Scenic Tour west of Munising

We got a great book at the Interagency Visitor Center in Munising which detailed a day trip either east or west of Munising. We chose west for this adventure. We did not have to go far as the Munising Harbor Range Lights are right in downtown Munising. There are also Range Lights in nearby Christmas, yeah that's the name of the town. 
 


















After the Range Lights in Munising and in Christmas we drove by a great sand beach. One thing that surprised us on the Upper Peninsula is how nice the beaches are on Lake Superior. We have plans to see a beach that is regularly listed as one of the top beaches in America.

















We then drove to a scenic overlook of Lake Autrain and had plans to walk on a songbird birdwatching trail but it turned a little hot so we decided to save something for next visit to the area. It was back to the sand beach for a picnic lunch with a lake breeze and scenic views.

Next on our scenic tour was the Bay Furnace Historic Site where we walked a trail that circles around the recently stabilized ruins of a Blast Furnace where iron was made between 1870 and 1877. One of the last remaining structures of its kind in the U.P., it is also a good place to view Lake Superior and Grand Island. Interpretive Signs show how the furnace operated and explain its unique history, including its construction, damage by fire, and partial preservation. Melted iron flowed out the arched area in channels to cool. There were branches off of the channel where iron cooled into bars. It looked like piglets suckling on a sow so the bars became known as 'pig iron'.














A scenic view, one of many, from the Bay Furnace Historic Site.looking across to the Pictured Rocks.
 













Pictures from another great day on he U.P. have been uploaded to the Munising set on Flickr.com.

Till next time,

Bob and Jo