I had a message from Capt. Paul (a.k.a Paul Brandes) the other day, with a whole slew of pictures taken on a little adventure he and Dr. Nat (a.k.a Nathalie Brandes) went on in the Huron Mountains. He also added his own commentary, which is way better than my retelling it, so here you go, Enjoy!

"Attached are a series of photos from our little adventure in the Huron Mountains across the Northwestern Rd between Big Bay and L’Anse and some photos of our new “toy”, a 2016 Jeep Wrangler HardRock edition. I will say that the photos do not do this road any justice as it is a very beautiful trip across. I figure it is about 20-22 miles across between the turn off on CR 510 in Marquette Co. (near the Eagle Mine) to Big Erick’s Bridge. As you’ll see from the photos, it is a 4x4 or ATV trail only! I would not recommend taking any sort of car or even “normal” SUV as you will not make it and help is a loooong ways off (cell phones don’t even work out there). I was surprised though that our Garmin GPS unit actually had the NW Rd. marked on the map which made it easy to follow. Still, I would not take anything less than a 4x4 with decent ground clearance. This is a road that I would LOVE to take in autumn when the leaves turn; I can imagine it is gorgeous! Below are a description of each photo:

Photo 1: The very beginning of the NW Rd. as you turn off CR 510.
Photo 2: One of the many great vistas along the trail (as well as one of the few open areas)
Photo 3: Picking my path up one of the many washouts (and the reason one needs 4x4!) Nat is my spotter.
Photo 4: Just decided to go around everything instead.
Photo 5: A very typical view along the NW Rd.
Photo 6: A bridge marked “dangerous, do not cross”! Had Nat spot for me and crossed with no issues.
Photo 7: A very healthy beaver pond along the way.
Photo 8: Huron River at Big Erick’s Bridge.
Photo 9: A slightly muddy Jeep (and a very happy driver!)

I'm betting it's beautiful there. I would imagine
it would be spectacular in late September/early
October.

Thanks for taking us along for the ride!!

Thanks for the tour, I enjoyed it.

FANTASTIC!!! Thank you for the adventure!

Thanks for the education Dr. Nat & Capt Paul! Manys a time i eyed that route with the fond hope of exploring it someday. My concern back then was if the route was marked/obvious enough that we wouldn't end up at a dead end at someone's camp somewhere. While i'm sure our 4x4 Silverado could handle the road, it would be taking too much of a risk with my husband now in a wheelchair. So seeing your beautiful series of pictures is as close as we'll ever get.

Also have to say i'm positively impressed that you took your new Jeep out and actually used it in the backroads & trails! There are too many vehicles out there like that which have never gotten off the city streets.

MapQuest actually showed me this route when I
wondered if there was a way to get across without
going all the way back into Marquette from Big
Bay. Going west in August we did it in a Plymouth
minivan. Going east in October we did it in a
Nissan Altima. That was in 2004 or 2005 and the
roads looked a heck of a lot better then, though
still probably not a good idea at the time. Quite
an adventure, indeed!

Find mud and really have fun!

lol...did that one in a '88 Ranger no 4x4....miss that area

Thanks for featuring my photos today, Mary!

One additional word on that area. Most people don't realise that there are TWO ways to cross the Huron Mountains between Big Bay and L'Anse. There is the Northwestern Rd. which is featured here, and the AAA Road past Eagle Mine which is in much better condition than the NW Rd. I believe one would be hard pressed to get a car/minivan across the NW Rd.

Also, we wouldn't have had to use the GPS as the road is well traveled so just follow pretty much where everyone else has gone and you'd be fine. I was more curious as to whether the GPS would even have it in there and if it were accurate.

jbuck: well, isn't that what a Jeep is built for?? ;-)

If I get a little time, I'll provide Mary with some additional "off-road" photos we shot in the Keweenaw north of the bridge during our visit.

I've been on this road. Actually, I've tried both routes. My dad had
the notion to make his own bridge to cross a river on the way. Way
back in the day. We tried to hide the evidence from my mom, but
she noticed the scratches and mud! Thanks Doc and Capt. Clearly,
you had the right kind of vehicle.

Very nice side journey Capt. Paul. Did you drive
your new Jeep all the way from TX? How's the
comparative comfort on the interstate with those
tires?

Look into a Delorme InReach. I took one on my
recent treks through the U.P. bush. It allows for
10 minute satellite tracking of your GPS location
by others on the Web. Plus you can send/receive
text messages via the satellite system. And it's
far cheaper than a satellite phone.

(Ooopsie, see below!)

Capt. Paul and Dr. Nat with a
"… 2016 Jeep Wrangler HardRock edition …"?

That sounds so appropriate!

By FRNash/PHX, AZ (Frnash) on Monday, August 22, 2016 - 10:23 pm:
Capt. Paul and Dr. Nat with a "… 2016 Jeep Wrangler HardRock edition …"?
That sounds so appropriate!

Would you expect anything less?? ;-)

By D. A. (Midwested) on Monday, August 22, 2016 - 10:05 pm:
Very nice side journey Capt. Paul. Did you drive
your new Jeep all the way from TX? How's the
comparative comfort on the interstate with those
tires?

We did, D.A. The ride on the new Jeeps is incredible compared to the previous models, yet they still have the legendary off-road capability. The tires do howl just a little bit on the road, but not to the point of being obnoxious. On the return trip, we drove all the way to Nevada, MO the first day and neither of us were that tired. The seats in ours are also great for long trips.

Nice pic's! We've done are fair share of 4 wheelin thru Marquette county and the Keweenaw, it's a great time.

Nice ride Capt!

Anybody heard from Alex, I'm gonna send out the search party soon!!

Great pics. I hope I can visit there sometime.

When I went out towards the Keweenaw point 3
weeks ago, several people told me the road to
High Rock Bay was in good shape. I had rented
an SUV with almost as much ground clearance as
the Wrangler. The road was pretty good except
there were 3 or 4 spots on hills where picking
a route was just about like your picture above.
I'm sure the recent rains are the cause of the
washouts on the hills. The road was in far
better shape than I remember it from 40 years
ago, but back then I was walking it.

I was planning to come back via Mandan Rd but
got turned back after a few miles by trail
closure signs due to logging.

Capt. Paul, I tried to find an abandoned Slate
quarry northeast of L'Anse but gave up.

D.A. My father used to take me there when I was a kid. I will ask
one of my cousins if they remember where it is. I remember how
amazing it was to see snakes sunning themselves on top of slate
piles.

Here's some info about the location of the quarry:

Arvon Slate Quarry

Only apple trees and small clearings mark the location of the townsite of Arvon. It was once home to some 300 people. Waste slate piles and a water pit remain from the Slate Mining operations that began in 1870, ending in 1892. Henry Ford pumped the water from the pit and mined slate for his operations in the 1920s. One can see the foundations of some early slate buildings, drainage ditch and piles of waste slate. The pit makes for a peaceful small lake.

Location: US 41 to downtown L'Anse, at the stoplight go right (North) on Main Street which turns into Skanee Road. Go approximately 10 miles to Arvon Road and the Quarry is about 4 miles on the Arvon Road. Please contact (906) 524-7444 for more information. Seasonal roads, but accessible year round.

D. A. (Midwested),

If you go to google maps, etc, and follow Arvon Road from the intersection of Skanee Road you'll come to a point when Arvon makes a right angle turn to the West. But at that point there is a 2 track which continues South. If you follow that 2 track South for a ways you can clearly see the lake and waste slate piles in the satellite view. The road is running along the Slate River, which is on the East side of the road.

jbuck,

Thanks ever so much. Found it. The first lake is about 1/2 mile from where Arvon Rd makes that hard right turn to the west. The visible piles are another 1/4 mile along the 2 track. It also looks like there's been some recent flooding, maybe a beaver pond that has maybe put the 2 track under some water in a couple of places.

Main pile at:
46°46'40.29"N (46.777858°)
88°14'57.29"W (-88.249247°)

I had general directions that day but I ran out of daylight. Always another reason to come back again and again.

Great j buck! Sounds right to me.

Cool ~ wondered if there could be a couple mining areas with all the slate in the area. Looks like a great place to explore!

This is the general area where the MTU summer field geology class spends a couple days on a mapping project. As I recall, it wasn't that terribly difficult, but it's such a large area to cover it took a while to complete.

And again, thank you for all the comments generated from my photos; this is what the daily PastyCam notes are all about.....