It's cold in the U.P...eh? (Part One)

DAY ONE - A LOOK AROUND THE RESORT.....


I had a bittersweet time up north this past week. We took our annual vacation to the Upper Pennisula (U.P.) of Michigan, and stayed in a town called Iron Mountain. However, the day before we left, my hubby, Sean, hurt his back. He was so miserable up north that we decided to come a day early so he could go to the doctor. Other than that, we managed to have a great time! We have stayed in this awesome log cabin resort for the past 8 years. It is a great place to stay. The town of Iron Mountain has a rich history of iron mining, and the town really has a rustic feel to it. It has strong ties to the Italian, Cornish, and viking ancestery. To tell you the truth, there is not a whole lot to do in Iron Mountain this time of year, unless you enjoy scenic drives, and hiking.

The thing I like best about Iron Mountain is the log cabins that we stay in. The couple that owns it are incredibly wonderful, and friendly. It is our home away from home, and they really make it feel that way. I also enjoy the friednly wildlife that are abundant through the resort. There are chipmunks, bears, deer, wolves, coyotes, and even squirrels. Yes....my arch nemesis!! The squirrel! (We'll get to that later)


I thought I would start out by telling you guys about our drive in, and the cabins themselves. It would take at least an hour to read a post about our entire vacation. (Hee hee) So I am going to split it into several attempts at a good story!

We left our house with the intention of arriving around 5pm. Our previous plans of trying to see Little Bohemia on the way up fell through after Sean's back injury. We ended up leaving a little later than expected, so we just took our time and enjoyed the wonderful colors of the trees. We stopped for a bite to eat around 3pm in Neenah, Wi. The only place that sounded appealing to us was Perkins. So off we went. Surprisingly we both ordered breakfast instead of lunch. What can I say...I am a sucker for a good breakfast.

After another few hours drive, it began to rain. We didn't mind. Both of us actually enjoy the rain. To our surprise, we were blessed with not one....not two....but THREE rainbows on the way up to Iron Mountain. Just as we entered the town, we even saw a double rainbow!! (Look in the 2nd picture really carefully to see the double rainbow)

Once we were in familar territory, we found Edgewater Country Log Cabin Resort very quickly. You have to go all the way through town, and out into the boonies...but it is worth it!

It was absolutley FREEZING the entire time we were up there....believe it or not it actually snowed a little bit! Our highest temp was 48 degrees!!! (And I had forgotten my jacket) We will get to all that in the next post or two.

We had booked cabin #7. The best cabin in the whole resort, in my opinion. It is a one bedroom cabin with a kitchen, bathroom, dining room, and a screened in porch complete with a swing. It is the only cabin that has a clear view of the river. It is also is home to what is known as the "Mischevious black squirrel of cabin #7". And what a teaser she is! I think that somewhere along the lines, the squirrel at my house sent a message to this new squirrel...just letting her know that we are rivals!!! Don't you worry though...I pulled the old bait and switch on that little stinker before we left for vacation!! In order to get a picture of this black squirrel...I had to gather up all the oakorns...oops...I mean ACORNS to get her attention. (Seriously...I think that the acorns are out to get me)

Stupid Acorns....TRUST me ...they are deadly...they literally kept plummeting to the ground every few minutes...you had to be careful where you stepped, and alway ALWAYS look up!!

But a fun little friend...

This new squirrel was very curious, and would come almost right up to you before scurrying away. It was a little more skiddish than the rest of the animals. We all think that it may have just had babies, since there were obvious signs she was nursing. (At least we think so) The people who ran the resort said that they had seen squirrels up there have more than one litter a year. What's cool about these animals is they are not afraid of humans. Seeing them all year, and having the guests feed them all the time, has somewhat tamed them. Now, we all understand that these are still wild animals that carry diseases, and they can be unpredictable. I did not expect to find however, that the chipmunks are the friendliest out of the bunch. They come right up, and sit in your hand, if you have food for them. They LOVE planters peanuts!! I did a very bad thing, and baited this chipmunk, even though I am allergic to nuts. I had swollen eyes for a whole day after that. But how can you resist this????

First you need the "treats"

Then you get the reward

The other thing that was strange this year, is the fact that some of the trees had not yet begun to change colors. It suddenly occured to me that Pine Trees do NOT change colors at all!! I think I have a serious problem with trees.

I am not the only one with tree issues this year. When we arrived at the cabins, we found the front office in a little bit of distress. Tree branches were everywhere...acorns scattered across the ground....and a large yellow rope tied to two large Oak trees. Apparantley, the day before we got there, a massive Oak tree had collapsed due to a rotting stump. It had barley missed one of the owners. He had tied the other large Oak tree to a more sturdy tree to prevent it from crashing onto their home. Sadly, that tree was cut down the next day, along witha few others by our cabin. The owners left about 8' of the tree near the office so that it wouldn't look so bare. They have a few ideas on what they are going to do with it. This includes a possible wood carving, or viny plant display.

So, as for today's blog, I thought I would show you around the resort. Like I said, it would take too long to put it all in to one blog. For now...enjoy a tour of the resort....

The front office..before the Oak tree was cut down. You can see where the other one fell.

The tree on the right is being held up by the tree on the left

After the tree got cut down to 8 ft tall

View of the cabins from the road

Exit of the resort...

Welcome to Cabin #7

Some of the cabins still have their wooden logs on the inside as well as the outside. Ours did not. it was a bit more modern, and it was just as good!

Each cabin has this little sign in the bathroom...just letting you know about the "facilities"

Our little swing out back..and the screened in porch

The view from our cabin!!!

And the only really pretty sunset we had...our first night....a sun shower

Stay tuned to see more pictures from around the resort in the future. Coming up on the next blog will be "Freezin' Fishing Fun" and "Tour of Iron Mountain"!!