I need to nominate Flash (my scooter) for a medal. Rechecking the route into St Ignace this morning, I discovered that I’d misremembered the distance. It was really about 8 miles farther than I thought. Normally that’s not a big deal, but this time I actually had a deadline: one ferry each day detours under the Bridge, and I wanted to be on that one.

Fortunately I was almost ready to leave the campsite, so I got in the saddle, opened the throttle all the way, and didn’t let up. There were a few stop signs where I needed to turn, and I slowed down a little to make those, but let’s call those “rolling stops”.

This was a “don’t spare the horses” scenario, and Flash performed like a champ the whole way, even getting me a smidge above 40mph for a few stretches. I think it’s the new spark plug. We made it with literally no time to spare: I claimed my Internet-purchased ticket at the office, and the clerk walkie-talkied “one more” to the crew, so they wouldn’t pull the gangplank and cast off without me.

The ferry ride was pretty neat, getting to see the Bridge (and a bunch of sailboats) from an unusual perspective. No pictures taken with the phone (too hard to hold onto), just the good camera, so those will have to wait until I get home. Until then, here’s the fort I was warned not to fall off. 🙂

EDIT: Here are a couple pictures of the Bridge:

I had a brief scare last night, when I found that the inflatable mattress I’d inflate an hour or so before was no longer inflated. I blew it up again and looked for the leak, but found none. All I can figure is that I didn’t tighten the valve enough. It stayed inflated all night.

By the way, I’ve been a little frustrated trying to figure out how to deflate the pad for packing. No matter how much you try to squeeze the air out, there’s always some left, which makes it hard to fold/roll up. Then it dawned on me to just do the opposite of what I did to inflate it. Duh.

Despite the prediction of possible rain, it’s been clear since I woke up at 6. I have just enough time to get to St Ignace for the morning ferry that goes under the Bridge.

I had a brief scare last night, when I found that the inflatable mattress I’d inflate an hour or so before was no longer inflated. I blew it up again and looked for the leak, but found none. All I can figure is that I didn’t tighten the valve enough. It stayed inflated all night.

By the way, I’ve been a little frustrated trying to figure out how to deflate the pad for packing. No matter how much you try to squeeze the air out, there’s always some left, which makes it hard to fold/roll up. Then it dawned on me to just do the opposite of what I did to inflate it. Duh.

Despite the prediction of possible rain, it’s been clear since I woke up at 6. I have plenty of time to get to St Ignace for the morning ferry that goes under the Bridge.

Brevort Lake campground is… not what I expected.

As a campground in Hiawatha National Forest (which sprawls over much of the UP) I expected a state forest campground, but administered from Washington instead of Lansing. And maybe others are like that.

But this is “Brevort Lake Recreation Area, and that evokes a whole different set of expectations. State rec areas are like state parks but without being so… special. Just a lake and some woods, conveniently located, and equipped for familes to go boating, fishing, hiking, swimming, or such.

This isn’t quite that, but it’s closer. This isn’t the totally rustic angler’s getaway I thought it would be. There are fishers here, to be sure, but they seem to have brought the family. There are RVs and pop-up trailers. Kids are riding around on bikes. There are on-site staff, including campground hosts: people who live here and presumably organize activities. There are concrete buildings with flush toilets. Sounds like a state park, right?

But it’s not. There’s no electricity at the camp sites. And there are no showers. The lack of electric service means that some people bring generators. The lack of showers… means people smell a bit, I suppose.

But overall, it looks like the National Forest Service trying to get in on what the state parks are doing. Or more precisely, a private concessionaire contracted with the NFS to manage the site. I wonder if they pay a flat fee, or if the government gets a cut?

So. Taking all this in has been how I’ve spent the last hour or so, since setting up camp and wandering about here. It doesn’t change my feelings about selecting this campground; either kind suits my needs well.

The weather forecast for tomorrow remains frustratingly vague. A generic “40% chance of rain” tells me little, and smacks of statistical analysis rather than looking at what’s actually happening in the air out there. It actually makes me appreciate the TV meteorologists who wave at the maps “behind” them, because they seem to actually care when and where that rain might fall.

After my late lunch I pretty much rode straight through. I stopped in Newberry for gas, not because I was running low, but because it could be my last chance before St Ignace, and I wouldn’t make it that far without a refill. Newberry is classified as a village, but it’s more of a town, the largest community in the interior of the eastern UP. It has (poor) cell coverage, so I also loaded a little more map detail for the road ahead.

The route I’d planned for the rest of the day was a balancing act between highways and dirt roads; I try to avoid both. I was a little uncertain about one stretch, and I stopped at an intersection to think it over before I committed to that route, versus taking a more sure route that would involve riding US2 for a while. A car pulled up next to me, and the older couple in it offered directions. I asked if Hiawatha Trail was paved all the way to US2, and they assured me it was. Problem solved, and it turned out to be a really nice road for me.

When I reached US2 I discovered just how good a choice it was for me to avoid it. West of this point, for some unknown distance, they are repaving. Much like they were doing on another segment of US2 when I can through three years ago. The new pavement is super-smooth tar, which I don’t like; give me a little texture to grab. I still have to ride about 5 miles of US2 east from here, but at least it should be more normal pavement.

Although I just had lunch a few hours ago, I am having supper at the place if originally picked out for that. Because there is nowhere else between here and the Brevort Lake National Forest campground. That site is a little inaccessible, so once I get there I don’t want to go looking for food.

The restaurant is right at Hiawatha and US2, the Bay View Inn, which has… you guessed it: a lovely view of Epoufette Bay. Seriously. It’s a nice little family restaurant with binoculars on the windowsills if you want to look more closely at the bay. I’m having the unspecified-but-locally-caught-fish and chips. Sure enough, the fish is boned and battered but still has the skin on.

I’d identified Pine Stump Junction, Nowhere, MI as my best option for lunch on the route from Tahquamenon to Muskallonge State Park on Lake Superior. I’ve decided not to go all the way to the Lake, but rode to Pine Stump anyway.

I was about ready to give up when I found it. It’s not much, really: a bar with basic burgers, pizza, and fried chicken, and a single pre-digital gas pump with a note on it apologizing for the price. Recently refurbished from the looks of it. But it has wifi. I am content. I still can’t get a cell signal, but I’m online. I can post updates, and I can check the weather forecast. Tomorrow’s looks iffy, but better knowing that than not.