August 23 Ashland, Wisconsin

Sadly we left Michigan this morning.  Our time in Michigan was wonderful and it certainly exceeded our expectations in beauty!  The weather for the most part was cooler than expected but that was fine with us.  The vicious mosquitoes and black flies we had heard so much about were not nearly as bad as we feared.  Perhaps it was due to the cool weather.

We arrived in the quaint town of Ashland, Wisconsin and was immediately taken with its beauty.   We found a campsite overlooking Lake Superior in Kreher City Park.

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There are two streets in Ashland that caught our attention during our visit.  Lakeshore Drive which takes you along Lake Superior with some breathtaking views of the lake.  The other street is Main Street where we found 11 huge murals painted on several building for 8 blocks along the street.  The first mural was done eleven years ago by Wisconsin artists Kelly Meredith and Sue Martinsen as part of the state’s sesquicentennial celebration.  This then became part of a long term project to bring art, history and tourism to Ashland.  Yes, these are murals painted on buildings!  Take a look!

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Lumberjack Mural depicts the men and women of Ash;and’s lumber era

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Waitress mural

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Storefront mural…a compilation of Ashland storefronts from the early 1900’s

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Veterans Mural in honor of all the Ashland men and women who served our country in wars and conflicts

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Lighthouse Mural depicting 3 lighthouses within Apostle islands off of the coast of Ashland on Lake Superior

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Asaph Whittlesey Mural depicts Ashland National Bank, 1892

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Ore Dock Mural, the dock was built in 1916 and extended in 1924. It was 1800 feet long and at the time was the largest concrete dock in the world

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Historical Ellis Avene Mural features Northland College, Wheeler Hall; the old Ashland high school; and the Knight Hotel

 

On Sunday we decided to make the 30 mile drive to Copper Falls State Park to do some hiking and see the waterfalls.  The forecast of 95 degree weather concerned, but did not deter us.  A brief history of the park is that thousands of cubic miles of lava oozed from deep fissures where Lake Superior now lies.  The lava spread in all directions, building horizontal layers that reached thicknesses up to 60,000 feet.  There was so much lava, the earth’s crust sagged and formed the basin of Lake Superior.  Evidence of the lava can be seen in the park today.  The Bad River and its tributary the Tylers Fork flow through a gorge and drop over several waterfalls.  Copper was mined by Native Americans and then later by European settlers.  The park has done an excellent job of creating walkways with many, many steps that takes us around a trail where we can view the waterfalls.  It was a great experience, but it was REALLY hot!

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