We woke to another cool crisp morning with coffee on the porch and a quiet morning. With a quick breakfast it was off to explore further north into the wilderness of the U.P. Our first stop was Oswald's bear ranch. Founded in 1997 by Dean and Jewel Oswald it is home to many rescued bears from all over the upper Midwest. The largest bear ranch in the U.S., the ranch boasts 40 plus bears of 3 indigenous North American species, 2 large habitats 1/2 mile and 1/3 mile in diameter and 2 smaller 1/4 mile diameter enclosures. The yearlings occupy the two smaller habitats while the larger female and males take the larger habitats respectively.
With a cute gift shop and a snack bar to pick up not only a morsel for yourself but a bag of apples for the larger land mammals nearby, the property was well maintained and the bears looked pretty happy. There was a place where the kids could get a picture while feeding a cub and all the bears here were rescues. Often injured or orphaned at a very young age, it was concerning to hear how many cubs were brought in each year because they lost their mothers due to accident, poaching or uneducated civilians over protective of their property. It was clear that educating the public and awareness were essential to the North American bears' survival. We wandered the grounds, fed a few of the residents and made our way back onto the road. It was time for some good old fashioned state parks.
Tahquamenon Falls
After the bear ranch we jumped back on M-123 and headed north. We were headed to Tahquamenon Falls State park in the northwest corner of the Upper Peninsula, located near Lake Superior. The second largest state park in Michigan, the park encompasses 46,179 acres and a series of 6 falls. The upper falls, also the largest of the falls, is nicknamed the root beer falls due to the dark color of the water caused by the tannins which saturate the river as it's leached from the cedar swamps she drains. During the spring runoff the upper falls drains on average 50,000 gallons per second making her the third largest fall by volume east of the Mississippi River.
For a nominal fee of $9 we were able to tour both the upper and lower falls as well as every other park in Michigan, but there was not enough time to capitalize on the offer. Both of these sets of falls were located in the same park, but they were a few miles apart and required admission into two different park entrances. As we entered the upper falls park we asked the bearded gentleman running the booth some distance questions and discovered it was only 1/4 mile to the falls with an additional 94 steps down to the lowest viewing platform. Seeming very reasonable for our party, we purchased our Michigan day pass and found a decent parking space.
We headed down the rolling pavement towards the falls that could be heard slowly building in its thunderous roar. The path was lined with sugar maple, white birch, towering firs and many other beautiful indigenous flora. After we reached halfway down, the falls became viewable here and there along the forested path. With several viewing platforms before the stairs it was clear not everyone was going down the stairs. If you were to go down to the main observation deck after all, you would have to climb back up. Maggie and I made the descent, took in the view and headed back up. We found mom at the observation point a little further back and headed out of the park. At the exit we found an exhibit with local furs from old trapper animals and some history of the region; they even had a stuffed mountain lion donated to the local DNR by none other than Garlyn Zoo we visited the day before.
As we headed further east the upper falls were only 4 miles up. The incredibly bubbly young lady operating the gate explained that these falls were only 100 yards from the parking lot, but she neglected to tell us that effort determines the quality here. Yes, it was an easy walk and it was also a less impressive sight. It wasn't horrible, but this view was a little lacking. We should have started here and worked our way to the upper falls; this was more like Newton factory shoals. On our way out we grabbed a drink at the visitors center and hauled our way back to Naubinway as fast as we could.
We had heard from dad recently and fishing wasn't so good today. With dinner on the line we had little time to waste to catch Davin's twin before the fish market closed. When cell service finally returned we called the market, "Eh?" was the answer, "when you closing today", "oohhh about an air", "good we'll be there in 15 minutes alright?" "Oooohh yea, we'll be here yoo betcha!" Click. When we got there they were still cleaning the day's catch. A couple pounds of white fish for frying and we were on our way. Mom and Maggie were doing some bike riding while I prepared dinner and some random friendly gentleman offered them some cucumbers he had just picked from his garden. They took a couple thankfully and he set the rest in a chair at the road for anyone that may come by.
Mom and Maggie were doing some bike riding while I prepared dinner and some random friendly gentleman offered them some cucumbers he had just picked from his garden.
"Dad, this stranger gave Juju (a name my children call their grandmother) two cucumbers, don't you think that's strange?" Maggie asked in bewilderment as she walked in the door. "Here" I responded "No". French fries, fried fish, sliced cucumbers with salt and pepper, another beautiful sunset on the dock, it seemed to be becoming mine and Maggie's evening routine and it was time to retire. I finished my day as I always begin it, with an always comforting conversation with my wife Diễm. She couldn't make it this year, but I hoped she and the girls would be here for next year's run around the U.P.
