Nara Nature Park Trailhead

8/17/2010-8/31/2010: We have just been LOVING the Nara Nature Park Trail area. It is located on 41 South of Houghton, by the animal shelter. It is a great trail system! There have been all kinds of blackcap berries to snack on while hiking the trails this late August. Some of the best places for berries are located along the 'River Loop' by the Pilgrim River and between the base of the sledding hill and the 'River Loop' trail. YUM! There are also many thimbleberries located along the trails. We have seen lots of wildlife. By the river we saw a blue heron and have seen deer in the woods. There are lots of squirrels and birds to be enjoyed. During the spring and summer, butterflies fill the meadows and wildflowers are everywhere. The trails are well posted and are assigned difficulty ratings of easy, moderate and difficult. Some trails are wide and others are foot trails to be shared with mountain bikers. Some of the terrain is flat while other parts are quite hilly. Maps are located throughout the trail system. The Nara Nature Trails meet up with the Michigan Tech Trails creating miles and miles of trails to be enjoyed.

Central Mine

8/15/2010: Today we went to the Central Mine and hiked the Power House Loop. Central was once a mining town that offers itself as a great family area to explore. Some of the buildings are kept to period. You can tour the buildings and way of life of it's former occupants from the 1800's. Today the weather was cool for August. The trail was easy to follow and wound through the woods and by some of the old buildings. The terrain was hilly and at times could be a little steep offering some pretty views. Included is a picture of the powder building. Central is located off 41 going north of Phoenix. For more information about this area check out the site http://www.keweenawhistory.org/central.html which includes a link to a map to Central.

The Computer Died

My computer is not functional and has claimed my pictures. I had made several wonderful hikes the last six weeks, including a hike on the Bare Bluff trail. I had downloaded the pictures of these hikes on the computer. To my family's and my horror the hard drive has froze up on the computer. For the present, the pictures are lost. I will continue to post the hikes that I have taken from here forth.

Hungarian Falls

July 13, 2010: Today my daughter and I went to the Hungarian Falls. The best way to get from Hancock to the falls is going north on 26, also called Tamarack St. In Lake Lindon, make a left on Sixth St., follow the fork to the left and stop at the second gate, with red poles and a yellow orange gate. Today was a pleasant with sunny skies and temperatures in the seventies. The thimbleberries are newly out and we snacked on a few during our walk. The butterflies and squirrels made for a pleasant walk. On the trail we came across five separate waterfalls. The lowest falls down stream are the largest of the falls. I have not included a picture of them as we did not hike to the bottom of these falls. Three of the remaining falls are on the main trail. The upper fall is to the right of the tee of the trail you come in on. Three of the falls are to the left of the tee. From the vantage point above the lower falls, a view of the Huron Mountains could be seen today!

Sandstone Beach

July 4, 2010: The family and I decided to go for a drive today and do a little swimming. We drove up the east side of the Keweenaw on Lac La Belle Rd. Between the town of Gay and Bete Grise, we stopped at a Jacobsville Sandstone beach that was located not far off the road. The beach was secluded in that no one lived near by. For a neat view of the Jacobsville sandstone and just to see how impressive it really is, on Google Earth follow the eastern coastline from Gay to Bete Grise and you can see the bands of red and white in the sandstone from above. Just awesome. We saw some kettles and ripple marks in the sandstone. My daughter liked sitting on the sandstone and plunging her legs into the small kettles. A very neat area to explore.

Little Presque

July 3, 2010: The family and I went to Marquette for a day of shopping and fun. The day was hot and humid, just under 90. We went for a drive up Co. Rd. 550 north of Sugar Mountains to Little Presque Island. It was easy to find and there was a sign from the road where to turn in and a parking area. On the mainland, there is a neat beach with exposed sandstone bluffs and a view of the Sugar Loaf Mountains. The water is shallow enough for adults to easily walk over to the island. A neat area for bird watching and exploring.

Cliff Mine

July 1, 2010: Today my daughter and I headed out to the cliff today. We drove out Cliff Dr. off of 41 N. to go to the Cliff Mine. We hiked a little around the base of the cliff. We seen some of the old foundations and looked over some of the poor rock piles. The piles have recently been reworked by a bulldozer and there are fresh places to look for copper, greenstones, or whatever strikes you. We found some neat pieces of copper and mineral deposits in with the poor rock. It was a fun start to the day. We got out of there just as the rain started to fall.