We had both been so excited about seeing the town of Copper Harbor, the most northern tip of Michigan bounded on three sides by Lake Superior and was part of what we had been learning about shipping over the past few weeks. For example, all the supplies for Fort Wilkins just outside of town came by ship, and ships could only arrive six months out of the year before the ice formed on the lake.
While we were disappointed in the town itself, we loved the drive into town. The trees were like a canopy over the road, and the changing colors in the trees were breath taking. We couldn’t capture what we were seeing, but this comes close.
Many folks told us about taking the drive over Brockway Mountain outside of town, and we loved the views from the top of the mountain. Our little cell cameraa just couldn’t capture the vistas.
We had a fascinating time of learning while in the area. Both yesterday and today we had lunch in the Copper Harbor area at Keweenaw Mountain Lodge. The depression hit this area so hard in the 1930s that the unemployment rate was at 75%! This lodge was one of the ways the Federal government helped out this unemployment and put hard-working men back to work.
The Federal government stepped in through the WPA, Works Progress Administration, to have local workers build this lodge, cabins for guests, and a 9-hole golf course that would all be available to families on the peninsula forever.
The food there was great. Next year they plan on being open year-round.
We also went to the state park, Fort Wilkins, located between Lake Superior and a much, much smaller lake just outside of Copper Harbor. The fort was built in the 1840s just after the area became part of Michigan and copper was discovered. The soldiers were there to keep the peace. After two years, many of the soldiers were sent south to the war with Mexico.
The state took over the park in 1932 and started fixing up the buildings, and then the WPA started giving support in 1937 to give people work.
Fort Wilkins State Park
This fort is probably the best re-creation we’ve ever seen in a state park. Some of the buildings are original, but most are rebuilt based on studies of the fort. The descriptions they had for us were so helpful. Here are some the sights we really enjoyed.
