamenon Falls State Park. The falls are the second largest falls East of the Mississippi River, second only to Niagara Falls. We found a place to park Big Guy and freed the Element to take the 30 minute trip to the park.
The parking lot to the falls was crowded and we were surprised as the State Park is literally in the middle of nowhere. It’s one of those places that you have to intentionally go to as it is not on the way to anywhere. Well, it is summer and the weather is great, so we join in. There are two viewing areas, one at the top of the falls and the other near the bottom.
The upper area is the most popular, and while we were there it was where almost everyone headed. It might have had something to do with the disclaimer that only 96 stair steps were involved to access the upper platform and 117 steps to get to the lower platform. That’s only part of the story. They took some liberty about the number of steps involved in getting to the lower viewing area. After we went down, we both thought there were way more steps to get all of the way down.We decided to count them on the way back up. There were indeed 117 steps, but that only got you to the first lookout. There were 65 more to get all the way down. We’re not sure how many there are to the upper area. We did both paths and it was worth every step.
It was a beautiful walk back through the nature trail and we found this fellow taking a nap.
These were the best falls yet. Certainly the biggest. Again, the falls were root beer colored from the tannin in the water. It’s amazing that Lake Superior is fed by all these brown colored rivers and is still so clear and blue.
We felt quite justified in replenishing our depleted energy stores at the local brewery. They had a choice of three brews. Frank tried the Fall’s Tannin and EJ went for the Peach Wheat Ale. Both were icy cold and very good. Of course we had to have an order of onion rings too.
We returned to the intersection of 28 and 123 where we reconnected the car to the RV and continued our journey east.
We’re camped at another Kewadin Casino, quite a bit more upscale than the last one. It has a concert hall and a huge hotel. As an indicator that they are not hurting for business, as opposed to the one in Christmas, they don’t give you any free money. But, instead of the $10/night camping fee, they give you three free nights stay in their RV Park. Once again it’s electric only, but this time fresh water and a dump station are available nearby and it is a nice park, not just the parking lot.
On Wednesday we did the touristy stuff and walked through downtown and visited the Soo Locks. We had done the museums and boat tour the last time we were here in 2003, so we opted not to repeat those.
Depending on which direction the ships are traveling, they either rise or fall 21 feet traversing between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. We watched one ore ship that was 105 feet wide and 1100 feet long negotiate the Poe lock. The lock itself is only 110 feet wide by 1200 feet long. The ships navigate the lock system under their own power, as there is not a tug in sight. As that ship, American Integrity, entered and left the locks, we never once heard metal scraping against concrete. Pretty impressive considering they only had 2 1/2 feet clear on either side.
While the technology involved in the locks is very interesting, waiting for the ships to go through the locks is a lot like watching paint dry. Everything moves in ultra-slow motion. It takes 45 minutes from the time a ship enters the locks until it exits. But, bear in mind, the ships are over 1000 feet long, so it takes a while for them to slow down or get underway.
While waiting for the larger ship to come through, we watched several smaller boats go through the McArthur lock, which is 80 feet wide by 800 foot long. It took them a lot less time and it was amazing how quickly they raised and lowered the water levels.
We also watched as another ore ship approached the smaller lock. As it was waiting for its turn, it looked like the wind got the better of the captain and it almost ended up sideways. They finally got straightened out and as we were walking off we saw the American Integrity leaving and the other one going in.
Wednesday is the Farmers Market downtown, so we stopped by. Not much there, but we did see this neat water feature at the park. It’s all metal and lots of detail.
We also passed a group of Morgan’s that Frank had to check out.
The Soo (Sault Ste Marie) is a pretty busy place, although we’re not sure why. Once you’ve seen the locks, done the tours and checked out the gambling casinos, you’re done. But there’s tourists everywhere. Are they all going to Canada across the International Bridge? When you peruse the Soo travel brochure, it directs you to places an hour or two away. Places we’ve just come from. We guess folks are just using it as a base camp from which to launch their expeditions to other parts of the U.P. or Canada.
Thursday was another chore day with EJ doing laundry and Frank continuing to buff out scratches on the side of Big Guy that we got back in Missouri. Frank has gotten rid of the scratches on 3/4 of Big Guy and will tackle the remaining quarter at some future date. The RV Park here has a single washer and dryer, but the good news is that they are very similar to the ones we have back home. What this means is that our clothes came out in great shape.
Friday was a restocking day and of course we had to venture over to the casino and test our luck. Lest you get the wrong idea, even though we partake of the various casino’s offerings fairly frequently, we are not big players. Our budget for an evening might be $5 or maybe $10. More often than not we come out a few dollars ahead, but then there are those days….. All in all we are probably about even having used their money for the bulk of our gambling entertainment.
Had plans of leaving on Saturday, but we received some paperwork that needs to be notarized and mailed, so we decided to hang out a few more days. Got another 3 days free RV park stay, so we are good.
Tomorrow we are committed to crossing over into Canada. There is a toll to cross the International Bridge and we’re hoping the Canadian Border Guards will be as casual as they were last year. Although it’s a moot point as once again we’re complying with all the rules as best we can. Although, EJ did bring a small dish garden on this trip. Whether or not it survives the crossing remains to be seen. We have no fresh fruits and veggies that they can confiscate this time. What do they do with the oranges and apples they take? Hmmm..Fruit salad?
We also want to remember a long time friend who recently passed away. Jim Wallace was a man of integrity, who had strong beliefs, who loved his family with a passion and was one of those people that knew no strangers. It seems like we have always shared New Years Eve with him and his wife Ange. We have so many fond memories of him and will miss Jim greatly. It’s hard to believe he’s gone.
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