Traveled from St.Ignace/Les Cheneaux area with my 14 year daughter and arrived safely in Copper Harbor. Only detour was stopping at Gander Mountain in Marquette for her new Nalgene bottle. Disappointed they didn't have a pink bottle (go figure
), she settled for blue.Checked into the King Copper then headed to Ft. Wilkins State Park to search for the bear that disrupted my sleep on my 2004 Boy Scout trip to IR, and to see the fort for the first time...very interesting! Then off to Brockway Mountain for scenic pictures, and an attempt (successful) to get a cell signal to call family and tell them we made it safely to Copper Harbor.
We had dinner at the Tamarack Inn, and while the food was very good as I remembered (great pastie dinner), I thought I had remembered it being just a little better value in 2004. I know; inflation and all that, but the signs and menu stating "one trip to the salad bar" and "no free refills on drinks" were new since my last visit. Regardless, they served a good meal. Stopped at the general store for an ice cream bar for the girl, and a newspaper for the trip over for me, strolled next door to the Queen IV docks, then off to bed at the King Copper (nice place, right next to the docks, I'll stay here again).
Tuesday August 11th-
Woke up and had breakfast at the Tamarack; a better value than dinner, and again very good. We parked in the Queen parking lot &carried our packs to the dock and found 2 seats on the Queen (almost full). The trip was calm and pleasant; the Captain reported that the island forecast was the best he had seen this summer. The trip was pleasant and uneventful, we arrived at Rock Harbor and unloaded & attended leave no trace orientation. A surprise to me, the Ranger asked if anyone has camp soap, and several hikers including myself said yes. She then said its use was not permitted under any circumstance. I hadn't been aware of this (new?) policy; and had used camp soap (in small amounts, away from water sources, etc.) during my 2001 & 2004 trips. Rules are rules, so we cleaned our cook pot w/hot water and a scrubbie, and used pocket "wet ones" for personal use.
We obtained our backpacking permit (Tue.Night-Rock Harbor, Wed.Night-Daisy Farm via the Greenstone, Thur.Night-Three Mile, Friday-hike to Rock harbor, return to Copper Harbor), then picked campsite #11 (no shelters were available).
At 8:00 we attended a presentation on the "Shipwrecks of Isle Royale"; very informative and entertaining. On the way back to our campsite a neighbor told us we had just missed a cow and calf that grazed just behind our tent for 30 minutes! We hurried back and found the pair deeper into the camp area, and did manage to get a good view and a few pictures for about 15 minutes. My daughter was quite happy as was I. Seeing moose on day one completed one of our 3 trip goals; 1. See moose (our goal), 2. Picture w/daughter on Mt. Franklin (my goal), 3. Stay in a shelter (daughter's goal).
We met a nice guy at the camp area that is from Mass. and works as a counselor in Minnesota in a troubled state youth backpacking program. He had been on the island for a week, hiking from Windigo. I gave him my day old newspaper from Copper Harbor to catch up on the news. He was happy to catch up till he discovered the Red Sox dropped 4 games!
Final check of the backpacks before going to bed; I was worried that the weight of my daughter's pack might make the trip less enjoyable, so I took some of her food items and put them in my pack. We went to bed to the sound of loons...very peaceful.
Wednesday August 12th
Woke up, had a breakfast of cereal w/powdered milk & pop tarts & coffee/hot chocolate, and headed out on the Tobin Harbor Trail towards Mt. Franklin. Remembering my experience in 2001 when my son and I just about ran out of water by the time we got from Lane Cove to Daisy Farm (The Greenstone baked us that trip), we each carried 2 Nalgenes, and I had a platypus w/3 liters as well.
About an hour into the hike, as I'm watching the loons in the harbor, my right foot misses the trail and I tumble off the trail toward the harbor. I brushed off, treated the scrape on my knee, and watch a cookie sized hematoma rise up on my right forearm. All was well other than that, the arm returned to normal within 5 or 6 hours, but I'm still sporting a pretty nice bruise. It could have been much worse!
At the beginning of the day, I told my daughter to set a pace as slow as she wanted, that we weren't in a rush, and to take her time. I didn't want to exhaust her and ruin the trip for her. That proved to be a non-issue. She kicked my behind setting the pace, trecking up the hills like a mountain goat. Her year of rowing on her local high school crew has paid off!
We reached Mt. Franklin, and were treated to clear skies and a fantastic view, just as I had remembered from 2001. There was a nice couple there day hiking that were kind enough to take our picture.
We made our way to Mt. Ojibway and took a nice break along with about 6 other hikers. While resting, a family of day hikers came up the Daisy Farm trail. The 12 or 13 year old boy in the group, carrying a water bottle exclaimed, "I made it, I made it, yes, I rock!". I think the expression of amusement on my face matched the expressions of all the other backpackers carrying more than a water bottle. I asked the boy since he was returning to Daisy Farm, and we were headed there as well if he would like to carry my 45 lb. backpack; he politely declined
My daughter the mountain goat volunteered to travel ahead to Daisy Farm and secure a shelter if available, which she did (note: there are now 22 shelters at Daisy farm, 7 more than on my previous trips). We relaxed (slept soundly) for about an hour in the shelter , then I taught my daughter how to filter water. Teaching kids/scouts how to filter always reminds me of Tom Sawyer whitewashing the fence, they are so eager to help filter...the first time!
After a dinner of rice, chicken, peas and orange drink we went to bed. During a 1 AM visit to the latrine, I was able to see a few meteors; part of the Perseid meteor shower that peaked this night.
Thurday August 13th-
We woke up and took our time getting ready, as we were only going to Three Mile. My daughter noticed a big difference between the Tobin Harbor/Daisy Farm Trail vs. the Rock Harbor trail; the mountain goat had to watch her step more closely! We arrived at Three Mile mid morning, and were able to secure the first shelter on the water. Great view, and right next to that huge rock on the shore...we spent lots of time there. Today was a day to relax, read, and enjoy the view.
Friday August 14th-
Woke up, quick breakfast then leisurely hiked towards Rock Harbor to meet the boat. We stopped at Suzy's Cave for a break and snack. Arrived in Rock Harbor with hours to spare, and sat and chatted with fellow hikers, after of course my daughter got an ice cream bar! I debated a shower, but instead freshened up at the sink and changed into a fresh shirt before boarding the Queen.
A little more room on the Queen's return trip to Copper Harbor, and the staff and passengers as always were friendly.
In Copper Harbor we loaded up the van and headed out, first to Houghton to get an Arby’s Roast Beef sandwich (I had the craving!), then to Baraga for our overnight stay at the Ojibwa Hotel (small casino there as well...I spent an hour there...not terribly lucky!).
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This was a special trip for my daughter and I. I'd taken previous backpack trips with my son; and before she grows up too much it was time to share with my only daughter one of my favorite places in the world. My hope is that she shares Isle Royale with her future kids...and one day maybe grandpa can tag along!
Equipment Notes:
1. To conserve weight; I opted to use my son's Eureka-Zeus-Exo Skeleton 2 man tent and saved about 12-16 ounces over my timnberlight 3xt tent. It was a more snug fit for both of us, but we left our packs on the picnic tables w/rain covers and had no space
complaints. I had previously read about the tent's tendency (being a single walled tent, no rain fly) to not ventilate condensation
from the tent interior well. My son, who uses the tent solo, said he had no complaints. My daughter and I went to bed with the vents
wide open and the vestible left open as well, and woke up Wednesday morning to damp sleeping bags and droplets of condensation
covering the interior. It might be adequate for solo trips, less/mo condensation, but I can't recommend it for 2 people. I found
myself thankful that we found shelters the next two nights.
2. As my wristwatch w/alarm died the previous week, I ended up using my cell phone as a watch/alarm. At the Rock Harbor campground I turned it on & set the alarm, and was amazed that the phone beeped, indicating I had received a voicemail. I had one bar-signal strength and was able to listen to the message from my tent, and text a message back. How/why the phone worked there baffles me...the sun, moon & earth must have been aligned!
3. On this forum I've praised the effectiveness of 3M Ultrathon as an excellent insect repellent. The ultrathon I had remaining
before this trip was in cream/lotion form; I'm a bigger fan of the spray, so I took a chance on some cutter non-deet spray. Easy to
apply, but not nearly as effective as the Ultrathon. I did however treat our clothing with permethrin (non-aerosol spray available
from Sawyer), and that was effective in keeping the mosquitos off our clothing, but our bare arms/legs were fair game to the atackers.
In the future I'll stick with the Ultrathon.
4. Regarding cell phone (Cinti. Bell/AT&T roaming network) use,as during my previous trips in 2001 n& 2004 I received a strong signal
on Mt. Franklin and along the Greenstone on the way to Mt. Ojibway. As my phone doesn't have international roaming activated, my
phone displayed "Emergency Calls Only". My co-hiker in 2004 (w/intl. roaming) did make a call sucessfully with no problems).
