Hiking, web development, best practices, and general awesomeness
My legs dangled off the edge of Grand Portal Point, the ice and water of Lake Superior some two hundred feet below my feet. I relished the thrill of danger that coursed through me as I sat on the gritty rock. It had taken me all morning and more to reach the point, hiking through puddles and snow…
Returning to Chapel Rock was a tedious venture. The sun had continued to rise, warming the woods and melting the snow, and the trail of mud, slush, and water made for a tiresome slog. I tried to remember the longer sections of snow from the walk out to strap on snowshoes for, just so I could walk a…
Early morning slowly filtered through the winter-bare trees, bringing light and little warmth to the narrow dirt road. I was on Chapel Road, a two-track of Pictured Rocks, and it was still below freezing on this mid-April dawn. The road was plowed, a pleasant surprise to find, though there was…
It's been a few years since I climbed Sugarloaf Mountain. The area is one of those spots I tend to skirt around, with marked trails and frequent visitors, even though the views of the Marquette shoreline are very impressive. This evening seemed like a good time to stop by. It was late enough to…
Way back in the early years of Marquette's iron years there were other metals that people hunted for, silver and gold and more. There were traces of these precious materials found in creeks and veins throughout the Huron Mountains. One of the more promising finds was along Birch Creek. These…
Spring was arriving so slowly for much of the Upper Peninsula. I had started the day with a few short trips in the Peshekee Highlands and had been greeted with flurries and two feet of slush to slog through. Hoping to get a break in Ishpeming on the open trails of Al Quaal I found even more wet snow…
Teal Lake is one of those spots between Marquette and Houghton that has long grabbed at my attention. It helps that US-41 runs along the south shore for a good mile in Negaunee, offering even views of the dark waters and northern bluffs. Were there waterfalls flowing in or out of that highland lake?…
After a tough hike up Mt Baldy I was torn about staying in the Peshekee today. On one hand I was in the area, close to the McCormick Wilderness and all those other good spots off the Grade. Yet the snow was deep and nasty. I decided to give it one more chance, one short nearby loop. If that was too…
The first time I heard about a Mt Baldy in the Michigamme area was some three years back on a random web site. I was intrigued. The idea of a mountain near the reservoir seemed novel, as most of the hills are rolling and forested, and the chance of getting a good overlook of the town and basin was…
Iron played a strong role in the early days of Marquette County. People and businesses sprung up around the iron mines and, when the mines dried up, stayed. When Jackson Mine, the first mine to work the Marquette Range, set up camp on the shores of Teal Lake in the 1840s it didn't take long for the…