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Sunday, September 30, 2012

On The Road Again - Heading for Michigan.

We departed for Michigan's Upper Peninsula this morning.  In our unique way, we made over a hundred miles before stopping for the night at Ironwood.

After stopping to view some leaves, we stopped in Cable, Wisconsin, for Lunch. Cable has a wonderful restaurant and coffee shop, open only for breakfast and lunch, called the Brick House.
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They serve some fantastic dishes like my Tarragon Chicken Salad Sandwich and Linda's Raspberry Chicken Salad.  I added a cup of Turkey Wild Rice Soup that would make a hearty meal on its own.  Worth a stop any time you are close.
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We picked up Leaf Tour number one out of Cable stopping at several points and winding past Garmish Inn, (another favorite lunch spot) and a very busy entrance to the North County National Scenic Trail before arriving in the vicinity of Drummond.
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We followed U.S. 2 across the top of Wisconsin arriving at Ashland and this very large Northern Great Lakes Visitor Information Center.  It seems like a bit "over the top" for the area, but maybe in the summer months?  I notice that the website for it touts the fact that the center is staffed by 20 permanent and 13 seasonal, part time staff members.  Also that local groups successfully "lobbied the state and federal governments for nearly six years and obtained state and federal funds to build this Center."  I guess that means nobody had to pay for it.
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Take the elevator or stairs to the top of the center and you do get a heck of a view of Lake Superior and Chequamegon Bay.  And as another symbol of the honesty of mid-westerners, there is a basket with high-quality binoculars sitting at the entrance to the observation deck. No chains, locks or cables on them.
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Downstairs, an exhibit allows you push buttons that show the locations of lighthouses, shipwrecks, shipping routes, etc.  Here I try out the lighthouse button.
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An hour or so of pleasant driving along the Lake Superior shoreline  soon brought us to the adjacent border cities of Hurley(WI)/Ironwood(MI).  The gulls were singing, the rocks are round and, o yes, as they say in this area, it was "cooler by the lake."  By about ten degrees.
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