Thursday, October 6, 2022

Summer Vaca 2022: Stop 3 - Lake Superior, MN

After our last stop in Itasca State Park, my crew took off for the shores of Lake Superior.  If you've missed our summer '22 adventures through Minnesota, including walking the Mississippi headwaters in Lake Itasca, a few days in Minneapolis, and even a pitstop to see the Bridges of Madison County in Iowa, you can check them all out at those links.

Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world - hence the name, SUPERior.  We had heard that the North Shore Scenic Drive along the banks of Lake Superior was a must-do, so that was our big goal.  (Side note: in doing some cross referencing for this post, I found out that the North Shore Scenic Drive has just been closed for the next five weeks due to an eroding hillside!  Eeek!  So glad we got this one in!)  We landed in Duluth our first night, which we quickly began to see is known for being a port for cargo on Lake Superior.  We had no clue how much comes in and out of this area!!  While here, we had the chance to stand under the famous Aerial Lift Bridge (a bridge that lifts the road to allow boats to go under), and then take a walk down the Lakewalk and Canal Park to take in the sights of the area.  It was a really lovely spot and we even found an ice-cream shop that has dairy-free options (such a win for our dairy intolerant kiddo)!

The next day, we took off for the North Shore Scenic Drive.  Jeeps are made for drives like this!  The sun on your face and the wind in your hair - it's fantastic!  At least for some of us.


The stops along the drive gave both the novice and experts plenty of rock skipping opportunities, as well as a chance to seek out special rock formations, and just relax as the summer closed down.


The pup came along on many of our adventures, and even gave us a good scare when she decided to jump out of the parked car window!  No worries - everything ended up fine, but definitely a lesson learned (hopefully for everyone).  We continued on our travels stopping at multiple pull off spots and waterfalls.  For those familiar with the area, Gooseberry Falls needed a second trip and its own post.


I love all the picturesque opportunities travels like these give me.  While I know my husband enjoys trips like this too, I know he also makes sure that I get to indulge in these kinds of chances when we can.  We always talk about how we want to make sure we do these types of things while we still have the energy and ability to go down a steep stair case or hike for miles on a trail.  One day those things won't be as easy.


We ended the day in a sweet little town called Grand Marias where we got to see a fun new open concept art space built out of tiny homes as galleries.  Each one had a side wall that opened to reveal an artist's work for sale.  The town is known as an art spot, but unfortunately our timing didn't work out and most spaces were closed for the evening.

We could have easily spent days hiking and exploring, but we were grateful for the time we got.  Only a few more pieces to our summer '22 travels are left; I can't wait to share!

Until next time,