Hello Ticks and Gnats!
This week brought the emergence of insects, particularly ticks and gnats. If Sunday’s hiking group adventure from our friends Rich and Debby’s place is a good measure, it looks like 2023 might be a strong year for ticks. Over the course of a nearly 6-mile hike, Julie and I both picked up a few. Pro tip: given the chance for picking up a tick-borne illness like Lyme disease, you should always do a thorough check of yourself and your dogs after spending any amount of time in the woods. Ticks aside, we had a great time on the hike! You can see my GoPro video from this adventure on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:
Monday morning we hit the pool at MTU’s SDC. I put in a 2,000 yard swim and Julie stayed on for water aerobics while I grabbed coffee at Camp Coffee in Houghton and picked up art supplies for her at Swift’s Hardware. In the afternoon we drove down to Baraga County to take a hike along the Slate River to Black Slate Falls and Quartzite Falls.
If you hike to Black Slate Falls, be sure to continue upstream as there are a large number of small falls and rapids upstream that are quite scenic.
Downstream from Black Slate Falls is where you will find Quartzite Falls. The streambed in this area has a slate base with seams of quartz running through it. Below the falls is a large pool that is a great place to take a dip on a hot day.
I attended a Team Peninsula meeting at the Lakeshore Center over the lunch hour on Tuesday and then Julie and I ran out to the mouth of the Gratiot River on Lake Superior. Initially the lake was dead calm while we searched for agates, but a breeze kicked up out of the northeast that quickly dropped the temperature by ten degrees.
As you can see, we did not have a lot of competition for space on the beach!
Wednesday started with a 2,100 yard swim at the SDC followed by a meeting on township business. While I was out, I took a walk on the historic trail where the grasses in the wetland are starting to green up. The eight additional interpretive signs should be completed by Industrial Graphics very soon. We are looking forward to getting these installed as soon as possible.
I slipped in a five-mile run on the rail-trail ahead of picking up pizza in Houghton for the 6 p.m. Lions Club meeting at the park. The focus of the meeting was preparation for the upcoming 75th Chassell Strawberry Festival. The meeting provided me the opportunity to brief the members on both the planned opening of the historic trail as well as updating them on the status of our tier 2 SPARK Grant proposal before the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Erik (who works remotely) and his wife Kara who recently moved to the Keweenaw from the Twin Cities also attended the meeting. It is awesome to see them jumping right in to be involved with the Club and volunteering at the Strawberry Festival!
Thursday morning Julie was focused on tracking down volunteers to cover the staffing of the Chassell Heritage Center during our July and August hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. For those of you locally who might be interested in helping out, drop me an email at dkmeyers77@yahoo.com and we will be happy to pair you up with a knowledgeable board member! Julie was also calling businesses about advertising in the Strawberry Festival Booklet. If you are a business that would be interested in getting exposure to hundreds of people, please feel free to drop me an email and we will help get you coordinated.
Thursday afternoon we took advantage of the spectacular weather and drove up to Hubbell to take a hike to Middle and Upper Hungarian Falls.
You can see my GoPro video from the hike on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:
Friday started with a 2,300 yard swim at MTU’s SDC then follow up with both Feighner on the canoe/kayak launch and Industrial Graphics on the signage for both the historic trail and the canoe/kayak launch. I am trying not to be pain on these, but doing my best to keep them front of mind for these organizations as we work to close out these projects.
We spent our afternoon taking hikes to both Bocco Creek Falls and Upper Silver River Falls. At Bocco Creek, the trillium and marsh marigolds were in bloom. The gnats were a bit annoying, but there were no mosquitoes or ticks.
You can see my GoPro video from this hike on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:
From Bocco Creek, we drove out back of Herman to make a hike to Upper Silver River Falls. The truck took quite a tree scratching at a number of points, but it was well worth the effort to get there!
Check out my GoPro video from this hike on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:
Do you embrace winter and have the ability to work remotely? Consider locating in the Keweenaw where you will find ubiquitous natural beauty, no congestion, and lower crime! Learn more by visiting Remote Workforce Keweenaw at https://remoteworkforcekeweenaw.com and learn about those making the decision to locate here by following the Remote Workforce Keweenaw Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RemoteWorkforceKeweenaw.