Wednesday June 21, 2023
You're probably tired of hearing this, but I really miss my good phone camera. It would have done wonders with the morning's sunrise.
It was time to pack up and leave Copper Harbor behind. Hwy 41 would take me south and passed the mines I had previously explored.
A few miles down the road, in a roadside park is what they call the Keweenaw Snow Thermometer. It's a visual representation of the snowfall during the winter of '78. Imagine if you can 390 inches(32.5 feet/9.9meters) of snow. Somehow the thirty year average snowfall of 240 inches doesn't seem quite as bad.
Mine sites are all over the place on the Keweenaw Peninsula. I drove past a sign for the Seneca #3 Mine.
After turning around, I found a small turnout and this curious device. It serves one function, to protect bats. The live in the abandoned mines. These things allow them easy access in and out, without allowing people inside.
It had been a while since I had a relaxing, sit down breakfast. When I drove by Slim's Cafe, I just had to stop. Inside, it's your basic local place. The breakfast menu is exactly what you'd expect. And it was oh, so good.
Part of the fun of these trips is the unexpected. I would have been happy just seeing the old abandoned buildings of the Ahmeek Copper Mine. The Ahmeek Mining Company was founded in 1880. Production was irregular until 1903 when a large deposit of copper was found. The mine temporarily shut down in the 1930's and shut for good in 1966.
In the summer of 2020, Nick and Stacey drove past the site and thought it had potential. They built primitive campsites and cabins, then reopened the place as Ahmeek Copper Mine Camp. Cabins this time of year will run you $95 a night while campsites run $25. There's no electricity and any water you may need comes from a communal spigot.
Queen Anne's Falls brought me to the small town of Copper City. The websites, as well as Google all say to park in a small area off 4th Street. From there, directions vary. They mention a dirt road, but not the No Trespassing sign. They also mention ATV trails that I never saw. So much for Queen Anne's Falls.
Most towns have a memorial dedicated to the local men and women who died in war. Kearsarge is no exception. Their memorial comes in the form of a stone ship. Behind it are lists of those who lost their lives. There are also four signs detailing the ships bearing the Kearsarge name that went to war.
My next stop was the Keweenaw National Mining Historical Park, in Calumet.
Between 1871 and 1880, half of the nation's copper came from the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. The company understood the value of keeping a steady workforce. They built basic, but better housing for the miners. Workers were allowed to build their own homes on company land. They even built a community hospital.
Changes in mining technology meant less staff was necessary in the mines. In 1913, the Western Federation of Miners called a strike throughout the Keweenaw Peninsula. Their three biggest demands were an eight hour work day, $3 a day in pay and the return of the two man drills. The new ones needed one person, thus staff cuts.
The mine reopened the next year. The only concession by the company was an eight hour work day. They also refused to hire union miners.
After WWII, demand for copper dropped, causing the mine to close for good.
The Boston Pond Nature Area is a short driveway with parking for four cars. The park is pretty small at only fifty acres. The trail out to the pond is about a one minute walk. Still worth the stop.
The Quincy Mine is certainly hard to miss. The shaft house is an imposing presence along the highway. It was founded in 1846. Due to a mix up, two competing companies were both sold the rights to mine. Instead of tying themselves up with legal battles, they simply decided to merge.
Twenty years later, it had become the largest producer of copper in the world. It closed in 1931 when the price of copper dropped, but reopened to help meet the copper demand during WWII. After the war, they closed for good.
These days it's a tourist attraction and they offer tours. I passed on the tour. But, you can watch a video by Camilo Pinedo and get a good idea what's involved.
Hwy 41 would take me back to the town of Hancock and back across that lift bridge. I did consider another stop, but I did have another bridge in my future, much to my surprise. On the south side of the bridge, I picked up Hwy 26 south.
After a brief stop in Twin Lakes State Park for a picnic lunch, it was back on the road. It's exactly as advertised.
Highway 26 would take me south towards Mass City, named for the Mass Mining Company. From there it was an easy drive west on Hwy 38 to the lakeshore town of Ontonagon.(pr; Onta-NOG-in) There are two versions of the name's origin. Bishop Braga wrote one version of the story. He claimed it's Ojibwa for "the dish." Legend has it a woman was cleaning a bowl along the river when it got away and started floating out to the lake. Another missionary claimed it simply meant "hunting river."
Along the way, I passed this long abandoned inn. Clearly it's been closed for some time.
A quick dash up a side street brought me to the Ontonagon Lighthouse. The original was built here in 1850, but upgraded in 1866. Its purpose was to mark the entrance to the Ontonagon River, an important supply point for not just the mines, but the towns growing up around them.
While looking for the lighthouse, I passed a coffee shop by the name of Olde Swing Bridge Roasters. With a name like that, I had to check it out. I parked a block up and walked back. The flowers are along the fenced patio area of the coffee shop.
Tina was great and the coffee delicious. I drank it in the shop to make use of the wifi and to just check the place out. You know it's a classy joint when your coffee comes dressed like this...
This shot doesn't do the place justice. Click the link above for a better idea of what's inside.
Outside the front door...
In person, these looked like black velvet...
It turned out there really was an old swing bridge. It was removed and replaced with a concrete one. Not everyone was happy to see it go. However, when you drive across the new bridge, there's a railroad bridge parallel to it. Since the tracks by the road are all long gone, I went to investigate.
It's a thirteen mile rail trail from Ontonagon to neighboring Rockland. After ditching the car at the neighboring marina, I walked back and picked up the trail towards the old railroad bridge.
You can imagine my surprise to find the bridge wasn't fenced off. Naturally, I walked across. When I reviewed my photos from the day, I did notice there are no shots from the bridge. There's a reason for that. There's a lot of sticky tar patches on those ties. I was trying really hard not to get them on my sneakers.
My home for the next two night was a place called the Sunshine Motel. The rooms and cabins are on the periphery of a central lawn. On cool evenings, they do a fire pit.
Across the street, they have their own private access point to a beach on Lake Superior. I took a walk out late in the afternoon.
And again for sunset. Though the smoky haze was a bit much tonight.
While sunset was equally hazy and mosquito ridden, I did meet an interesting guy down on the lakeshore. He was in hip waders and walking back and forth in water up to his knees. He was staring intently downward and pointing a blacklight at the water. He was looking for something called Yooperlites. No, seriously.
These are rocks with a certain makeup that glow under black light. If you want to know the science behind it, this article should help:
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