"By The Shores of Gitche Gumee"

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Sand, sun, gift shops, and bright Adirondacks.

Must be the beach.

And it is - - - but probably not the beach of your imagination. No, THIS is the shore of the Great Gitche Gumee of Longfellow lore.


Yesterday was HOT, even by "lower 48" standards and for the northwoods it was the kind of heat that only comes around once a decade or so. It was so hot mosquitoes were dehydrating in mid-flight and falling to the pavement where their bodies sizzled away like bacon in a frying pan.

It was too hot for fish to be lured up out of the cooler deep even by Fisherhubby's bait.

So, we decided to set off on an adventure. Our destination was the shore of Gitche Gumee, "Big Water", Lake Superior.


For those of you who have never been to the shore of one of the Great Lakes, you may not realize the joys of standing on the brink of a fresh water sea - - - - where sky meets water farther than the eye can see.


Unfortunately black biting flies were not sizzled away by the sun, and as I stood taking these photos my legs were getting covered by biting "raisins."

I took the pain in order to snap these photos for you, my bloggy public. You are worth a million raisin bites.

Fisherhubby, on the other hand, after one brief close encounter of the fly kind chose to stay in the car where he could laugh at my Saint Vitus dance through the parking lot in an effort to rid myself of the nasty critters rather than bring them in the car.


Of course, it did not help that no matter how far north we traversed along the shore, it did NOT get any cooler.

But never mind - - - we were on an adventure and adventures by their very definition have pitfalls of various kinds.


Along the way we found quaint villages filled with interesting shops, historic churches, and safe harbors.


We even found an Inn which has been accommodating guests for over 145 years. We settled into this little booth, tucked so far back in a corner that it is known to the establishment as "the forgotten table", to enjoy our evening repast before wending our way back to our own lake side cottage.

It was a day well spent.

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