Da Moose-a-palooza

“Before I volunteer to take over this trip from 2scoops (who thinks he might not be able to make it), I would like to know if there is any interest from anyone in going.

It looks like October is too late for the UP Michigan boats, so I was looking at 19-24 Septemeber, as 24 Sep is the last day for the UP Michigan boat. Unfortuantely, I would not be able to go sooner than that.

This would be a colossal road trip for me (I'm in NJ), but I've always wanted to get out to Isle Royale and this seems like the perfect opportunity. Hopefully I'll get to meet some of ya upper Midwesterners.”

“PS that is the perfect time to go. The moose will be rutting. There will be many sightings, just be aware. They are more interested in each other than you at that time but if you get in the way.....

Take a look a Phil's photo page for my Isle Royale pictures taken on a solo hike at that exact time of year. (just click on my name)”

“dhutch1 ya got a link for phils? thanks :-)”

“Yeah, it's in the links box in the lower right hand of this page.”

“Put me down. But you already knew that.

I say go ahead and wrest control from Stormbringer/Crash!Bang!/Scott/2 Scoops. (Hard to keep up with his names.) Then send out lots of invitations.

I'm pretty sure that at least one of my brothers from Minnesota will join us.”

“email scottfecher@yahoo.com if you want to take over”

“I'm interested but won't know whether or not I can go until it gets closer.”

“PhantomSoul,

I've been researching for a trip I am taking to the Upper Peninsula in August and have come upon some really great stuff on Isle Royale. I think you'd want to see it. Can I fax it to you?”

“Ok, so this trip is now officially mine. [Pause here for insane laughter]

I haven't worked out the exact route yet, but I have posted two possible iteneraries on the Trip page. I'll be deciding which within the next week or two, but in the meantime, feedback from anyone who's been there before would be much appreciated.”

“Phantom - I've only been once, and to most, but not all the places you mention. IMO, the Minong Ridge was spectacular. Not only is the scenery and terrain cool as hell, we went the first week after school started and we had the most privacy at the sites along that ridge.

I think this album has most of my Minong Ridge pics

There are two other IR albums w/ pics of some of the other places you mentioned, too.”

“See the trip page for details.”

“I am excited for this trip! Wahoo!!

Obviously, most of us will have to come in the day before to make it to the 8 a.m. ferry. I will anyway. I'll probably try to find a motel in town. Whoever else is coming in the night before, maybe we could meet for dinner or drinks or something. Whatcha think?”

“And by the way, that's some pretty awesome trip planning you've got started there, Phantom! I'm very impressed.”

“I would love to hit this trip but it currently beyond my financing capabilities.”

“How so, Dub? It would be awesome if you could make it. Is the ferry ride tipping you over? If not, we might be able to work something out as Ohio is along the way kinda sorta. Email me if u want to discuss...”

“Ruby, I'll definitely be up in the area by that Sunday night. I don't know what there is to do in Copper Harbor, etc., so I guess I could leave that to you. As for staying overnight, I was kinda just hoping I could just park my car somewhere and just crash in it overnight...”

“I'm so excited about this trip -- this could very well be the trip of the year for me...”

“I still don't know if I can make it. However, I can meet all of you the night before for drinks. I suggest the Mariner North for dinner and drinks. Depending what time of day you get in, there is plenty to do. It's a VERY small harbor town so the night life is limited. Oh, the Harbor House has good food also!”

“There is a State Park campground in the Harbor (Ft.Wilkins) if you guys need a place to camp the night before.
PS If you get a chance go up and watch the sunset off the top of Brockway Mtn. (I know there are a lot of ppl up there Sunshine...lol), but ya gotta admit the sunsets are pretty awesome!!”

“Phantom, I'll be the trip planner for one night. ;D I think I can handle that.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Here is my idea. We could extablish ourselves at the campground at Fort Wilkins State Park. It's $17/night per site -- 4 people, 2 tents. They also have a mini-cabin which accomodates 4 people for $35. I was thinking we could share the cabin and get a site or two if there are more people. The ranger said that in September we won't have any problem getting reservations.

As UPLuver said, Brockway Mountain Drive has the best sunset views around, and we will be there at the peak of fall color. So let's drive up there to the top, hang out, check out the vistas, and watch the sun set.

Then we can head back to town for dinner at Mariner North (Thanks, Sunshine). My research says about this place: "The Mariner North is a very large place, rebuilt of logs...that combines a restaurant with a bar with cathedral ceiling. The bar is loudly convivial in the evning, when the action spills back and forth across the street to Zick's at The Pines." Convivial sounds good to me.

As people arrive into town, they will know where to find the group depending on where the sun is in the sky. And this way, Sunshine or anyone else in the area can join us for the evening.

If this sounds amenable to everyone else, I will take care of making the reservations at the campground.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. Just let me know what time I have to be there by that Sunday afternoon, and I'll try to get there in time (I do have a 1000+ mile drive each way to Copper Harbor...)”

“I'll get the reservation at the state park. I have a 9+ hour drive, so I'll try to leave early on Sunday morning to make sure I'm there by the late afternoon. And everyone can arrive whenever they are able. And when someone arrives, depending on what time it is, they can find the group pretty easily.”

“I just can't afford the trip period. $100 ferry fees + $20 park fees + $60 gas = more money than dub has to his name until he gets a job.”

“Jus t in case any of you aren't excited enough about this trip, here are a few pics we took on our trip to the island last fall :-)
Isle Royal pics”

“OK so lets try this again...grrrr
Pics”

“Thanks for the teaser pics, UPluver ;) -- They look really nice.

Only 72 Days to Go -- Can't hardly wait!”

“No prob PS I figured if I can't go up there with ya the least I can do is help get ya fired up for it!
PS I've got prolly about 100 more pics...one of these days I'll gettem ALL up....hopefully! lol”

“I'm in.

PhantomSoul, have you considered flying into Chicago. I could pick you up on my way out of town. But if you are looking for a long solo road trip or have a conflicting itinerary, I understand.

Ruby, will you be going to Copper Harbor via Wisconsin?”

“Hey there, hubcap! Yep. Through Wisconsin. I live just SE of Chicago in Gary. Maybe we can carpool together? Where do you live?

Hey, here's an idea. We could start the trip a day earlier with a night on the town in Chicago?

Oh boy, this trip is getting better and better.”

“Phantom, why don't you drive in on Saturday to this area, then we could all ride together on Sunday. From Chicago it would be about a 7 - 9 hour drive, depending on speed.”

“Ok, originally, I was planning on taking the shortcut across Canada from Niagara Falls to Ste St Marie, but with your invitations, that may change.

I can fly to Midway from Philadelphia for $99 each way on Southwest, or I could just drive out to Indiana/Chicago on Saturday -- it'd be no problem. I still have to decide.

But anyway, the Indiana/Chicago plan sounds like a go for Saturday night. I can do Chicago from here in about 10 hours. Email me if u have more details.”

“As far as driving solo, I'm still trying to finagle some NE-ers into coming along to keep me company on the long drive....”

“Ruby,

I'm in St. Charles, a far western burb. Without looking, I would guess that mapquest would take you up I94 to WI. My route would be a little different, but not so much that meeting up for a carpool wouldn't make sense.

I doubt I can take more than one other hiker in my car, but I am more than happy to drive myself and someone else.”

“Yep. My mapquest directions have me taking 294 to 94.

PS, Drive if you can get any other NEers to come with you. Otherwise the flying sounds like a good deal. On the other hand, I did that route one time before between Niagara and Ssult St. Marie. Nice drive, too.

I drive a RAV 4, which will hold 4 plus gear, but that would be tight with the gear in the back. I wish I had one of those topper thingys. I could probably do 3 though, especially with it all mostly in backpacks. So I can offer my vehicle.”

“Heya lady, I have one of those topper thingies (if by topper thingies you mean a softside cargo carrier, that is!) that you are more than welcome to borrow if you need it.”

“Why, thank you! That is so nice of you. If we get to the point of having 4 people in my vehicle, I will take you up on that as we won't be able to fit 4 backpacks and assorted accouterments in the back.”

“No prob...we don't ever use it anymore, so someone might as well get some use out of it!
If you decide you wanna use it, let me know.....I'm up in your neck of the woods every Wed. so I can just bring it with me sometime :-)”

“I can drive via Chicago on my way in, that way we could do the whole Saturday night on the town thing, etc, etc. Then on Sunday head up to Copper Harbor. Then, the following weekend, I can head back to the East Coast via Canada and Ste St Marie and Niagara Falls. This way I get the best of both worlds.

2000 extra miles on my car, here we come. Oh yeah!”

“That sounds good. Want me to plan a night in Chicago? Navy Pier?Sears Tower? Sushi? Clubbing? Blues? Chicago-style pizza? Magnificent Mile? The sky's the limit on what we could do (and how much we could spend). Give me an idea on budget and what you are in the mood for.

We can invite all the Illinois/Indiana TTers to join us Saturday night in Chicago. Then the Michigan/Wisconsin TTers can join us the next night at the mountain and lodge bar.

Chicago nightlife, road trip through cheesehead country, a mountain sunset and lodge bar in the Upper Peninsula, then moose and wolves on Isle Royal. Damn, what a trip this is going to be! ”

“Keeping in mind that it will take me about 10-11 hours to get over there. So if I leave here around 7AM, I could be there at a decent time...”

“LET THE MIDWESTERN EXCURSION BEGIN!”

“Hey PS, give me an idea on your Saturday night budget. I don't want to go crazy, but are we talking $5 or $100 for the evening each? I'm leaning toward the Chicago blues bar idea (Checkerboard Lounge?). Or maybe a good Chicago pizza joint and ending up at the Cubby Bear. Or maybe sushi on Randolph Street then dancing on Division. The possibilities are endless. Or the really cheap route of doing a bar hop/walking tour of the city. Have you been to Chicago before?

I am getting so excited. There have been famous TT trips, but has there ever been one that encompassed so many miles and so many hot destinations in the same week?”

“PS thanks for the invite but I am tapped for vacation days. maybe next year.”

“I just got off the Island after a trip camping at 3 Mile, Lane Cove, Daisy Farm, West Chickenbone, Moskey Basin, 3 Mile, and Rock Harbor. You are just going to love Isle Royale. Everyone describes it as a "magical place".

We had one Ranger check our papers at Daisy Farm. I asked him if he caught any violators, but he said backpackers were very responsible people, and the only violation he ever caught were groups larger than 6 camping together. I do have the latest copy of The Greenstone.

The shelters at Daisy Farm and Moskey Basin are great. Keep your stuff inside the shelter because the fox will run off with your stuff. Todd Harbor only has one shelter, and West Chickenbone does not have any shelters.

They had an unusual number of yearling wolves this year. At sunset, my backpacking companion heard a wolf pack take down a moose on the opposite shore of Moskey Basin. I ran into another family that observed five wolves try to take down a calf on the other side of Hatchet Lake, but the cow ran circles around the calf while the calf gave out bloodcurling screams, and finally the two moose swam the lake with the five wolves at the waters edge watching their dinner swim away. You have a good chance on actually seeing or hearing those reclusive wolves as the yearlings are not as shy as the older wolves.

If you want to get in the mood for the trip, buy the best selling author Nevada Barr's book, A Superior Death, a fictional mystery where an Isle Royale Park Ranger Anna Pigeon solves an intriguing murder mystery set in Rock Harbor, Todd Harbor, Moskey Basin, and points in between.”

“Would this be the fellow you're speaking of?? :-)

We took this right after he tried to make off with a whole bag of apples from our neighbor's picnic table...in broad daylight and right in front of them!!”

“At lunch time, I had a fox jump up on the opposite bench of the picnic table I was sitting on at 3 Mile campsite and grab an empty colored plastic bag from the middle of the table within a foot of my hand. At Daisy Farm, another fox tried to steal my backpacking partners boot he left outside the shelter to dry in the sunlight. Later, we did see the fox run down the trail witha pint sized ziplock baggy in its mouth with a dark, wallet sized object inside. I hope it was somebody's dessert and not a wallet.”

“Thanks, Prosecutor! Your report really whets my appetite even more for this trip. I have seen moose and fox in the wild before (always good to see more though), but I've never been fortunate enough to see wolves. I'm hoping that we at least hear, if not see, them in September.”

“Sorry I couldn't respond sooner, but I got together with some buddies today and we went over to Great Adventure (the local Six Flags Amusement Park here in NJ) despite the gloomy weather. A good time was had by all nonetheless.

Anywhoo, sounds like you had a great time, Prosecutor. I can't wait to go myself. I actually planned the route around being able to get to Todd Harbor, as it appears the sunsets there are nothing short of awesome (hopefully we will have good weather). This will definitely be the trip of the year. Can't wait.”

“Sounds great, prosecutor! Lane Cove was my favorite. Although I could have done without the switchbacks on the way out. :)

Another good book is "Superior Wilderness" by Napier Shelton. It's a natural history of the island but it is written with a beautiful prose so it's not dry like history books.

I've got a bunch of pictures from my trip to Isle Royale back in 2002.
http://community.webshots.com/album/46596661JvhtNg

I can't wait to get back out there again. Never saw or heard the wolves but I saw lots of other wildlife. I sure would like to hear the wolves, though.”

“I'm not expecting to see wolves, but I'm definitely going into this trip planning to see some moose.

It sounds like we will need to implement some anti-fox tactics.”