July 1, 2019 - Grand Marais to Munising

We had a tough time deciding if we were going to stay another night in Grand Marais or push on to Munising.  The issue was the sights we were going to see along our route today and if the weather (sun versus clouds) would be better today or tomorrow.  The final answer was to move even though we weren’t sure we’d have very good conditions to view all the amazing scenery.  The good thing is that no matter what we get today, we have another opportunity to see the same sights on our way back home at the end of July/early August.

Just out of the harbor we encountered the Grand Sable Banks and Dunes.  This is one of the best examples of a perched dune system in the world.  Perched dunes are formed on top of an existing coastal bluff.  The dunes rise more than 300 feet above Lake Superior and cover over five square miles.  They are awe inspiring to travel past and even without the sun and a clear blue sky they were beautiful.

After the dunes is Au Sable Point and its lighthouse and a few miles later the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  There are over fifteen miles of sandstone cliffs within the National Lakeshore and we enjoyed every mile.  With the cloudy conditions today it was difficult to get very close to the shore as we were not able to see into the water to watch for changing depths and rock obstacles.  The pictures are still amazing and we hope to have clearer weather when we pass this way again.

Grand Sable Banks and Dunes

Grand Sable Banks and Dunes

Au Sable Point Lighthouse

Pictured Rocks

Spray Falls (70 feet tall)

Pictured Rocks

Pictured Rocks

Pictured Rocks

Bridalveil Falls, 140 feet tall (this is a seasonal falls and will
slow to a trickle in the late summer and fall)

Miners Castle rock formation