Since my first visit to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore during the Winter of 1990/1991, I’ve been wanting to return to see the spectacular cliffs and rock formations from the water side. Today, I got my chance during an afternoon/evening window of marvelous weather. Before that, though, I had to deal with "real life". Overnight, I had a very restless sleep (mostly because of highway noises) - I finally gave up on sleep and got up at 0625. I started teleworking immediately but took a break for breakfast in the lobby of the Superior Motel at 0800. After that, I worked for several more hours before making my lunch in my room at 1230. During a lull in my day, I bought a ticket for a six hour kayaking adventure in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore - it was surreal that such a bucket list activity might be happening today! I stayed online until I felt able to back away from my work day (1415). With temps in the low 80s and a beautiful sunny sky, I left my hotel and headed east towards Uncle Ducky's Paddling. I used MI-28 and CR-H58 for about 6ish miles and checked in at the kayaking HQ by 1430. There was time after that for me to pack a full bag of paddling items - I also bought lunch from them because an evening meal was included in the fare for my adventure. We ultimately departed from staging area at 1455 - I was joined by folks who had paid for both three hour and six hour tours. We drove (in vans) north to Miners Beach, located within the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore - on the way, we passed by North Country Trail parking and I later saw the trail itself passing by along the shore. Once we were out of the vans, we geared up (skirt, life jacket, dry bag, paddle). Our trip started at 1530: I met up with an older couple from the Outer Banks (Dennis & Gretchen) who were the only other people who had (like me) selected the six hour kayak trip. Nick was our guide and we had two tandem kayak boats. Meanwhile, the other (three hour) group had about six boats and departed in front of us after they'd completed their safety briefs. Once we were one the water, we paddled east for about 5.5 miles. Along the way, we took our boats into caves under the high bluffs of the eponymous Pictured Rocks. Highlights included “Nature’s Barcode” (iron, copper, calcite, manganese lines). The weather was sunny and wonderful! Occasionally, we were passed by bigger (motorized) boats - the area has lots of tours. The water was smooth and clear and the light of the sun throughout the waning hours of the day truly brought out the colors on the cliffs - we had perfect conditions! As we approached a prominent headland, the three hour group turned around. We were right behind them and stopped to view the shipwreck of the “George”, which had sunk more than 100 years ago. Nick told us that the survivors were picked up by a sister ship but later sank with that ship in Lake Michigan (all hands lost). Bad luck, I guess. For our part, we were having too nice a day to dwell on such tragedy... We continued on to “Lover’s Leap” Arch, which was a breathtaking image that I'd seen on lots of promo photos, patches and posters. Nick told us that other kayak groups don't go underneath this iconic arch because of the possibility of falling debris. I was VERY glad that I'd selected the "right" company so we'd get to transit underneath... After getting as many photos as I could possibly stand, I joined my new friends as we headed back (west) to Mosquito Beach. At that location, we had a roughly one hour break for food, rest and walking on the sandy/rocky shore. I enjoyed the meal I'd purchased and even got some of Gretchen's cinnamon apple sauce (good). During this time, I learned that Dennis was a 30 year (retired) veteran of the US Navy who was on a mission to lose a lot of weight. Things seemed to be going well for him and we all encouraged him in his efforts. I met some young ladies who had a campsite near the beach - they were setting up to cook their dinner in the sand (so cool!). Nick gave me several recommendations about places to go in Munising (Ron's, Grand Island, etc.) and Marquette (Presque Isle Black Rocks) and I filed them away for later in the week. After getting back on the water, we started west towards Miners Beach and got a new treat: different lighting from the setting sun. The rocks and lines of different minerals appeared much different under the new conditions and I didn't tire of observing the effects. Another treat involved watching a Peregrine Falcon setting up in hopes of catching some of the nesting cliff swallows in the rocks above. Later, we passed a family of mergansers - Nick said he sees them every day in the same area on the far eastern end of Miners Beach. Meanwhile, the second three hour tour (same guide) passed us - they seemed to be in a huge hurry. I commented to our guide that I thought they weren't really getting their money's worth and he agreed. Sensing an opportunity, I told Nick that I was open to going farther than Miners Beach if we had enough time. Since Dennis & Gretchen, who had mostly been lagging throughout the day, were open to the idea, we passed the "kayaks out" spot and continued west to Miners Castle. Nick justified this by telling me that there was only one shuttle and we needed to wait for the back/forth for the three hour tour. As a result of this opportunity, we got to see the most spectacular sunset. At Miners Castle, we went inside some more caves (nice) and finally turned around only after the daylight was nearly gone. We arrived back at Miners Beach at 2050, having completed about 13 miles of paddling (4.5 active hours). After such an awesome experience, our little group was the very last to leave the water - perfect! Nick told us that he had to stay behind to bring all the kayaks from the beach back up to the area where the vans waited (seemingly a thankless job) so we said goodbye to him. Back in the shuttle bus, we rode back to Uncle Ducky’s (arrived at 2110). I exchanged emails with Dennis & Gretchen (photos) before getting back in my car for the drive back into Munising. Feeling like I needed a beer, I stopped at East Channel Brewing Company (2130) - the bartender seemed a bit put out due to my late arrival but allowed me a chance for one beer. Since I was the only customer, I closed up the place. Before doing that, though, I got a chance to talk to the lady (who warmed up to me) about the business and things to do in Munising. Once I was done with my drink, I went back to my hotel (arrived at 2210). Back in my room, I returned to telework and stayed online until 2315. After that, I caught up on NCT mileage (complicated by conflicting maps). During the same window, I desperately tried to catch up on blog (after getting to within one day just last weekend, I'm over a week behind again)... Later, I did some reading and a few Duolingo exercise. The evening was capped off with some social media posts and I finally went to bed at 0030. Whew - today was definitely one of my Top 5 kayak trips of all time!
