• Wednesday-What'sUP March 24 - 06:37 am

Opening my inbox the other day I found a few shots from Steve King who said he had just completed his fifth snowmobile trip of the season to the Keweenaw. He also said something that I had immediately thought about when checking out his photos... the Eagle Harbor lighthouse has probably been photographed at least a gazillion times. But then I took a closer look and realized that his shots were from an angle we haven't seen in a while, especially in the winter, so I thought I'd share them. Five years ago Joe Kirkish gave us a shot from a similar vantage point:

Pasty Cam Archives 3/15/2000

...and might I add, one of my favorite views from the rocks appeared on our Sunday Shoebox Memories some time ago, with Karen Karl's grandma back in the roaring 20's.

This is my second favorite lighthouse and its easy to see why! What a gorgeous building and what great meaning to the community.

Thanks for the beautiful pictures!

Good morning from Mishawaka IN. Great pictures this morning. All of them. I think I've seen those hats in Wal-Mart only their red. Have a good day everyone.

julie b.

Which is your favorite lighthouse?

Great pictures - thanks!

Mornin', looks like a lighthouse mornin.

This side has always been my favorite!

Kosk -

My favorite is Crisp Point Light - it's on a lonely shore east of Grand Marais. It was in peril of being lost when the lake levels were high and a dedicated group lead by Nellie & Don Ross saved it. The group has done a great job renovating it.

see http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/superior/crisp/crisp.htm

Crisp Point is my favorite too - was there as a kid back in late 40's when there was still a lumber camp at Bodi Lake - mill and log buildings. I remember a coyote, as a pet, with the family that had cabins on Bodi - great memories. Have a great day everyone!!!

What a great way to start the morning. This is my absolute favorite lighthouse. I haven't yet had the pleasure to see it in the winter. Lighthouses seem to take on a whole new character in the snow. Julie, I can see why you love Crisp Point Light, too. That one is also very memorable. I guess I never met a lighthouse I didn't like.

A resident along M-203, Calumet, caught sight of an ore boat out on the mighty Superior yesterday.
It would be so nice if the robins would show up anytime now to let us know for sure that Spring has arrived.

The robins are in Ohio so they will be there soon. We had 2 inches of snow yesterday so they are probably not happy they are here, one of them had a big worm yesterday which surprised me.

FYI,CC,MI
The Soo Locks open for navigation on March 25. So that boat is probably headed south bound.
You can watch the locks on the following site:
http://webcam.crrel.usace.army.mil/soo/

Could have been the James R Barker. She was scheduled to take a load of coal to Marquette early this week.

? NORTH PIECH LIGHTHOUSE ?

Can anyone shed light on the subject lighthouse? A Garmin GPS map lists it's location as across the channel from the Mendota lighthouse,at coordinates 47.37560 + 87.96810.

There is nothing there today, and no one locally has any recollection of it.

The Eagle Harbor light has always been my favorite...but a few yrs ago I went to the Seul Choix light and decided that was a close second. I can never see enuf pictures of the Harbor light tho...thanks!

Troll Steve,
So what did Crisp Point Light look like back then? What buildings were still there at that time? I'm so jealous - would have liked to have seen it before everything was torn down but the tower! Where is the graveyard in relation to the tower?

julie b Thank you for solving a mystery for us!
Years ago, we somehow found our way to
Crisp Light. It must have been before 1965,
because the Keepers House was there. We
spent the whole day there but could never find
our way there again. We felt we must have
dreamed the place!! We will have to visit it
again next summer.

Just moments ago we snapped this shot out our window here in Eagle River. It is definitely westbound. Our first sighting of the season!

Thankyou, Thankyou, Thankyou!!!! What a Blessing it is to have you ALL at Pasty.net and friends!!! My favorite place on earth is Eagle Harbor and all the surrounding area!!!!!!!!!!!! Peace

Abslutely beautiful picture there, with Lookout Mt. in the background. It's a beautiful day here in the Keweenaw, sun breaking through, melting, birds singing, lake gently lapping......... we're loving it.

The robins have been seen here in Green Bay. Wont be long before they show up in the CC.
Great pictures of the light house. The scenes of the Keweenaw are always good to see, even after many years.

Thank you Charlie and Edie! I have new wallpaper with this shot!

Watching freighters from Eagle Harbor was a favorite past time. Thanks so much for the spring present!

Julie - I recall lots of beach and there were cabins there - two or three made of logs - garage with a Farmall H tractor inside for plowing snow. The out buildings for the lighthosue were still there of course - don't recall the cemetery. The buildings at the sawmill at Bodi Lake still had the blades inside - horse barn, and cookhouse and the porcupines and chewed on the big solid meat block. There was a man made pond of concrete to hold water for cleaning the logs before sawing.

Charlie and Edie,

That is the James R. Barker on her way back to Duluth after unloading coal in Marquette.

SBT

I'm pretty sure I saw a laker heading west out of Grand Haven on Monday, March 21, somewhere between 10 and 11 PM. Good-sized rear superstructure, and I could just make out the hull lights twinkling faintly through the dark, turbulent air. Nothing on boatnerd site about it yet. Anyone know what boat she was?

sue&ev NM -
Years ago i was on the other side - trying to find a good map of how to get to Crisp Point - which wasn't easy! When i finally got there i fell in love with the lighthouse. Even then it was obvious it wasn't long for this world if someone didn't save it. I wished i could be that someone! Then Don & Nellie adopted it and i became a charter member of the Crisp Point Historical Society. They have done wonderful things, even tho Nellie has now passed on.

When you journey back you'll find that thru the efforts of the Society the road has been plainly marked and improved by the Road Department so that now you can drive all the way to the Light. Enjoy your visit!

Troll Steve -
You have seen what so many of us wish we had! The first time i was at Crisp Point all that was left of the keepers house was a few bricks in the sand. And as you say - there was a lot more beach then too. Its fun to see the old pictures of how it looked.

Any idea what happened to the sawmill? Was it dismantled and moved? Do you have old pictures you could post for everyone to enjoy?

Julie B. - The sawmill was dismantled and all the buildings removed - leveled, and evidently bulldozed over too. I have been there a few times since and no sign of anything - the site was east of the campground - corner of a northward two-track road. A couple of years ago I ran into someone who was friends of the family who (as a child) ran the cabins on the south side of Bodi - seems like her last name was Moore -lived in the area. I don't personally have any photos - but there must be some somewhere.

we've got scads of robins in salem right now. Saw a group of at least ten together at one time.
They'll be up there soon, I'm sure. Love the pictures of the light houses. Hoping to get around up there soon to get some shots for myself. That would make a nice scrapbook, wouldn't it!!

Hello Mr Bill,

The light that you are getting on your garmin is the north peir light of the mendota channel. That is garmins way of abreviating. If you look in the portage canal you will also see other lights these are range lights and peir head lights. Hope this helps.

Kraig
Keweenaw Star

41 take me home, to a place where I belong, Eagle Harbor, Lake Superior, take me home down 41.

Charlie & Edie - thank you so much for the great picture! It's great to see pictures like these from my favorite spot (Eagle River!

Regarding shipping, I just saw the Lee S. Tregurtha on the Port Huron webcam.

Sunday I saw lots of diving ducks--canvasback, bufflehead, ringneck and others--on the Huron River.

Aquatic signs of spring!

Charlie, you are so lucky to have such a sight out your window and live where you do. You haven't always lived in the Keweenaw, have you? I bet you are thankful every day for where you are and what you do!

My other favorite lighthouse is the Huron Island. It's hard to imagine anyone living in such rugged surroundings!

Thanks Charlie for letting us see the boat passing by your place today. I remember so well back in the good old days of the sixties, heading to either Breakies or Sedar Bay, on a warm summer night for a beach party and seeing numerous boats off in the distance, their lights twinkling.Just something so romantic about them. I would love to ride on an ore boat from the Soo to Duluth maybe .

There was also a boat in Marquette yesterday, to take on a load of iron ore pellets for Algoma Steel. I believe it was the Michipicoten.

Wasn't there a writer that wrote books about Paradise Michigan? I remember picking up a couple of them in Copper Harbor. Hmmmmmmmm what is his name?

julie b

I will have to investigate Crisp Point this
summer. Thanks for sharing this information.

Charlie and Edie,

What a glorious sight. I like freighters as
much as I like lighthouses, and that's saying
something.

Loons may be the best indicators of spring. Apparently they can sense remotely when the ice is off their favorite body of northern water. Then they return.

Hey Eagle Harbor,

I second those sentiments!

I noticed in the B&W photo from Charlie, the woman on the right is pointing down at her feet. Is that a fish under her left foot?

Suzanne/Wisconsin, the writer is Stephen Hamilton he lives on the East Coast but loves the UP and the Paradise area.

Crisp Point site:

http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/superior/crisp/crisp.htm

Kent F -
I think you're right! Sure looks like a fish to me!

Through the years, I've driven out to Crisp Point several times....the ride alone is worth the adventure! All those miles and miles of one lane sand marked (!) Luce County roads wandering and winding thru the pine bush....yet easily traversed by a run-of-the-mill Chevy van. I hope they don't improve the road to the lighthouse TOO much and take all the fun away....

Jim Copper Country -
Yes, we still want some spirit of adventure to it!

Suzanne: I love Steve Hamilton books. His descriptions of the cold wind coming off Superior in the winter always take me there. I also like Joseph Heywood books that take place farther west in the U.P.

Didn't notice Crisp Point site had already been posted. Sorry.

One year we tried to get to the Crisp Point Lighthouse after a heavy rain. We ran through deeper and deeper "puddles" and finally had to turn back at what turned out to be a very deceiving one right before you actually got to the light. We were afraid that we would drown the van driving through it! That, plus the fact that our phones wouldn't work, and we were 4 woman alone was scaring us! Anyway, the next year we took our dear friend, Betty's ashes up there, and this time we made it for a very memorable memorial service.

When looking at Charlies great front porch picture of the freighter a good way of telling the lenght of these ships is the boom on the deck is generally 250' so you can use that as a guide.

we lived in eagle habor 1937-40--by elisa creek--mrs lamarand lived in the corner house--my sis went eagle harbor school

We still have lots of robins down here -- way too many to spend the summer so some of them will be leaving soon. Also loons are still here on the "big" manmade lakes.

Kent F -- it looks more like the edge of a rock under her foot. No woman would stand on a fish in her good shoes! Fish slime and scales wash away but the smell of rotting salmon remains.

I drove out to Crisp Point two summers ago in my trusty Subaru. We bottomed out a few times but made it all the way on a sunny warm and dusty day. My then-86 yr old mom was with me, growing increasingly worried. "Are you sure it is this way? It can't possibly be this far." When we reached the lighthouse I was enchanted and fell in love immediately -- the lighthouse itself and the clean sweep of shoreline, the gulls, the eagle, the sound of waves. Mom looked around and said in a disgusted voice, "We drove all this way for THAT?" Mom and I agree on most things, but not on lighthouses. God bless her for being willing to defend her opinions.

When work stresses build and my body feels old and tired, I think about the clean wind and sunshine at Crisp Point and feel better.