We have been going, going, going since leaving Alabama. Most of the travel days were not really long days but we had to meet and interact with people each day after or before getting settled in for the night. Then when we arrived at the Apostle Islands Tuesday morning, we parked and immediately began hiking and seeing and doing everything we could. We had only 2 ½ days to get it all in so by yesterday morning we were both pretty tired. We did not head out early but had a quiet breakfast at home and then decided on a short hike and some exploring by truck. More great scenery. We had a great time at the Apostle Islands, saw some beautiful sites. We did not get to do the sea kayaking because the seas were too high. A good reason to return sometime. Another good reason is the great food and pastries from Coco’s Bakery and relaxing by the beautiful Lake Superior – largest, deepest and coldest great lake.
Our short hike yesterday was on Houghtan Falls Trail.
Not much water in the stream so the falls downstream were dry. This pretty area is known at Echo Dells.
Anne enjoyed riding up and down on the floating dock at the campground while the lake was rough yesterday evening. By the this morning it was smooth.
Cool morning by the lake
CoCo’s Bakery in Washburn
This is one of the display windows at CoCo’s. Everything looked so delicious …
… but we only bought 2 bacon cheddar scones, 2 blueberry scones, 2 cinnamon rolls, and 2 blueberry turnovers.
This morning we left our campsite about 9:50 and traveled to Antigo, WI. We were set up in the Antigo City campground before 3:00. We will spend the weekend on laundry and groceries, etc. Monday we will begin a new adventure.
This morning we were again up early to drive back over to Bayfield to catch an early ferry to Madeline Island. We did not take Fred or the truck to the island although we could – for enough money. We took the bikes. $47.00 for a round trip for the two of us and two bikes. Madeline Island is one of the 22 Apostle Islands but is not part of the National Lakeshore and the only inhabited island. You can take a boat to some of the other islands for camping or light house viewing (during non-Covid times). Madeline is the largest of the Apostle Islands at about fourteen miles long and three miles wide. There is a town park and state park on the island and a few restaurants, shops etc. and some beautiful homes. Vehicles are allowed on the island but didn’t seem necessary for us today. We rode about fourteen miles exploring. We explored the state park, and La Pointe, the little town where the ferry docks and had lunch at one of the restaurants – really good whitefish from Lake Superior. After returning to the Bayfield ferry dock and loading the bikes back in the truck, the first stop was, of course, for ice cream. Very good pecan praline ice cream. We then did some more exploring of the area and hiked one of the trails here at the campground that goes to the Washburn marina. The nice trail right along the lake shore was a good way to end another great day of seeing more of this beautiful country.
Leaving Bayfield …
…with our bikes.
Almost to the island
Arriving on the island
Biking to the State Park
Lakeshore at the park
More pretty shoreline
The state park has a selfie stand set up for your phone
We did not expect to see any wildlife so we didn’t take a good camera today. So, of course, we had to see a bald eagle. This is the best the phone would do.
Sunday morning we were back on the road continuing our trek north. We noticed a little cooler temperatures when we stopped at a rest area to stretch our legs and eat some breakfast. We extended our stop long enough to watch the live stream of our church service. It was a good service, as usual, so if you want to check it out, click here. As we headed on north we exited Kentucky and began our travels across Illinois, the state of corn and soy bean fields. Prior to retiring when we thought of Illinois it was thoughts of Chicago, and great lakes. Now, after working several projects in Illinois, it’s thoughts of miles and miles of beautiful, huge, farms. We stopped mid-afternoon at a Harvest Host site in Atlanta, IL, a large family farm that also makes candy, teas, and grows spices and other small batch items. We really liked the sea salt caramel candy. After another restful night, we drove on to Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, to another Harvest Host farm. This time it was an orchard. It’s a fifth generation family business. They have about 3,000 apple trees along with other fruits such as blue berries and raspberries, and honeybees. We of course left with more delicious treats. Love visiting Harvest Hosts, making new friends and enjoying new foods.
She really likes driving through construction zones, especially the ones with narrow lanes between concrete cattle chutes.
Church in a rest area somewhere
Where we stayed Sunday night in Illinois
Among all the other things they grew were some beautiful sunflowers
Home in the orchard for Monday night in Wisconsin
This morning we got an early start to our destination near the Apostle Islands. We are at a first come first serve campground on the shore of Lake Superior and were told we should arrive early if we hoped to get a site. We have a beautiful site and were so blessed to get this spot. We were told that the premium site we got was vacated about ten minutes before we arrived, and was one of the two sites that were available today. We will enjoy this beautiful setting the next 3 days as we explore the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and surrounding area. We feel so blessed to be here. The temperatures are cooler, (we needed a jacket this morning), the scenery incredible, with some great hiking this afternoon. Looking forward to the rest of our time here.
The sunrise this morning was very orange due to the smoke in the air. This picture does not show the orange very well.
Our campsite beside Lake Superior in Washburn, WI
The campground does not have water hookups at the sites, but has two artesian wells that are very pure. Of course we had to try it.
The first part of the trail is this boardwalk …
… but the rest of the trail was sand, rocks and roots – but they at least put these wonderful steps in the steep places to make it easier, especially for people with shorter legs.
The Crevasse is one of the kayaking destinations
There were several points along the trail where we could see the sea caves
There were several kayakers out today
This part of the shore is known as The Bowl
Smoke from fires in Canada almost obscured our view of this Apostle Island.
RVing With a Purpose 