Wurstchen and the Bear

We've been off the grid for the last few days having an absolutely amazing time in the north country forests of Wisconsin and Upper Peninsula, Michigan.

Shell Lake was even more beautiful when we woke on Saturday morning. 

After a very early morning sunrise watching session, we got onto the road.  This time to visit one of Scout's bucket list items, the Apostle Islands National Seashore.

We did a little checking on the best camping and headed to #7 on the map. A place called Little Sand Bay.  It's operated by the Native Americans of the Red Cliff reservation town of Russell.

We were just a little concerned that we would find a spot, given that it was Mother's Day weekend, but we didn't need to be. There were some local fishermen using the marina and one family who was tent camping.

The marina is just beyond the grass field in the picture above.

Babs suggested this site partially because of the reviews but also because it faced west and might have good sunsets. Boy, was she right about that.

The next morning, after a hearty breakfast of eggs and potatoes, we went for a walk along the bay.

The trail ran along this grassy ridge and then across a log over a small stream.

There was a little incident here. My log rolling skills need some work and down I went. Concerns about a twisted ankle proved unfounded. No damage done except a knot on the shin and some very wet shoes.

The beach was really smooth sand, much easier to walk on than logs. The water surprisingly warm, but as you will see, it hadn't been for long.

We are on our third spring of 2018 by travelling north and south while we move west. The Maple trees were just starting to bud here and despite the water temperature, we found snow on the beach. We don't know what had been in this snow but Wurstchen sure liked the smell. Either that or he was cooling off.

Babs and Scout looking west toward Sand Island. We could also see York Island to the north.

Our Hawaii boy was really enjoying the sun and the sand.

After walking as far as we could on the bay, we turned inland to see what we would find in the woods.

Parallel processing.

The walk back was getting warm so I decided to do something else I've never done before. It was the first time swimming in Lake Superior and first time swimming in any Great Lake in May.

The sandy bottom was nice to walk on and it was shallow enough that the water was cold but quite tolerable.

After the swim, a nap in my birthday present hammock was in order.

One of the locals told us they make syrup from the maples in the campground.

This is how I imagined retired life to be.

Mother's Day was blue skies almost all day. The sunset had a different look to it without as many clouds as Saturday night.

There was plenty of seasoned maple wood for great campfires. The clear skies and low humidity made for a perfect night to sleep under the stars.

Ready for star gazing.

The motor home has an outside power outlet, so following the lead of my late Uncle Scott, I slept under the stars with my CPAP machine.

After a stop in Bayfield to get connected to the outside world and restock some groceries, we headed east on US-2.  We were traveling across Michigan's upper peninsula.  

We wanted to experience wilderness camping so we set our navigator for the Ottowa National Forest. Specifically, Clark Lake Campground near Watersmeet.

They weren't collecting a fee because the potable water hasn't been tested but, we got the best site in the park. It was very level and was the only site in the park with 30 amp service. The best part about this site was the view down to Lake Katherine.

The surrounding woods weren't bad either.

Garlic?

This was our favorite campground so far. There weren't any human made sounds except our music and laughter.

Chloe was wandering a bit too far and Wurstchen and Barbara went to walk her back. She likes to go on walks with us.

I had started making a video without realizing my family was heading home. I just love the result of this unedited moment.

Love and happiness in the woods.

I just watched it again myself. It brings tears to my eyes every time. My heart is full of love and thankfulness for the life we have together and these moments communing with nature.

Our dinner consisted of Fois Gras in Port Wine sauce (thank you Sabrina, this was our favorite variety) and Humbolt Fog Blue Cheese (thank you Lawrny and Sharron for introducing us to it). 

By the way, this was the first time we put on bug juice. One of the benefits of spring camping has been no bugs. 

Bill, our camp host, told us the lake was frozen solid the week before we arrived. The black flies and gnats were just starting to hatch now, but it wasn't too bad yet. I bet there are plenty of bugs here in the summer.

Dessert was Dutch Chocolate ice cream a cheesecake mouse. One scoop of ice cream dipped in cheesecake. Complete decadence!

As dusk fell, Wurstchen started barking his serious bark. 

He ran a little way into the woods. We told him to stop it, there is no one around for at least a half a mile.

Chloe understood this bark. She usually ignores his commotion but she ran quickly back from the edge of woods and got inside his protection. 

Then I saw someone's black dog moving in the woods. 

Oh wait, that's not a dog! I called Wurstchen, but he was not coming back or going forward. He was doing his best tough guy and kicking up a storm of leaves.

I got a better look at the creature. It was black and about mid-thigh to me but it was shuffling off quickly. 

When I got to Wurstchen he practically lept into my arms. He was very happy to have reinforcements.

We don't know if it was a bear, a Fisher, a very, very large raccoon or even a porcupine. We're going with the bear story.

After things settled down we got the fire going in order to discourage other visitors.

Campfire Music from Issaquah

I wasn't wearing my moccasins as I walked away from the crackling fire but if you listen carefully you can hear ...

Campfire music from the loons.

Tuesday morning was quite a bit cooler until the sun warned things up.

Once it got going though, it was a fabulous morning to sunbathe.

We have driven 5,004 miles since we left Woburn according to the odometer. By we, I mean Scout. There isn't much traffic up here and we both knew that if something should happen to me, Babs might need to drive. 

She'd been nervous but of course there was no problem.

I was really enjoyed the ride. I assembled some braunschweiger sandwiches with arugula and mayonnaise for us to eat. I also enjoyed a nice German style beer from Madison with my lunch and promptly fell asleep in the co-pilots chair.

I woke up in time to see the bear come out of the woods. She was followed close behind by her cub. I didn't get my camera ready in time but if you blow the picture up completely you can just barely :) see the cub on the right hand side of the road at the curve. No doubt about it this time. We're in bear country.

Jeff, a friend in Spokane, introduced us to Harvest Hosts. For a nominal annual fee you get access to wineries, farms and historical and museums that will let you boondock for free. You're encouraged to make a small donation or purchase the host's product.  

We called Susan at the Northern Sun Winery in Barking River which specializes in estate grown northern grape varietals. She welcomed us warmly.

The wine was really interesting. They've crossed French varieties with some grapes developed by the University of Minnesota that thrive in the shorter season they have here.  Susan and Dave run a wonderful operation. We would love to come back and help them with the harvest.

Dave was working on pruning the vines when we arrived.

Susan is showing is how they have to prune less vigorously than California because of a much shorter growing season.

Happy, happy, happy.

They are expanding their production facility this year. They built it all underground connected to the root celer in the farmhouse.

They produce about 1,000 cases per year.

Including four oak barrels, in addition to the stainless steel tanks.

That brings us up to date. Today we will be heading to a campground 36 miles to our south. It is 180 miles by road on the other side of Green Bay.

This is Smitty. She would have really liked Wurstchen to play with her. He's kind of a grump when it comes to playing with other dogs. Particularly, when they are as big as a bear!

The hog house is just for ambience. No hogs here.

Bye for now.