Most of the drive was fine, but there were too many miles of just this...
[But before I get further into this post, let me say that due to the various generations that will be reading this, I will refer to people with their name, not how I (or you) are related to them. For example, Bernice, not Mom/Grandma/Cousin/Sister-in-Law.]
Okay, back to the trip...
Bernice's side of the family is from Upper Michigan. it is such a beautiful place - there are many places that help you step back in time.
To find out more about Upper Michigan, go here --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Peninsula_of_Michigan
The northernmost tip (looks like a tail) is Keweenaw Peninsula.
My first stop was at the Visitor's Center to get the latest brochures and low down on restaurants. From the parking lot, you can see across the canal to the town of Ripley.
Between Houghton and Hancock there is a beautiful bridge...
The Portage Lake Lift Bridge (officially the "Houghton–Hancock Bridge") connects the cities of Hancock and Houghton, Michigan, USA, across Portage Lake, a portion of the waterway which cuts across the Keweenaw Peninsula with a canal linking the final several miles to Lake Superior to the northwest. US 41 and M-26 are both routed across the bridge.
The original bridge on this site was a wooden swing-bridge built in 1875. This bridge was built by James P. Edward of Fox and Howard Inc. of Chicago. Three local men raised $47,000 dollars in stocks for the toll bridge. Construction began in the spring of 1875 and was finished in the spring of 1876. This was replaced by a steel swing-bridge built by the King Bridge Company in 1901. This bridge was damaged when a ship collided with it in 1905. The center swinging section of the bridge was replaced and a similar incident almost occurred again in 1920, but the ship was able to stop by dropping its anchor, which snagged on the bottom of the lake. In 1959, this bridge was replaced, at a cost of about 11-13 million US dollars (sources vary), by the current bridge which was built by the American Bridge Company.
Houghton, MI, located on Highway 41 in the Upper Peninsula, was named after Douglass Houghton who was Michigan's first appointed state geologist. Douglass Houghton discovered the vast copper deposits in the Keweenaw Peninsula in 1840, and the town started to grow and develop.
Houghton is the home of Michigan Technological University and the A. E. Seaman Mineralogical Museum. The Museum holds an exciting collection of minerals from the area, as well as other parts of the world and is open to the public. MTU, with approximately 6,100 students, is one of the top engineering schools in the world.
Okay, back to the trip...
Bernice's side of the family is from Upper Michigan. it is such a beautiful place - there are many places that help you step back in time.
To find out more about Upper Michigan, go here --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Peninsula_of_Michigan
The northernmost tip (looks like a tail) is Keweenaw Peninsula.
 |
| Cleared area is ski hill |
 |
| (Looking west of previous picture) Ruins of mining buildings in foreground. Quincy mine is the little object pocking out of the tree line in upper left corner. |
 |
| Close up of mining ruins |
Between Houghton and Hancock there is a beautiful bridge...
 |
| I took this picture from the pier of my hotel (which was located in Hancock). The land on the right is Houghton. |
The Portage Lake Lift Bridge (officially the "Houghton–Hancock Bridge") connects the cities of Hancock and Houghton, Michigan, USA, across Portage Lake, a portion of the waterway which cuts across the Keweenaw Peninsula with a canal linking the final several miles to Lake Superior to the northwest. US 41 and M-26 are both routed across the bridge.
The original bridge on this site was a wooden swing-bridge built in 1875. This bridge was built by James P. Edward of Fox and Howard Inc. of Chicago. Three local men raised $47,000 dollars in stocks for the toll bridge. Construction began in the spring of 1875 and was finished in the spring of 1876. This was replaced by a steel swing-bridge built by the King Bridge Company in 1901. This bridge was damaged when a ship collided with it in 1905. The center swinging section of the bridge was replaced and a similar incident almost occurred again in 1920, but the ship was able to stop by dropping its anchor, which snagged on the bottom of the lake. In 1959, this bridge was replaced, at a cost of about 11-13 million US dollars (sources vary), by the current bridge which was built by the American Bridge Company.
Houghton, MI, located on Highway 41 in the Upper Peninsula, was named after Douglass Houghton who was Michigan's first appointed state geologist. Douglass Houghton discovered the vast copper deposits in the Keweenaw Peninsula in 1840, and the town started to grow and develop.
Houghton is the home of Michigan Technological University and the A. E. Seaman Mineralogical Museum. The Museum holds an exciting collection of minerals from the area, as well as other parts of the world and is open to the public. MTU, with approximately 6,100 students, is one of the top engineering schools in the world.
Views from my hotel room...
 |
| Facing south west (away from the Portage Canal bridge) |
So, I arrived safe, not too tired, but relieved I could do it by myself (and my GPS named Jack). For those of you that know my sense of humor, you would have thought that I named my GPS Jack (so it would be Jack and Jill), but I didn't. When you choose the voice, two choices were "US English - Female Jill" or "US English - Male Jack". We tried Jill for a while and now Jack is in charge!!
