Beaver Basin Overlook - Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Our visit to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore's Beaver Basin Overlook was one of my favorite activities on our recent vacation.  It's one of the less accessible areas of the park, found only after travelling several miles of a primitive truck trail, just getting there is a big part of the adventure.

Beaver Basin (from National Park Service park map)

Yours truly, Mr Crippled Coot at Beaver Basin Overlook

While the landforms of Beaver Basin Wilderness were shaped by the God, glaciers, and the ancestral predecessors of Lake Superior, the area's wilderness designation is a recent thing.  Created as a part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, Beaver Basin Wilderness totals 11,740 acres, including 13 miles of Lake Superior shoreline from Spray Falls on the west to Sevenmile Creek on the east.

Imagine the entire scene below, not as woods and trees, but instead as a large shallow bay.  As recently as 4500 years ago, Lake Nipissing (a predecessor of current Lake Superior) covered Beaver Basin in exactly that way.

Red line denotes the boundary of Beaver Basin Wilderness (designated in 2009) part of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  People with experience reading topo maps can easily picture the area as a large shallow bay.

Folks interested in visiting this overlook for themselves should note that warnings about the access road being primitive and rough are very much true.  There are only 2 kinds of vehicles that would get the "Crippled Coot Seal of Approval" for using this primitive trail, high clearance 4x4 vehicles and (of course) rental cars.  Mrs Coot has pointed out, for folks who don't have a rental car or 4x4 handy, that it's also possible to trek the rough 3 mile access road on foot.

Mrs Crippled Coot smiles -  trailhead at Beaver Basin Overlook

Mr Crippled Coot enjoys the view.

Because of the rough access road, we had the overlook completely to ourselves for the entire time Mrs Coot and I were there to visit.  I do love solitude, not to mention a good opportunity to get my truck onto a 2-track trail, so it should be pretty obvious why I enjoyed our afternoon at Beaver basin Overlook so very much.

Oh yes, the view (our pictures didn't properly capture it's beauty) is darn good too!

Au Sable Point Lighthouse - Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Cripple Coot arrives on the beach below Au Sable Point Lighthouse

The Crippled Coot's last left our latest journey to the Au Sable Point Light Station at the trio pair of shipwrecks we encountered on the beach less than a half mile from the lighthouse itself.  Because of our back and forth on the beach (due to mislabeled and misleading signage) we'd had nearly doubled our mileage, not to mention the fact that my usual form of exploring is to "take my time getting there".  Needless to say, we were already feeling a little fatigued.

It's good to get there!
A1.8 mile trail turned into 3 miles back and forth on the beach.

Here's the Wiki-history of the lighthouse:

The Au Sable Light Station was built in 1874 on Au Sable Point, a well known hazard on Lake Superior's "shipwreck coast". The Au Sable Point reef is a shallow ridge of sandstone that in places is only 6 feet (1.8 m) below the surface and extends nearly 1 mile (1.6 km) into Lake Superior. The Au Sable Point reef was one the greatest dangers facing ships coasting along the south shore of Lake Superior during the early shipping days when keeping land in sight was the main navigational method. The Au Sable Point reef was known as a "ship trap" that ensnared many ships, including the passenger ship Lady Elgin which was stranded there in 1859.
The shoreline in this area is considered one of North America's most beautiful, "but in the 1800s it was considered one of the most deadly because of unpredictable features below the surface and violent storms and blinding fogs above." The reef extends nearly a mile out as a ridge of sandstone a few feet below the surface. The shallow water caught many a vessel following the shore. Turbulence was common when the lake was "pushed in by violent storms out of the north and northwest." Thick fogs resulted from the mix of frigid lake air and warmth from the sand dunes. "As early as 1622, French explorers called the region 'most dangerous when there is any storms'."

Au Sable Light Station was built to prevent ships having their bottoms torn open by the nearby sandstone shoals.

Shallow sandstone rock (like the ones I'm standing on) extend up to a mile from shore, waiting to snag and wreck unwary mariners of past eras.

As is common with old lighthouses, the Au Sable Point Light Station sits on a prominence with a wide and vast field of vision over Lake Superior, making the vista from the environs of the facility very impressive.  That's all good and fine if you're on top of the crest, having arrived on the flat forest path from the Hurricaine River Campground.  It's a little less convenient when arriving from the beach.

To help you, my dear friend and reader, better place Au Sable Point Light Station into a proper perspective, here's a link to the Google map satellite view of the area - MAP -  as well as a vintage USCGS aerial shot of the lighthouse.  The attached Coast Guard picture doesn't really capture the prominence of the point's elevation above the beach.

I'm guessing that to get from the beach up to the level of the light station, it's a 50' to 75' climb directly up an unstable sand face .  National Park Service provided an odd surface for the climb, essentially it was like an oversized ladder, horizontal lengths of fence post material suspended at about three foot lengths on a pair of parallel wire cables running down the face of the sand about three feet apart.

United States Coast Guard photo of Au Sable Lighthouse in Michigan.

I was able to stair-step up the incline, each foot balanced along my hiking boot's insole on the horizontal post with every step.  It was steep and I maintained a steady balance only by leaning forward with every step while using a pair of trekking poles, one in each hand, to help with the balance.

Poor Mrs Crippled Coot wasn't so lucky!  I'm sorry to say that I don't have any pictures, but it must be said that she was a sight to behold, coming up that trail on her hands and knees.  My wife crawled up the whole way, unable to take large enough steps to walk on top of the wooden posts as I had, she found the most expedient way was to crawl up the side of the hill.

Au Sable Point Light Station circa 2012

The lighthouse tower and attached keepers' quarters were designed by Colonel Orlando Metcalfe Poe. In this capacity he designed eight "Poe style lighthouses" and oversaw construction of several. Poe was named District Engineer for the Eleventh Lighthouse District, Those lights are New Presque Isle Light (1870) on Lake Huron, Lake Michigan's South Manitou Island Light (1872), Grosse Point Light (1873) in Evanston, Illinois, Lake Superior's Au Sable Light (1874), Racine, Wisconsin's Wind Point Light (1880); Outer Island Light (1874) in the Apostle Islands, Little Sable Point Light (1874) on Lake Michigan, Manistique, Michigan's Seul Choix Light (1895) and Spectacle Reef Light.

Feeling terrible that Mrs Coot was in such a state, crawling on all fours up the hillside, I did hike back down the to relieve her of the camera, to try and make her task easier.  I also offered some (perhaps less than helpful) advice about how she might be able to walk up the posts in a more dignified manner.

In all her graciousness, and perhaps as a tribute to her German Mennonite heritage, she did refrain from cursing at me, not even under her breath did she take the Lord's name in vain either.  She simply just crawled the rest of the way up the hillside, and, feeling her dignity restored, simply brushed the sand off her hands, knees, and shorts, when she got to the top.

View towards Grand Sable Banks (sand dunes  perched 200 feet above the lakeshore) from Au Sable Light Station

While my fairer half was reduced to crawling up the steep sandy incline, a nice younger couple stopped at the top of the trail to consider dropping down to beach level to get a different perspective.  I encouraged them to the best of my ability, explaining about the shipwrecks on the beach not far away as an added attraction, but my efforts were without avail.

In addition to being 20 to 30 years younger than myself, they were far stronger and certainly more fit than Mrs Coot and I find ourselves these days, but it was obvious they were intimidated from taking the stairs down to the shore,  The visage of Mrs Coot on hands and knees struggling up through the sand had it's effect. With my attention returned to focusing on my wife, they disappeared down the (very level) path back to the trailhead.

Looking eastward towards the town and harbor of Grand Marais (hidden in the distance) this is the view of Grand Sable Banks from beside the Au Sable Point lighthouse.

Finally at the lighthouse level, as I sat in the shade of a Maple tree, I began to realize that my blood sugar wasn't quite as high as a fellow with diabetes might like for a 1.8 mile trek back to the trailhead and our trusty Toyota Tacoma.  I had about 8 ounces of a Sierra Mist soft drink in the daypack, but I'd failed to bring along a snack, figuring that we'd have long before returned to our basecamp for some proper nourishment.  I sipped the remainder of the drink, at the same time sending Mrs Coot off to take the lighthouse (and vicinity) pictures we are sharing.

I'm glad she declined the opportunity to take the 45 minute guided tour the National Park Service offers of the lighthouse and associated buildings, the 20 minutes or so she took to shoot pictures was more than enough time for me to get into a small panic.

A distance of 1.8 miles isn't a terribly long trek, not even for crippled old coots, but the fact that my hands were already feeling a bit unsteady from a continually dropping blood sugar level didn't fill me with great confidence.  I decided I'd have to tell Mrs Coot about the difficulty, and beat feet back to the truck before I managed to get myself into trouble.

One of the beautifully maintained buildings at Au Sable Point Light Station.

The Big Sable Light Station (or Au Sable Light Station) comprises five significant buildings--a light tower, two dwellings, a fog signal house, and a boat house along with four accessory buildings. The light tower, the focal point of the complex, is a truncated stone cone standing on a cut stone base. The tower is painted white and featured a Fresnel lens. The rectangular-plan, two-and-one-half-story dwelling attached to the tower by a hyphen has walls of red brick topped by a metal shingle, hipped-gable roof. The nearby rectangular red brick-walled keeper's dwelling has a metal and slate roof and a privy nearby. The fog signal building is a rectangular-plan, tied brick building with a metal shingle hipped roof. The boat house is a wooden A-frame structure covered with vertical wood siding, topped by a wood shingled roof. 

The modernized lighthouse is now powered by solar energy.

We only took a single break on the hike back to the trailhead, stopping to catch our breath and dry off a little, as our exertions had left me soaked with sweat.  Sitting in the sun for warmth on a cool breezy day, we drank some water, and enjoyed the sound of Lake Superior's "surf" rolling into shore.  I was warmed and relatively dry within only 10 minutes, and less than a half hour later we were back at our vehicle.

Sitting in the sun warmed cab of the "Cootmobile", we snacked on summer sausage and smoked Gouda cheese.  Viewing the shipwrecks and the lighthouse was wonderful fun, and our time spent exploring the beach was absolutely priceless.  It had been another great day in what was shaping up to be an outstanding vacation at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Coordinates:	46°40′22″N 86°8′21″W
Area:	5 acres (2.0 ha)
Built:	1873
Architect:	Col. Orlando M. Poe
Architectural style:	Italianate bracketing
Governing body:	National Park Service with access by U.S. Coast Guard
NRHP Reference#:	78000374

we join the Cranes for dinner

I'm not an avid birder, I don't keep lists and notebooks of my avian encounters like a serious bird enthusiast, but Mrs Coot and I do enjoy viewing wildlife of all kinds, and one inhabitant of the northwoods we encountered on our recent vacation to Michigan's Upper Peninsula was Grus canadensis - the Sandhill crane.

Beautiful and regal looking Sandhill Cranes 

Michigan's DNR says the following about our Crane friends:

Sandhills are a tall, long legged, long necked gray bird with red featherless foreheads. They feed on frogs, fish, and insects, but also take much plant food such as seeds, fruits, and aquatic vegetation. They are often seen feeding in corn and upland grain fields. In Michigan, sandhills nest in solitary nests on the ground near or over shallow water in marshes and bogs. They nest by heaping plant debris into a low mound. Two eggs are laid; the young follow the parents soon after hatching, fly in about 70 days, and stay with the parents for nearly a year. Sandhill cranes are intolerant of human disturbance. Their numbers were much reduced by habitat loss and shooting in the early part of this century but have grown in recent decades. A two year survey funded by the Nongame Wildlife Fund confirmed 805 breeding pair statewide. Most breeding pairs in the Lower Peninsula were found in a six county area near Jackson and Ann Arbor. Highest concentrations in the Upper Peninsula occurred in the eastern counties.

Even from within our "truck blind" we found that the Cranes eyed us warily as they foraged.

Mrs Coot and I found this group of Cranes during one of their regular feeding forays on a overcast morning just off of Alger County Road H-58 near Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  It's my understanding that Cranes in the area we visited usually nest in sedge marsh habitat but often feed in mornings (and again in afternoons) in the clearings of upland fields.

The group of Sandhill Cranes we encountered added up to six total, a nice little flock of birds for us to observe. 

It's said that Cranes are an ancient bird species, one of the oldest still alive today.  According to Wikipedia:

The Sandhill Crane has one of the longest fossil histories of any bird still found today. A 10-million-year-old crane fossil from Nebraska is often cited as being of this species, but this is more likely from a prehistoric relative or the direct ancestor of the Sandhill Crane and may not belong in the genus Grus

It was difficult though to keep more than four Cranes in the camera's frame

This was the only time on our vacation that we regretted not bringing along our 300mm lens, as we might have been able to shoot better close-ups of the Sandhill Cranes with that lens.  Ultimately, we choose to take only a single lens for our Nikon camera, an 18-200mm VR II.  Although it's not a perfect choice for all situations, it prevents us from haviign to try and carry multiple lenses on hikes, which itself is priceless.

We observed the Cranes for a good 15 minutes before they wandered out of sight.

 It's our understanding that these Cranes do not well tolerate a lot of disturbance by man, so we observed at a respectful distance from the roadside, never leaving our trusty Toyota Tacoma pickup truck.  It was a wonderful encounter!

Visiting a trio of Superior's Shipwrecks - Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Lake Superior's "Graveyard Coast"

Lake Superior is famous for shipwrecks.

On yet another blustery September day on the shores of Lake Superior, not far from Twelvemile Beach, the Crippled Coots set off to visit some shipwrecks that can be accessed by foot at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  Thankfully the weather was a bit more mild for this jaunt, Mrs Coot won't be so bundled up that  her face is lucky to be seen.

Canadian Gordon Lightfoot is best known in the United States, not so much as a musician who helped define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s (as he's described at Wikipedia,) but instead more simply as the author and performer of the hit song The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, which details one ill fated freighter that fell victim to the deepest and roughest of the Great Lakes.

Mrs Coot and I hiked about two miles more than needed this day . . . It's a good thing the beach is beautiful!

The hike to the shipwrecks begins at a parking lot just outside the Hurricane River Campground, accessed via Alger County Road H-58 (the road that serves as the primary access for most of the park's attractions.)  Although there was a strong wind off the lake, the day was a comfortable one, with temperatures in the 60's, my ideal weather for a hike.

In the Hurricane River vicinity, there are a number of signs directing visitors to the beach for the shipwreck, taking the one nearest to the campground area will lead to a long walk along a very fine white sand beach.  It's a beautiful walk, and simply heading out along the beach until we encountered the wrecks might have been a more efficient plan than the way our day actually unfolded.

Dark hard red hsandstone shoals extend beneath the surface of Lake Superior to pose a navigation hazard for unwary and unlucky mariners.

The day of our hike, the Mrs and I headed out along the Lakeshore Trail, a beautiful walk that parallels the beach through some nice northwoods style forest.  Lower Hurricane Campground as well as the road and trail all sit comfortably above the beach on a flat sandy bench of land created by Lake Superior as it was falling from (higher) Ice Age levels to the lake we know today.

It's a comfortable walk along that trail (also the way to Au Sable Point Light Station) to a standard National Park Service style plaque directing visitors to take a left turn on the beach to view the shipwrecks.  I faithfully followed the directions so thoughtfully provided by my Park Ranger friends, confident they'd not steer me wrong.

Mr Coot studying the sandstone off of Au Sable Point which was the likely cause of these shipwrecks.

One thing to note about the National Park Service signage directing folks to the wrecks, it really does send you off in the wrong direction.  Current NPS signs directs visitors to turn left up the beach to view the wrecks, when in reality it's at least another quarter mile further down he beach to the right that the shipwrecks are found.

I found myself leading Mrs Coot back up the beach to within sight of our departure point before realizing that the park service signage was incorrect.  We trudged back along our tracks, determined to find our destination, but frustrated by the misdirection.

These shallow shoals and rocky shores served to create the ship graveyard we were hoping to encounter.

Experience has taught us that it's best to carry not only water, but also a snack when we head out on our excursions.  I'm diabetic, it's well controlled by diet at this time, but it's also an illness that can quickly lead to a scary situation if I find myself low on blood sugar with two miles left to hike back to a trailhead.

As a self proclaimed "Crippled Coot" I've found that the litany of diagnoses and accronyms I might otherwise become: Asthma, Emphysema, C.O.P.D., Diabetes, G.E.R.D., Fibromyalgia, Degenerative Disc Disease, Osteoarthritis, etc., don't need to prevent me from hiking and exploring, it simply means I need to be smarter and plan ahead to do things others might accomplish without thought.

Such forward thinking and planning is a small price for me to pay in order to trek and explore our continent's natural beauty with Mrs Coot!  But, there are also days (hopefully infrequent) when both Mr and Mrs Coot look at each other with a slight sense of panic and ask in near unison, "Did you throw lunch in the daypack?"

This was one of those days!

Beachside break on the way to the shipwrecks - Sorry no lunch!

Finally, after walking most of the beach between Hurricane River campground and Au Sable Point Lighthouse twice just to find our intended destination, we did find the shipwrecks.  It was worth the walk, not to mention all the sand that invaded our boots as we hiked.

Mrs Coot finds a shipwreck!

The ship remains here are remnants of ships from the 1800's, with hefty wood timbers and iron metalwork.  It seems amazing that they are still visible and accessible more than 100 years after their demise as working vessels, I guess that's a tribute to the lake's frigid cold waters.  It seems that the smashing of waves (and perhaps ice) will be the cause of the final demise of these ship's remains much more likely than the decomposers that cover and claim wrecks in more temperate climates.

The Missus, exploring wreckage that I didn't cause - Priceless!

Darling, look out for the bigger waves coming in . . . 

Too late, our boots (and socks) have just become soaked with cold lake water!

The wrecks were impressively sized and not far apart.  Lake Superior waves, driven by the same winds and storms that terminated these vessel's working career, having moved them along the beach together for our convenience.

Looking back at the wrecks as we continue to Au Sable Point
My hands were a little unsteady so the picture's horizon is not level!

When it was all said and done, the wrecks were finally found not far from the Au Sable Light Station, a historic lighthouse still operated by the National Park Service.  We continued another quarter to half mile down the beach to that attraction, but that's another story for a different time . . .

Twelvemile Beach via Lake Superior Overlook - Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Mrs Coot - Looking for solitude (and pretty rocks) along Twelvemile Beach

As I mentioned in a previous post, what made the Lake Superior Overlook at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore most special for me was the great access it offers to Twelvemile Beach.  Together, on a blustery September day, Mrs Coot and I slowly wandered about a half mile up the beach from the overlook, feeling the lake winds across our faces, as we looked to find some total solitude for ourselves.

We concentrated on walking on the stabilized wet sand rather than the very fine loose dry sand that covers the beach, while also avoiding the bigger waves. Lake Superior's waters never get much above a bone chilling temperature, and neither one of us really wanted to get our feet cold and wet on a windy autumn day.

A gnarled and burnt (but photogenic) pine that caught my eye

Solitude Found - Mrs Coot along the shores of Gitche Gumee

One thing that Lake Superior shores are famous for is the tremendous array of rocks that can be found on it's shores.  The huge variety of different rocks, minerals, and semi-precious gems are literally pieces of bedrock from as far away as Hudson Bay, they are a legacy of the most recent ice age.

Red Alligator? - No, it's just another chunk of rock left behind by the last Ice Age

During the time period that the first human civilizations were being established in the region around Mesopotamia and the so called "fertile crescent", the Lake Superior region was still feelings the effects of the most recent Ice Age that sent giant glaciers moving as far south as St Louis.

Lake Superior's array of rocks, minerals and semi-precious gems - Twelvemile Beach

Just know that actual rock collecting is not allowed within the boundaries of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  You can look, you can touch, but when it's all said and done, even the prettiest specimens must remain on the beach for others to admire.  It's not a terrible sacrifice, as there is plenty of other shoreline available for rock collectors on the world's largest freshwater lake, and plenty of attractions to observe by the shores of Gitche Gumee, by the shining big sea waters . . . 

Burnt pine on Twelvemile Beach

Lake Superior Overlook - Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Loving life (and the smell of the wind in my face) overlooking Lake Superior

 On Alger County Road H-58 between Twelvemile Beach Campground and Hurricane River Campground is the beautiful Lake Superior Overlook, a recent addition to the attractions to be found at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Mrs Crippled Coot and I visited the overlook on a blustery Saturday afternoon in early to mid-September while we were camping and vacationing this year in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

Set on a flat sandy bench of land (that I believe is an older Lake Superior beach from when the lake was at a higher level sometime after the most recent ice age,) the overlook itself is completely handicap and wheelchair accessible. It's to be found directly off of a small paved parking lot conveniently provided by the cooperative efforts of the Alger County Road Commission and the National Park Service, not to mention being funded by franchise fees paid to the National Park Service by Pictured Rocks Cruises.

Looking North-Northwest from the Lake Superior Overlook at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Looking Northeast from the Lake Superior Overlook at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Yes, as you can see from the pictures, the view from the overlook is very nice.  Of the drive-in Lake Superior overlooks to be found in the park, this one is the closest to the lake, as well as being the best place to get a quick look at, and capture the feel of, Twelvemile Beach.

While the overlook is nice, what makes the site most special for me is its quick and easy access to Twelvemile Beach, which is well worth exploring.  On the northwest side of the site, there is a convenient set of stairs giving quick and easy access to the beach.

Looking west up Twelvemile Beach

Mr Coot only blocks a little of the view east along Twelvemile Beach

When I was young and relatively healthy, I backpacked the length of the park, so I can't help adding that the solitude of the beach here can be really special.  Despite the passage of more than 20 years since that previous visit, I can say with certainty that my prior experience is still available, and it doesn't take hefting a backpack to get that feel either.

Mrs Coot and I visited the beach on a Saturday, just 5 days after the Labor Day holiday, and for most of the day we had the beach entirely to ourselves.  There were fairly strong winds whipping across Lake Superior from the north, and the days temperature's were probably in the lower 60's, a perfect day to my eyes because the winds helped to create dramatic waves along the beach for our visit.  Still, the busiest the beach ever became was when we shared the view with a grand total of 5 other folks, and none of them wandered more than a short way across the beach.

Crowded!?! - For a short while we shared the beach with 5 other people (and a bird.).