Monday in Keweenaw

Monday in Keweenaw

Breakfast at the Tamarac... special treatment for the Queen and her court, quick service so P&S can make their meeting. Phoebe and Sue have a 10 o'clock with the Copper Harbor Improvement Association planning for "Thunder in the Harbor" motorcycle rally on the coming weekend. We learn later that Phoebe is charged with soliciting gift certificates from local businesses for the rally raffle. Only the local commercial camp ground fails to donate. Who could deny tribute to the Queen?

Tomto and Dave ride the Brockway Mountain scenic road, We almost turn back after a couple of spectacular turnouts thinking that we must surely have reached the top... but noooo, the summit has a gift shop and great views of Superior with a passing freighter to the west. On a clear day, they say, you can see Isle Royal. To the east and south is a big chunk of Lake Medora. To the north are views of far off Keweenaw Mountain Lodge golf course. The road down the west side of the mountain takes us back again to Eagle Harbor (too fancy for the Queen, but has good dump facilities). South on the coast road (Rt. 26) and eventually to Rt. 41.

Here we decide to look for the birdseye maple outlet we saw featured on the Tamarac place mat. I think I remember it's in Laurium but when we ask in the Laurium lumber store we find it's really a few miles back 41 in Mohawk. In Mohawk we follow signs to a (actually 'the') side street where we find a warehouse building with a small showroom tacked on the front. Inside are an amazing array of birdseye maple object... some art some utilitarian. This business finds and makes things from maple trees that have a genetic defect which creates the characteristic swirls that are the 'birdseyes'. Identifying trees that have the birdseye gene is an art in itself. We learned that sometimes clues in bark pattern are fairly obvious, mimicking patterns in the wood. However, most of the time the bark pattern gives no obvious clue to the untrained eye. The ability to find a birdseye in the wild is a significantly valuable skill. As we learned from Phoebe who is contemplating selling some timber off her 22 acres at Oleanna a birdseye tree can bring as much as $40,000. The wood is used, of course, in making furniture, music boxes and other decorative objects. It is also found in the steering wheels and interior decor of luxuary autos such as Lexus and Jaguar. In the shop were examples of the veneer pealed from birdseye logs... many linear yards of eighth inch thick veneer can be shaved from a single log.

Having spent a non-productive but interesting day touring the Keweenaw south of Copper Harbor we motor back north on 41, through the great tunnel of trees, past the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge and Golf Club, right at the only flashing yellow light in Keweenaw county, east to find the source of Route 41. Past the Fort Wilkins campground, past the recreated Fort itself, and in a mile or so we reach a the end of the paved road and a sign that proclaims "The Beginning of US Route 41".

(see post with link to US Route 41 info)