Just captured another beautiful sunrise this morning…it’s going to be another beautiful day on the north shore!
It’s so amazing…there is just a pinprick of light and then POP…the sun is almost above the horizon line before getting a snapshot…it’s a miracle everyday…so blessed to see it rise, so blessed to see it rise over (and over and over) Lake Superior…so amazed at the beauty and the miracle…Thank you Lord.
The Sawbill Trail road is a beautiful drive from Highway 61 to Sawbill Lake, an entry point to the BWCA. We have traveled it many times over the years, since coming up to this part of the north shore.
We drive it for fall colors, looking for wild life, to access certain trails, to see a sunset, and it also holds memories of us running on the road when our sons ran cross-country in high school. At one time all four of us ran (I ran in two 5K’s but that was enough for me). The guys needed to practice so we took them to this beautiful road.
Only the first three miles have been paved for years…the remaining was dirt road so we were pleasantly surprised to see it had been paved this summer, and that the new section was paved with wide shoulders so now it can accommodate cycling.
There are several finished sections of the Gitcha-Gami (Great Sea) bike trail which is why we bring our bicycles along to the cabin. It’s a beautiful trail close to “The Lake” with the plans being one continuous trail from Two Harbors to Grand Marais. For us, coming as far north as Tofte, the Sawbill Trail offers another great biking option.
We were excited as we drove to the top of a three mile hill and parked our car. We unloaded our bikes and put on our helmets and started to pedal. The road was so smooth yet it was a difficult ride because we were biking into the wind. After we turned around (eight miles out) we had the wind at our backs, pushing us along we clipped back at a steady pace.
Back at the car Gary asked me if I wanted to ride down the three mile hill to Hwy 61 (he knows the thrill of going down a big hill.) This hill is the old section of the Sawbill Trail that winds around and takes you down as though you were driving into Lake Superior. This section is without a wide shoulder but has little traffic. He’d drive our car down to meet me at the bottom. I decided to go for it.
I was going fast and it was quite the ride. This summer I considered riding a zip line over waterfalls in Quebec but didn’t. I think the ride down the Sawbill Trail was the thrill for me!
The sunrise was a welcome sight after a stormy night and I was glad to be awake to watch it come over the horizon and clouds.
We drove up near the Canadian border today. We were in search for a trail I had heard of and knew we had not hiked. (It is not a maintained trail.) We found the parking lot. We grabbed our hiking poles and started down the rocky road to find the trail-head. We walked a ways looking intently but turned around after not finding it. Back at the car a lone woman got out of hers and asked us how the trail was. We told her we never found it. She said she was going to try because she had hiked it before.
We continued to drive up Highway 61 along Lake Superior to Grand Portage State Park, about ½ mile south of the border patrol station. There we hiked to High Falls on the Pigeon River. It is the highest waterfalls in Minnesota and was cascading down with gusto from all the recent rains. We decided to hike farther to an observation point overlooking Lake Superior and the inland forest. Up we went to the scenic overlook and it was beautiful. The skies were blue and the sun shone down and made the lake glisten.
On our way down we saw our “recent acquaintance” from the other parking lot. She said she had found the trail-head we were looking for but she didn’t climb it because it was too muddy. So she had the same idea… hike to High Falls and beyond. We visited with her for awhile and found out she is camping at a Superior National Forest campground for a reasonable rate (seniors 60+ get a discount.) After we parted ways we wondered if it she gets lonely hiking and camping by herself.
Heading back to the cabin we stopped at Naniboujou Lodge, an icon of the north shore, with its famous dining room stone fireplace and Cree Indian designs painted on the walls and ceiling in 1929 and has never been repainted, yet the colors remain brilliant! I’m sorry I didn’t get a picture. They have the best Wild Rice Burgers and we ordered two to go and brought them to the waters’ edge and ate our late lunch picnic style. The wind was strong and the waves were high and forceful with huge a surf. Awesome!
After stopping in Grand Marais to we drove back to the cabin and it was great to be back on the rocks reading our books.
After dark we built a fire in the fire ring on the rocks in front of the cabin. We waited for the moonrise and it was a beautiful sight! It comes up where the sun rises and it’s a wonder to see it peek over the horizon. Again, we thought about the lone woman we met today and wondered if she was having a campfire at her campsite and watching the moonrise.
I do not feel sorry for her…she seemed very happy and delightful. I’m just grateful I have somebody to share my love of nature with me and to enjoy doing things together.
Sunrise to Moonrise…it was a very good day.
Sometimes we see the full moon rise over the lake.
Lake Superior Psalm 23
The Lord is my Shepherd
I shall thank him.
He allows me to come to Lake Superior
and hear the calming waves.
He restores my soul.
He guides me on the trails of the Superior Forest
And leads me along the rocky shores.
Even when the waves are rough – even when the lake is calm,
I look forward to coming
And He is with me.
His creation and His majesty, they comfort me.
He anoints me with many blessings
My cup overflows and I am grateful.
Surely I will praise you and follow you
all the days of my life,
I‘m grateful to dwell in your presence
on the shores of Lake Superior.
(Valerie 09/08)
The cabin faces east on the north shore of Lake Superior therefore we see sunrises…I set my alarm so I don’t miss them. I have captured many pictures of beautiful sunrises that are so varied…just like the moods of the lake.
About this time of year I get so excited thinking about our annual trek up to the “north shore.” For the past 31 years we have been going up north in September (except a few years when the boys were in sports and we had to go in August.) The shores of Lake Superior is one of my favorite places to be and I always look forward to our time at a cabin we rent right on the waters edge.
We started out looking for a cabin in 1985 (if only we had bought our own place back then!) wanting to find a cabin we‘d want to return to each year. We found a quaint 1940’s era cabin at Surfside Resort, a family- run business. We loved the cute little cabin #6 (with a seagull we named Mingo – he had one leg and hung out at the cabin for a couple of years.) The small Cabin #6 was just right for our family and we have so many wonderful memories of our times there.
Then a big business came along and bought out the small business and built lovely, but expensive, condominiums that we couldn’t afford. So we found a different cabin to call home for the brief amount of time we get to stay there each year.
Going up to the north shore of Lake Superior has become my “new year.” Instead of making resolutions on New Year’s Eve I take time up north to think about the previous year, look ahead to the next year and contemplate what life is all about for me right now in this fall season. I sit on the rocks with the large lake in front of me surrounded by stunning beauty and just sit…and think…and write…and read. The whole natural surroundings are a great place for reflecting, refreshing, refocusing and rejuvenating.
So I will print out our packing list, make the chili and wild rice soup, gather the throws, coffee and books, collect the hiking and biking gear and anticipate another wonderful year up at the cabin on Lake Superior!
Mother Teresa has been declared a saint in a canonization Mass held by Pope Francis in the Vatican ~ now she is to be called Saint Teresa of Kolkata.
The inspiring words below are attributed to Mother Teresa. (Apparently the words are based on a composition originally by Kent Keith) See both versions here.
“Do It Anyway”
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.
My sons were 7 and 5 when Jacob Wetterling was abducted back in 1989. It was a scary story for any mother who heard about a child abduction in a small town in Minnesota. After 27 years we finally have answers to the questions that have always been in the back of our minds… and in the front of the Wetterling’s every day. Sigh.
Patty Wetterling has always conducted herself with such grace. I pray for peace and comfort for the Wetterling family. The search is over, the grieving and healing begins.