Black Hills 2 – FMCA 4 WHEELERS

On Sept. 13 we moved to the Elkhorn Ridge RV Resort near Spearfish SD for a Discovery Trek gathering of 15 members of the  FMCA 4 Wheelers. Our task was to scout roads in the northern part of the Black Hills to see if they were enough suitable for full-blown rally. The conclusion was that more roads needed to be explored, identified and rated. There is no published book for 4 wheeling in the Black Hills, as there is for Moab UT, Arizona and Colorado.

 

Jo and I drove together one day, I was alone in our Grand Cherokee for another, one day was rained out and I rode the other two with Jim Gaymon. The road on my second day of driving was particularly scenic, with parts looking like Colorado above timberline.

 

This road would be rated at 2 out of 5, fairly easy.

 

Lunch time!

This was on a road our first day. It had bypasses( rated at 2) to avoid the difficult parts in a creek bottom rated 3 or 4. (I do not take roads above  2.5 rating.) Above and  below are difficult parts . I rated a part with no bypass as a 2.5.

 

 

We managed to find time for a happy hour nearly every afternoon.

 

 

 

 

Another day all of our jeeps went out together, splitting into two groups later for exploring. Here we paused to view the Bridal Veil falls along the Spearfish Canyon road.

 

 

Bridal Veil Falls

Here are three of the hosts for the group, Bob Reich, Ken Pysick, and Jeff  O’Daniel.

 

We next visited a larger falls on Spearfish Creek further up the canyon.

 

This day I rode with Jim Gaymon, here airing down for what proved to be an easy 2 road.

 

Thursday night our group went to dinner in the historic Fremont Hotel in Deadwood. The casino machines in the lobby detracted from an historic ambiance. The food was fine.

 

BLACK HILLS 3 – ICEMAN

On Sat Sept. 19 I hitched a ride with Jim Gaymon to run a rough road. We were guided by Josh of Dakota Customs on a creek bottom trail with road number 8284 near Nemo named Iceman. The rough part was a  little over a mile long, and it was an in and out road, so obstacles had to be conquered going each way. It was a fun run, and I also filmed some with the GoPro Hero tiny video camera.

 

Here are the Boatmans being spotted by Josh as they roll over a steep drop.

  

This is a better view of the drop.

 

A tree had fallen across the road. Some pushing raised it a little, but a stub of a branch was hanging down too far for the height of our jeeps, so Josh got out his chain saw and took off the offending stub, below. What a guy!

 

 

 

 

Key Pysick successfully got over this obstacle. Some chose to take the bypass instead.

Boatmans made this one look easy, but with some spotting!

 

Jim had to do some careful wheel placement on this one.

After lunch, on the way back Ken wanted to tackle going over these two boulders. Marks on them showed that others had tried, and perhaps some of them made it.

 

This was as far as Ken got in three tries – with lots of rock stacking and spotting help.

The Boatmans also tried, hoping that their shorter wheelbase would be the answer to them getting over it. Unfortunately, the trailer hitch dragged so they had to back off.

SOURCE OF MISSISSIPPI RIVER – LAKE ITASCA MN

 

We parked 4 nights at the Corps of Engineers Winnie Dam Campground, just downstream from the dam controlling the flow of the Mississippi River from Lake Winnibigoshish. The lake is 70 miles downstream from the recognized source of the river at Lake Itasca.

The campground was great – large  level sites, nicely wooded and quiet. It has 22 spaces but there were just 3 rigs in it most nights we were there. The closest larger town is Grand Rapids MN.

On our way from Winnie Dam to Golden Eagle campground near Perham MN we stopped at Lake Itasca Sate Park to visit the head of the Mississippi River.

 

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The Lake Itasca State Park Visitors Center has displays including the above explaining three ways of identifying the point of beginning of a river. It also diagrams the watershed of the Mississippi – a large area surrounded on three sides by moraines left by the last glacier in the area. The river flows north from this area, then east, southeasterly  and finally southerly beginning at LaCrosse WI.

The three ways are:

1. The farthest point upstream  where the first drop of water flows.

2.the farthest point upstream where the flow and volume constitutes a river.

3.The highest point in the river’s watershed.

The Lake Itasca outflow satisfies the second test. The watershed area above the lake is marshy and has at least 5 small streams feeding Lake Itasca.

 

 

This sign on the 800 ft. walk to the beginning of the outflow explains the early efforts to locate the

origin of the Mississippi. Although the day was rainy, many people were visiting the area.

 

Here is Jo at the sign identifying the point as the origin oft he Mississippi River. An other nearby  sign explained the the river now is some 160 miles shorter due to straightening by the Corps of Engineers to eliminate oxbows.

 

This is the beginning of the outflow. Many visitors chose to walk across the Mississippi on the rocks.

And this is the river a few feet down from the outflow.

GRAND TOUR CRUISE OF THE APOSTLE ISLANDS

 We took the Grand Tour 3 1/4  hour  cruise of the Apostle Islands  on Mon. Aug. 17 on the Superior Princess. We arrived at the dock sufficiently early to get seating on the upper open deck. The ship is powered by two John Deere diesel engines rated at 600 hp each. I was surprised that 90% of the  seats for passengers were filled. 

Camera used is a Canon Power Shot SX150 IS.

 

As we left the breakwater area the forest of masts in the harbor is in the background.  The ship’s crew was young – even the captain was well under 25.

 

 

The  brownstone blocks were quarried on Hermit Island but never shipped.

Blocks from the quarry were used in buildings as as afar away as Buffalo NY, we were told.

Lichens and chemicals have stained these rocks. Birds are responsible for the white areas on the rocks below.

Sea kayaks are popular modes of transportation among the islands.

 

 

Erosion has left a few of these standing rocks on Basswood Island. 

 

 

 

This fishing camp on Manitou Island was the camp in best condition when the Lakeshore took over the Apostle Islands so was preserved as an example of the many island fishing camps. A volunteer stays here to greet and guide the occasional visitor who arrives on his own boat for sightseeing or camping. Brown bears inhabit several of the islands and easily can swim to the others.

 

Devils Island was the northernmost and the most spectacular of the 20 some odd islands.The day was quite overcast, but the sun came out a bit as we reached the northern part of the island, bringing out the colors of the eroded rocks.

 

 

The sea caves present grotesque forms with  columns and arches.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lighthouse and tender house on Raspberry Island. The riprap was installed to stop erosion of the shoreline.

Three are 9 lighthouses in the Lakeshore, all automated and run by the Coast Guard.

BAYFIELD WI VISIT

We arrived in  Bayfield on August 15  for our first visit. Bayfield is on the Bayfield Peninsula, at the end of which are the Apostle Islands.

 The area is heavily forested. Logging has taken most of the original growth forests on the mainland and the islands. Brownstone blocks were quarried on one of the islands and used as far away as Buffalo NY.  The main industry of the area is tourism. Now the islands are mainly owned  by the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.

The town has several old mansions, a few of which are bed and breakfasts.

 

Another mansion has been converted into Greunke’s Inn. It has a nightly fish boil, a spectacular event when diesel oil is put on the fire under the boiling 55 gal drum, causing the fish oil at the top of the boiling water water to boil over.

 

 

The old Bayfield County courthouse is repurposed as the visitor center and headquarters of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.  Those wishing to camp on the islands obtain their permits here, and  a movie tells visitors of the history of the area  – logging, farming and fishing.

 

The small downtown area is nicely decorated.

 

The ferry to Madeline Island runs frequently during the tourist season. It is large enough to carry semi trucks and motor homes. There is a state park on the island (not part of the Lakeshore) as well as a museum and tourist shops and accommodations for the visitors.

 

 

The municipal dock is nicely developed for pleasure boats and the ships for tours of the islands.

 

As we approached Bayfield I was impressed with the forest of masts of sailing ships. Madeline Island is on the horizon.

EAGLE RIVER WI VISIT

Beginning August 10 we stayed 5 nights at the Chain O’ Lakes Campground near Eagle River. It is only about 2 miles from cousin Ken’s home and 6 miles from cousin Martha’s home.

 

I cooked sourdough pancakes for the group one morning at our motor home.

Here I am frying bacon to provide more flavor for the pancakes.

Linda Strong and her Miata are behind me.

Come and get ‘em!

And here are the eager eaters – Ken, Martha, Linda and Jo.

 

  

 

That afternoon  Martha took us, and some friends, on a tour of a few of the chain of lakes around Eagle River in her nice pontoon boat.

Left to right, Martha, Ken Strong, Ray and Gail Cress  and Jo.

Our first point of interest was the dam upstream from Martha’s home.  Rather than to provide a lock to raise and lower boats, below is a part of the boat lift which is basically an elevator on rails.

 

The partially obscured boat lift is the yellow structure.

 

 

On our ride around the lakes, we met the ‘Pirate Ship” tour boat.

 

 

Friday night we took Martha to the fish fry at Bucktale Inn. She suggested that I buy the shirt I am wearing to “Keep Eagle River Green”.