Catching up... Copper Harbor & Keweenaw

Still catching up.  Dateline Iron River, WI Wednesday July 21.

Tomto & I left Ann & Fred's around 10 on Sunday.  Stopped as mentioned before at Kavela's for a pasty and rode on to Copper Harbor.  US 41 which begins life at the  tip of the Keweenaw and eventually mkes its way to Florida where it is most famous for its slow-driving snow birds leads us directly to  the only flashing yessow traffic light in Keweenw county.  Left turn at the light, a hundred yards on the left: The Land of Make Believe.

But the road to get there, young US 41!  Pretty uneventful for the first 30 or so miles.  Tiny villages that appear to be "rode hard and put away wet", lots of old cars and abandoned buildings, here and there evidence of the once flourishing copper mining that loaned its temporary glitter to the peninsula.  The largest town, Calumet, has a nice old 19th century  high school right on 41, it's  now renovated and integrated with more modern mile and elementary schools.  The whole connected complex is joined to a wood burning, smoke stacked plant that provides heat for all the buildings.  Down town Calumet has recent been redone with the help of federal grants... restored store fronts, new/old brick streets, standardized 'olde' signage.   some charm but with a sense of resignation to the inevitable: Almost a Ghost Town.

Ah but the last ten or 15 miles!  My most vivid memories of my last visit to Copper Harbor are of that road.  It's a tunnel of trees and when the sun is shining (and it was each time we traversed that section) the road is dappled with lacy shadow and light that is mesmerizing.  It's the highway itself that is the view, not vistas or grand buildings (there virtually none), only a brief glimpse of Lake Medora's shore and a short run along the stone fences of the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge golf course.  Tomto and I have ridden the infamous "Tail of the Dragon" in North Carolina...300+ turn in 11 miles or something like that.  Sports car drivers and go-fast bikers come from all over to ride that road which is littered with car and bike parts of over-enthusiastic drivers.  The approach to Copper Harbor, while not quite as twisty is more beautiful and certainly more serene than the Dragon.  Still, the thrill of negotiating the gentle curves and dips gives one a sense of being one with the machine.  All-in-all a more zen-like and satisfying experience for old guys.

More to follow about our visit in the Land of Make Believe and our hosts Phoebe and Sue.