August 8, 2013 Marquette, Michigan

On the way to our next stop in Marquette, Michigan we decided to stop at Oswald’s Bear Ranch near Newberry. They rescue bear cubs from around the United States and give them a place to safely grow up and live. It is against the law in Michigan to breed and buy black bears.

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As we drove toward Marquette, we couldn’t help but notice the breathtaking views of Lake Superior.  We pulled into a private campground and were directed to a campsite overlooking Lake Superior.  We were hesitate to take the site because of the traffic noise, but the view won out over any hesitations.  We noticed immediately the campground was not at all as advertised on their website.  The website depiction must have been from 10+ years ago, but we had prepaid for reservations and again, the view won us over.

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We came to realize that first night that the water had a very strange smell….much like iron and some such minerals.  The water continued to be a source of concern during our stay, but we had several water filters on the coach and used a Brita water pitcher, but still we were uneasy.

Now for the GREAT part of our time near Marquette.  The highlight of our time here was without a doubt the ferry ride to view the cliffs of Picture Rocks.  There are 15 miles of sandstone cliffs which are up to 200 feet above lake level.  The colors are caused by large amounts of mineral in the rocks.  The water evaporates leaving streaks of colors.  The red color comes from iron, pink and green from copper, yellow and brown from limonite, and black and white from manganese.  As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words….

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Before we caught the ferry we spent the morning in Picture Rocks National Lakeshore Park where we hiked Munising Falls which was very easy, and Mosquito Falls which was quite a challenging hike over roots, rocks and trails muddy from the previous days rain.

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Another day we decided to go to Presque Isle Park, a beautiful peninsula that juts out into Lake Superior, to do some sightseeing and geocaching.  We found this to be a great park with some interesting and challenging geocaches, as well as some gorgeous views!

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