12 May 2007: Experiencing the UP
Newberry to Munising: 58.5 mi + 22.3 to PCNL and back; 40s early, 43 in Munising
The vacation witin my vacation continues. Today, the highlight was Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, the first lakeshore preserved in the National Park System. After biking 58 miles to Munising and getting a room, I discovered that the tour boats giving the best views don't start their season until Memorial Day. No problem - it's only 10 miles by road into the park, and I've got a bike!
I took a wonderful hike to Miner's Beach, through a birch forest just coming into full bloom. I then strolled along the beach, looking at the highly polished pebbles as the waves rolling off Lake Superior melted away my stresses. Next week will be almost all business, but this was sheer pleasure.
The ride today covered the Seney Stretch. I didn't know what to expect in Michigan's UP, but I imagined rolling, glacial hills. Today I actually encountered one rise that qualified as a hill, though it was minor. Even that gentle terrain couldn't prepare me for the Seney Stretch: 24 miles of road straight as an arrow and flat as an ironing board. For the entire stretch, I never saw a car disappear around a bend or vanish behind a rise. Instead, I watched every car that passed me shrink into the distance until I could no longer make them out. Looking ahead, the pavement disappeared into a mirage of water, bounded by a line of pines. Thank heavens I had no head winds - on a ride where you could barely measure progress, to go slower would have been agony.
The vacation witin my vacation continues. Today, the highlight was Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, the first lakeshore preserved in the National Park System. After biking 58 miles to Munising and getting a room, I discovered that the tour boats giving the best views don't start their season until Memorial Day. No problem - it's only 10 miles by road into the park, and I've got a bike!
I took a wonderful hike to Miner's Beach, through a birch forest just coming into full bloom. I then strolled along the beach, looking at the highly polished pebbles as the waves rolling off Lake Superior melted away my stresses. Next week will be almost all business, but this was sheer pleasure.
The ride today covered the Seney Stretch. I didn't know what to expect in Michigan's UP, but I imagined rolling, glacial hills. Today I actually encountered one rise that qualified as a hill, though it was minor. Even that gentle terrain couldn't prepare me for the Seney Stretch: 24 miles of road straight as an arrow and flat as an ironing board. For the entire stretch, I never saw a car disappear around a bend or vanish behind a rise. Instead, I watched every car that passed me shrink into the distance until I could no longer make them out. Looking ahead, the pavement disappeared into a mirage of water, bounded by a line of pines. Thank heavens I had no head winds - on a ride where you could barely measure progress, to go slower would have been agony.
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