South Shore of Superior

     We have driven through Wisconsin and for a few days were "Yoopers," the name given to those who live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. (U.P.ers...get it?)  Wisconsin was short and rainy.  We had one day of sun that we took the kayaks out a bit by the Apostle Islands, Wisconsin, but a NNW wind prevented us from seeing the sea caves on the western shoreline.  We found some good cheese at a local food co-op, some crumbly Parmesan type with a cheddar like smooth finish, some creamy brick cheese, and some plain cheddar.

It was very brisk and we bundled up in several layers!

     The water was so beautiful-speckled greens and blues, clear enough to see twenty, thirty feet to the lake floor-that we decided we definitely want to come back in the warmer, calmer months of June and July to do kayak-specific trips and some overnighters on the outlying islands.

     In the U.P. we stayed mostly in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  Here, again, heavy winds from the wrong direction prevented us from doing the premier kayaking trips, but we found a great campsite by an inland lake and saw some loons there.  We caught a glimpse of the "pictured" rocks, cliffs hundreds of feet high with colored striations, via hiking trails.

This is Chapel Rock, typical of weather-created rock formations at Pictured Rocks.

Moderate waves along the Superior coastline, one of the few beaches interspersed between miles of high cliffs.

A ranger told us that a week earlier a storm had created 20 foot swells on the lake.  Glad we weren't kayaking then!

Kinda hard to see, but a woodland stream runs down to the beach and into the lake, dark brown from the tannic acid created from forest decay.

  Above, our campsite.  The two nights we stayed there, we heard coyotes howling.  

Quick Tour of the North Shore

     We got up to northern Minnesota for one afternoon and one night.  This morning, drizzle forced us to change plans (we were going hiking) and head south and east to Wisconsin.  Turned out to be a pretty quiet day, but it was a good reminder that being on a road trip is not about doing one thing after another, but it's about being...opening ourselves to the land we travel through and whatever may come our way.  Before the rain set in, we had a great moment of reflection as the sun rose through streaks of blue clouds over the lake.

The rocky shoreline and the blue waters of the lake meet in tumbled chaos at the north shore.  The coast is evidence of long-ago volcanic activity, and every few miles it seems another river or creek runs channels, often small gorges, through the rock to flow into the lake.  There are many waterfalls, of which we caught only glimpses due to rain, and some fall straight into Superior over small cliffs.  We are told whitewater kayakers will sometimes ride the rivers and the falls, as well.

To end, a quote:

But every one of us are descended from the restless ones, the wayward ones who were not content to stay at home.
                  -John Steinbeck, Travels with Charley  (Speaking about Americans descended from Europeans)

Megan, giving a tree some love.

Split Rock Light House. America's most visited lighthouse.

Minneapolis, MN

Wow what a great trip it's been so far. We left Blue Springs on Thursday September 9th, which was also Peter's 24th birthday! Here's a short video clip from before we took off.

We stopped for lunch in Des Moines, IA and ate at the sculpture park. Here are a few photos.

We finally arrived in Minneapolis with my Uncle Rod and Aunt Sue at their lovely home.

We had a fantastic dinner and crashed after a long day of travelling. On Friday we bought some stuff at REI for our outdoor kayaking trips up North. We then hooked up with Sue who took us to a fantastic apple orchard called Pine Hill. We sampled some delicious apples and bought some Sweet Tango's which were developed at this orchard and were the best tasting apples I think we've ever had. Here are a few pics.

We also went to a free zoo in Como and then had real Minneapolis eating adventure. We went to both restaurants that claim to have the original and best Juicy/Jucy Lucy burger. If you haven't seen it featured on Man vs Food it's two hamburger patties with cheese on the inside so that it is hot and melty when you bite into it. We first went to the 58 club and the four of us ordered different types of Juicy Lucy's with different chesses, seasonings, and toppings. We then shared each other's and compared to see which we preferred. I got the original with American cheese and Peter and I both thought it was the favorite compared with the other flavor combinations. We then went just down aways to Matt's Bar and ordered their Jucy Lucy. It was filled with young and old, and the cook was huddled over the hot tiny grill while everyone waited for their order. Matt's Bar does not give you cheese or topping options, strictly American cheese only.

After eating both burgers from both places we all agreed that we preferred the 58 Club's Juciy Lucy! We liked the taste and quality of the beef more, the cheese and options more, and overall experience more. We can see why Matt's is so popular especially for the bar crowd, we just thought the meat was a bit overcooked and the cheese all melted out without leaving much flavor. But don't take our word for it, try each yourself and form your opinion. 

This post is getting a bit long so I'll just summarize the rest of our time. We loved all the free museums and stuff to do in Minneapolis and just how many lakes and nature areas there are to explore. It's been a great way to start the trip and we just love our hosts to death.

Rod and Sue with their therapy dog, Samson, at the St. Croix river shore.







There was a big bash Sat. night for the birthdays of Sue's parents, and since Peter's birthday was recent, he got to blow the candles too :)

Sunday we spent visiting a couple of small towns along the St. Croix River, north east of the Twin Cities.

An old timey draw bridge over the St. Croix. Wisconsin is on the other side of the bridge.
                                                                                  

At Taylors Falls there are a lot of rock formations and "glacial potholes," cylindrical holes drilled down into igneous rock by glacial movement over the topography.

Some glacial potholes are up to sixty feet deep!

Next up: camping along Lake Superior, Wisconsin (and hopefully some cheese!) and then more camping in Michigan!  Pray for good weather!

Last Minute

So while buying sea-worthy skirts for my kayaks I had the opportunity to buy a 1300 kayak for 700 dollars.  After thinking on it a couple of days, I realized it was an excellent deal and that I really needed a better touring kayak to handle the potential storm/water conditions of Lake Superior and the Atlantic Ocean (and any other strong big-water currents).  So I traded in my smaller kayak, a Perception Swifty, which was really better suited to quiet lakes and small rivers, for the Current Designs Whistler, which has two hatches, a load capacity of 400 pounds, and a rudder controlled by foot paddles.  I'm really happy with it, and can't wait to put in the water and test it against some big waves!

I thought I'd also take some pictures of this "bark" I've been making for wilderness trips, either kayak overnights or small backpacking trips.  I also photographed my first batch of chicken jerky.  

  

  Hmm...chicken jerky.  Resembles dog treats, but tastes alright.  Spicy, but needed more flavor.  Next time, I will marinate the chicken a good while before dehydrating instead of just rubbing in spices, and then brushing Worcestershire sauce on top.

Pasta bark.  Basically I cooked a heavy pasta (I used penne) that normally would take forever to cook on a backpacking stove, and after fully cooked mixed with fat-free marinara sauce and food processed until it became a mashed potato like consistency.  Then spread on GREASED parchment paper (or else, like my first batch, you'll be left with lots of bits of extra fiber on the bottom of the bark) until brittle.  Now all I need is a bottle of merlot!

 

This was the sketchiest thing I dehydrated.  Potato bark, or really just dehydrated mashed potatoes made with fat-free broth instead of milk and butter.  Turned out nothing like the picture I saw and got a weird, white powdery texture over some sides of it.  Looks like crap, but hopefully, when cooked in boiling water, will turn out as tasty mashed taters.  

Let the adventures begin! T-minus 3 days left!

Wow I can't believe we're leaving on this coming Thursday morning . . . you know like 3 days from now! Ahhhhhh! Peter is currently cooking up a storm. You might ask what delectable food is he making his darling wife? I bet you would never guess it was dehydrated pasta bark!

We borrowed my parent's old dehydrator and have done some fruit and chicken jerky which I can fairly handle, but I had never heard of potato bark, pasta bark and corn bark! It's basically a dehydrated meal that you simple put in some boiling water and voila! a hearty meal (hopefully not theoretical)! We'll let you know when we taste it how it turns out.

Onto our pre-adventure that we had yesterday. We thought it would be a good idea to kayak one more time before we go kayaking on the great lakes and in Acadia NP. So I researched some lakes near us and they all made you pay quite a one day permit fee per boat so we said heck with that.

So then I said, hey we're really close to some inlets into the Missouri River and it's free so why not. So we went to Kaw Point which had a good review on paddling.com and said it was cool to paddle so close to all the industrial buildings and see trains whiz by overhead as well as planes. So this sounded pretty cool. We got there and it was already incredibly windy but we thought we'd keep it easy so no worries.

We started out going away from the city and farther towards Kansas. It was quite easy and I started thinking man I could be a paddler for sure! Then I had the great idea to go the other ways towards the city so we could see all that architecture and other stuff the article was talking about. BIG MISTAKE!

Sure paddling down river is really pretty easy because that's what you're supposed to do, then have someone pick you up later down river. We didn't notice just how fast the current was going because at the time the wind was at our back and we liked looking at all the cool stuff. So we finally decide it's a good time to start heading back and that's when it hits us, the current that is. We struggle to the shoreline and inch our way back. Meanwhile I'm already sore and tired so my strength is a little weak, OK a lot weak.

Now is the time I start freaking out because I simply cannot paddle myself hard enough around certain bends without the current taking me back to where I had begun or farther back. Peter is doing his best trying to keep me cool and with some prayers, grit, and excessive cursing on my part we made it. I felt my arms might just fall off and don't get me started on my back.

It made me realize some things. 1. Peter is as cool as cucumber under stress and pressure. 2. When I feel myself losing control in situations that are physically demanding I become a raging tomato who frightens old ladies out walking her dog along the river (sorry lady) 3. It's best to look at situations like this as one step or stroke at a time, because when I saw just how far we had to paddle back I lost it a little again. Tunnel vision is great. 4. Although I am not quite proud of how I handled things, I am tremendously proud of Peter and of myself for getting through it and just putting my head down and going for it. 5. After a hard day there is nothing better than Panera's mac and cheese!

So we are glad we did it and made it through and we are better for it and better prepared for next time. Hopefully when I report our next kayaking adventure it will be less on the crazy side.

Cheers for now!

Welcome Home!

Well we made it safely to Blue Springs, MO! Somehow we fit everything in our 10 foot Budget truck, but as you can see by this picture it was quite the architectural feat by Peter! Nothing got broken and we only had to leave a few things behind that will go to a worthy cause of helping friends at a yard sale raise money for their planned adoption of a boy from Mongolia.

10' truck = way too small

We totally should have rented the 16 foot truck, but now we know for next time! Shout out to Arthur and Andrew who helped us pack stuff! Thanks guys!

Here are some pics of our new place. It is super clean and really nice. My parents are amazing and put so much work into this place. We feel so blessed to call it our own.

Nice blue bedroom!

Part of Peter's office.

Kitchen table and bakers rack we're using as a bar!

Good lookin kitchen!

Peter also has started an herb garden! They are perennials so they should grow back next spring. He's very handy to have around. All that work in his Mom's garden when he was younger paid off!

Got a great deal on the herbs! Whole project cost maybe $50!

Completed! Tasty herbs!

Anticipation for the big move!

Peter and I are hanging out with his family in these last couple lead up days to moving. I can't believe it's finally here . . . this Saturday, yikes! We will be finishing up all our packing and then loading up Saturday morning with a Budget truck and heading home to Blue Springs!

It's really hit Peter and I that we are leaving Boone, but we both feel peace about it and that we're doing the right thing. Transition changes have always been tough for me but pray for us as we make this big change.

So far our plans are to stay in Blue Springs for a little while and get settled in our cute new house (I'll post pics later once I get my darn camera/computer hookup cord). We might take a quick journey to the lake to visit my dad's parents and enjoy the end of our summer. Then around the first week in September we will be heading north through Iowa and heading to see my Uncle Rod and Aunt Sue in Minneapolis, MN!

Next we'll head towards Chicago as I have several family and friends in that area to crash with and to see all there is to the city. Then most likely we'll do some kayaking and camping along the Great Lakes.

After that adventure we will be heading East and the Northeast towards Maine and Vermont. Haven't nailed down our travel plans for that bit yet.

We will be ending our trip probably around the end of October for a visit back in Raleigh with Peter's family for the State Fair and a possible quick trip to the beach.

I am getting more and more excited for this trip and am so thankful for the opportunity and the generous family and friends we have that are willing to take us in. Please continue to pray for us and with our new netbook, camera and flip video (thanks Paul and Meredith!)  we should be able to keep a good account of our adventures along the way.