Gelina and Dave's Adventures

The northern Great Lakes are one of our favorite travel destinations. Whether we're kayaking, hiking, camping, or just hanging out at the resort's hot tub, "Up North" has a lot to offer.

We love the beautiful scenery - thick forests, rocky shores, shear cliffs, waterfalls, agate beaches, great little hidden nooks and bays, and the big waters of Superior and Michigan. No theme parks, no ATV's, no fudge shops - just the draw of the water and the peace, quiet and relaxation that it brings.

Here are some of the photos we've taken on various trips up north.

Much of the Lake Superior's north shore is covered with Canadian Shield - a layer of rock that was laid down over 3 billion years ago. Here the lichens have taken over.	Gelina and her reflection in one of the pools that often forms in the rock.
The fog burning off of Little Two Harbors as viewed from Split Rock Lighthouse.	What a difference a day makes - sunrise the next morning in Duluth harbor.
Split Rock Lighthouse emerging from the fog. The light was built in 1910 after a huge November storm damaged 29 ships in the area.	The lighthouse with the fog signal building and pump house.
The lighthouse keeper’s houses. The whole site was given a major restoration in 2008.	Big rains the previous day caused the Beaver River to flood while we were there. Normally there's a least 3 waterfalls visible from here.
Flood water swirling around the rocky shore.	The mouth of the river with Lake Superior in the background.
The waves of Lake Superior pounding by Cascade River State Park. This is taken in infrared. See Dave's Geek Stuff for details.	More pounding, and this was a pretty calm day by Lake Superior standards.
Here the waves have worn away the sedimentary rock and have exposed an old lava flow.	A big C-130 from the Duluth Air National Guard Base came over low and slow while we were watching the waves.
Gelina next to our Folbot Greenland II after a great paddle on Caribou Lake near Lutsen, MN. This was our first time out in the yak since Gelina's surgery.	Fall on Caribou Lake. It was a gorgeous day for a paddle. Very calm to begin with, but we got into some wind and waves later.
Much of the North Shore is covered with Canadian Shield - a layer of rock that was laid down over 3 billion years ago.	The Artists Point in Grand Marias is a finger of this shield that sticks out into Lake Superior.
The Hjordis, a 50-foot schooner run by the North House Folk School in Grand Marias. Haven't been out on her yet, but can't wait.	Latches? We don't need no stinkin' latches. This knot on the Hjordis is how it used to be done.
A few of the boats built at the school. They use these and the Hjordis to teach both boat building and sailing.	Detail of a pram. They do lovely things with "old" skills.
Buoys and fishing nets. There's still a small, but profitable, fishing industry on Lake Superior. It's mostly little operations that have been doing it for generations.	Avast! The Hjordis disappearing into a fog bank just of Artists Point.
A sagging reminder of the original shake fish houses along the north shore in Grand Marias.	This one is on the register of historic places, and you can still buy fish there.
The moon over Lake Superior. We stayed at the Lutsen Lodge and spent most of our evenings just staring at the water.	A short hike down the beach from where we stayed was this lone pine tree hanging on for dear life on the rocky shore.
Fall of the Superior north shore near Cut Face Creek.	A wonderful collection of things that the lake washed up to show us.
A split in the rocks near the tip of Artist's Point. As harsh as the winds are, there are moss and ferns that grow in the sheltered spots.	This year we didn't get up the shore until late in the fall. The Sumac leaves had already turned.
There are a number of trails running across the point. Here moss is growing on a stand of birch trees.	This birch was sheltered from the wind, but still showed a weathered bark.
Old fishing shacks spread out on a little bay. Commercial fishing and lumber once supported the entire area.	Naniboujou lodge is a beautiful resort from the '20s located just north of Grand Marias. We stopped up one Sunday for a very nice brunch.
The dining room at Naniboujou is painted in Cree Indian designs.	Naniboujou, center, is the Cree god of the outdoors.
The split rocks at Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. They can be seen from the Superior Hiking Trail that follows much of the Lake Superior coastline.	Gelina below one of the many falls that are found along the trail.
We recently stayed at a Bob's Cabins a great little bunch of resort cabins near Two Harbors, MN.	They are neat, spartan, little cabins just steps from the lake. No phones, no TVs, no distractions. Lovely.
We spend a lot of time at the shore. Sometimes we hunt for agates. Sometimes we go wading in the cold water. Sometimes we just find a nice warm rock to sit on and spend some time staring at the lake.	The lake is full of different types of rocks that were brought here by the glaciers.
Some of the rocks were part of lava flows. You can still see a lot of lava incursions that form long fingers of rock running into the lake.	Sometimes the lava gets folded and forms depressions that are usually surrounded by lichens.
Dave feeding the gulls. Not a good idea, since gulls are little more than rats with wings. Stupid gull trick: get them flying up to catch food in mid air and then toss them a wine cork instead of a bread crumb. Ouch!	This old fishing cabin is on Stoney Point road. A great place to go wadding.
Sunflowers growing wild along the shore. They were sheltered from the wind otherwise they never would have made it this long.	This tree grows straight out of a bolder in the middle of the Cascade River. It is surrounded by rock and waterfalls but it just hangs in there anyway.
Falls on the Cascade River after a big rain. This section is on a great hiking trail this is part of Cascade River State Park near Lutsen. The weather changes in an instant by the lake. We hiked in sweatshirts. By the time we got back to the car there was a flood warning in effect. By the time we reached Duluth it was snowing. By the time we got back to Minneapolis, Duluth was covered in several inches of snow and almost an inch of ice.

Our Adventures Up North