It was another good day. Because the museum we planned to visit was only 20 miles away and didn't open until noon, I spent a leisurely morning on the internet, finally leaving at 10AM. By that time, the weather had warmed up enough that I didn't need to wear a T-shirt under my jersey. I'm hoping that summer had finally come to the upper Midwest!
I spent the entire ride on US-41. It was generally busy, but had a great shoulder for the entire day, so traffic was not a problem.
I met Jeanna at the Michigamme Museum at 12:30. The museum was somewhat disappointing. Most of the small-town museums we have visited tell the history of the town and highlight its prominent citizens and industries. This museum had very little of that and seemed to be a mishmash of unrelated (both to the town and to each other) topics, so we did not spend much time there.
There were no nearby restaurants open today, so we stopped at a C-store and bought some grapes and cheese and had a very nice picnic lunch at a roadside park. After lunch, Jeanna headed off to the motel, and I followed, making just one more stop at Canyon Falls.
While busy, I appreciated the wide clean shoulder on US-41.
After eating lunch, Jeanna mentioned that there was a trail leading to a falls, but that she had turned back because of the mosquitos. I decided that no mosquito was going to stop me, so I slathered on the bug spray and hit the trail. Or rather, the trail hit me. Just a short distance from the falls, two large trees were down, blocking the way. Not to be thwarted, I risk life and limb to climb around them. I made it to the top of the hill to get a photo, but not without the loss of blood. What I won't do to get something for this blog!!
I couldn't get over the trees, so I went up the hill, using the saplings for assistance.
After lunch, I rode about 6 miles and stopped at another roadside park to see Canyon Falls, which is on the Sturgeon River. The Falls are about a 15-minute hike from the parking lot, but it was well worth it. The trail that leads to the falls follows alongside the river, and it was very busy today. There was a steady stream of people either going to the falls or to one of the two swimming spots along the way.
The following shots were taken from the trail as I followed the river to the falls.
After leaving the Canyon Falls, I had the easiest 10 miles so far of the entire trip. It was all downhill to the motel in L'Anse and I made great time.
Tomorrow is a short ride to Houghton, where we will be spending 2 nights.
Today's ride: 54 miles (87 km) Total: 3,022 miles (4,863 km)
