Viewing 1 - 3 of 3 posts written in October 2010.

28 Oct '10

Huron Mountain View

A bright pink-orange glow lit up the side of my tent early in the morning. I jumped out of the sleeping bag and my breath was taken away by the fiery view over Lake Superior. Caught in Wisconsin traffic on my drive up last night, I had climbed Raven's Nest near Little Huron River late at night through the dark and could barely make out the surrounding view in the rising moon's light. Now, with the sun's rays blazing across the landscape, the rocky top offered 270° vistas, including a direct shot at the beautiful sunrise.

Fiery sunrise over Lake Superior

Fiery sunrise over Lake Superior

Today's morning hike didn't give me much time to delay, though. I only had a few hours before some friends would be meeting me at Big Erick's Bridge. Ducking into the brush on the north side of Raven's Nest I struck east towards the Huron Mountain Club's property. There are a few hilltops covered in scraggly brush that had potential views of Huron Mountain, Howe Lake, and Rush Lake on the verge of their property (all three of these are within the Club).

Hoping to get some ...

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13 Oct '10

Haystack Mountain

Of the three volcanic plugs in the Ottawa National Forest (see an earlier post aboutOttawa volcanic plugs), I enjoyed Haystack Mountain the most. It's relatively remote, virtually unknown, and involves a short but challenging hike. A recent trip to the Upper Peninsula brought me close enough to the mountain to stop by for a quick climb.

South from Haystack Mountain

South from Haystack Mountain

Parking my car at the gated two-track off of Lake 13 Road, I quickly hopped the steel gate and waded through the tall grass. There were a few raspberries scattered along the track to sweeten the trek and none of the thistles that had plagued previous visits. Familiar with the area I took the right fork without referencing my GPS. According to older topo maps this fork in the road eventually loops around but I knew from my last visit that the right fork simply ends after a short distance.

The summer undergrowth was very thick in the woods. I struck a bearing roughly 30° to ...

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2 Oct '10

Hills Lakes

I woke up early with the sunrise, still sore from yesterday's hiking. Dressing quickly, I rolled out of the tent and started a small fire. The coffee didn't take long to make and I was soon standing on the shore of the northern Rocking Chair Lake, watching the sunrise over the tall eastern hills and enjoying the warm aroma and taste of the brew.

Without much forethought I had spent the night halfway up Mulligan Plains on a small DNR campsite. My plan of sleeping on the southern terminus and hiking to these lakes in the morning had backfired thanks to recent logging activity. I was still debating on heading south to follow the southeastern cliffs of Mulligan, but the tall hills and trees to the east beckoned me. After gulping the rest of my coffee I started east to new territory with false bravado - I was heading straight into some of the thickest woods on this side of Superior.

Sunrise over the Northern Rocking Chair Lake

Sunrise over the Northern Rocking Chair Lake

The southern Rocking Chair Lake drains north to the one I was camped on, and so my first ...

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Viewing 1 - 3 of 3 posts written in October 2010.