Tuesday 9th May – Lake Superior and Wisconsin

Maybe I am getting my morning mojo back.  I was awake before 8am and a quick glance outside told me that we were blessed with another bright morning so it would be a fantastic opportunity to explore some more of the lakes in the area.  I took the bike out for about an hour and hoped that I’d prove the theory that getting up earlier would bring more wildlife, but to no avail.  But I heard a lot of frog choruses and saw many birds as well as these gorgeous views:

Let me know when you've seen enough lakes....

We hit the road hoping to get the right balance of making ground whilst not having to fill up on gas again this week.  I must say, I think we played a blinder today!  Progress east was through Leech Lake reserve and we paid another random visit to our favourite river for our lunch-time stop.

Mississippi Headwaters project - Pokegama lake dam and reservoir (spot the RV)

The view from the top of the dam down the river

Then it was onwards to the shores of Lake Superior and into state number 42 – Wisconsin.  

The town of Superior (population 27,244 to be precise) is the first residential area on entering the state.  It was very industrial and at first I was worried that we wouldn’t actually be able to get to the lake’s edge.  However, a brown sign indicated Wisconsin point, one side of the longest fresh water sand bar in the World (brace yourselves, there’s more facts coming…) so we made a bee-line there and got our first views of the largest freshwater lake in the World:

Lake Superior

It looks and feels like a sea, with a sandy beach with waves crashing on the shore, but I tested the water just in case and it’s definitely fresh!  Superior is beaten to the claim of being the largest lake in the world by the Caspian Sea, which is land-locked so technically a lake, though contains salt water.  Hence, here we are at the largest body of fresh water in the WORLD! It is 383 miles long covering 31,820 square miles to a maximum depth of 1302 feet. It contains as much water as all of the other great lakes combined, even throwing in two extra Lake Eries.  You get the picture; this lake is big.  I mean, really big.

Having made it to the waters’ edge Simon had noticed a sign by our parking area prohibiting vehicles from going beyond it between 11pm and 4am. But nothing about where we were parked and no ‘no camping’ signs in existence either.  Had we stumbled upon a perfect location for a free night? We tucked ourselves into a corner just in front of the ‘no vehicles past here’ sign and had a nice cup of tea.  I was experiencing my first migraine in…. I think this year actually, so that’s not too bad!  So, I had no problem with calling driving a day and having a lie down.  Plus, we were over the quarter tank of gas mark so we could happily use the generator when or if required. 

After recuperating from a hard day’s three-hour drive it would have been a shame not to have explored right to the end of the point. So, I got my second bike ride of the day, this time with company, and we headed out in the cool evening breeze.  It certainly is a long sand bar! We realised after 15 minutes of cycling with no end in sight, but we eventually reached ‘the Superior entry’ – the only natural opening through the sand bar:

The Superior entry!

Us on the Wisconsin side of the entry - Minnesota is top right

Sand deposits from the lake and the rivers created the bar which formed the natural harbour at Superior about 3000 years ago. In 1909 concrete piers on either side were completed to maintain a channel 500 feet wide and 32 feet deep and today the entry serves one of the busiest ports in the USA handling cargoes of iron ore, coal, petroleum and grain destined for ports throughout the world. 

It was getting a tad chilly by this time so we cycled full speed (for us) back along the point only halted by a juvenile Golden Eagle taking off above us (no picture) and the spotter finding our first confirmed wild beaver. Luckily, the water was so still around the beaver that I was able to get some semi-decent images. Cute hey?

He's coming right at us!! And he's got a stick!!

Back at the RV there was no ticket on the windscreen or clamp on the tyres so we made dinner and relaxed for the evening.  We’d spent only $6 all day on milk and an emergency chocolate bar and had a quiet place for the night, result!