Hiking to the top of Mt. Houghton
When I last left you, Julie and I had stopped at Migizi in Baraga for burritos before driving down to the Baraga Plains Road where we would hike in to the North Country Trail to hike eastward to the Plumbago Creek Bridge. If you have been a reader for awhile, you will remember this as the bridge that a big group of us NCT volunteers re-decked last July.
If you are working toward the Hike 100 Challenge, this is an excellent part of the trail to bang out miles toward that objective as the terrain is quite gentle. The wildflower of note on this day would be the delicate Pink Lady’s Slipper.
I don’t know the name of this second wildflower, but we saw many more of these.
The initial part of this segment has a really cool corridor where fir trees run very closely along the trail. This can be particularly beautiful during the winter when the trees are snow covered.
Upon reaching Plumbago Creek, the trail turns southward as it makes it way toward the bridge.
At the slightly higher elevation for the first two-thirds of the hike to the bridge, the bugs were not bad, but as we dropped down closer to the elevation of the creek the mosquitoes made their presence known.
At the bridge we caught enough of a breeze that the mosquitoes were not bad at all.
The beavers were definitely active around the bridge as there were impoundments in both directions.
You can see my GoPro video from this hike on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:
Sunday our hiking group would head up toward the tip of the of the Keweenaw to hike Mt. Houghton. We would drive out on the Mandan Road from US 41 and then hike two-track trails to the top.
While the final approach is rather steep, the views from the top make this effort a very worthwhile hike. We also had the added benefit of a very windy day which kept the mosquitoes and black flies from being any problem at all.
The views from the rhyolite outcroppings at the top are spectacular as you can see back toward Mt. Bohemia, then over Lac La Belle, Bete Grise, and Lake Superior, and then eastward over Bare Bluff and the Keweenaw Point.
You can see 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! Not sure? Come UP for a workcation to check it out! Learn how at Visit Keweenaw at https://www.visitkeweenaw.com/plan/trip-ideas-itineraries/workcations/ Visit Remote Workforce Keweenaw at https://remoteworkforcekeweenaw.com. Learn about those making the decision to locate here by following the Remote Workforce Keweenaw Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RemoteWorkforce Keweenaw.