VAGABOND MOM: Nomadic adventures with (and without) my kids: North Shore Snowshoe Weekend

What an incredible weekend! I had come down with a bad sinus infection/cold and at one point wasn't sure I should even go but I decided to. We met at my house on Friday morning at 9, loaded up,

dropped Jack off at Grandma's house and headed to Cub for a few groceries.

Next stop: Tobies in Hinckley. No road trip to the North Shore is complete without it and Laura, who lives in Indiana, had never been there. We sampled treats and bought caramel rolls for later.

We had planned to stop at Grandma's in Duluth and we knew it was in Canal Park but Laura was using her GPS app anyway. According to that we were still a block away but we saw the word "Grandma's" on a building so we parked and headed that way only to discover from some other ladies that they were closing for a coaches banquet. We went to a nearby Mexican place instead, only to discover when we left that the "real" Grandma's WAS a block away...we were at the smaller sports garden or something. Oh well....we had a nice lunch anyway.

We stopped in Beaver Bay at the "big chicken" and then for something to drink for me,

and to take pictures with the snow sculpture of the fishing bear. He didn't have a line in his fishing pole but it was a very cute statue, with a nearby igloo.

Then we stopped at the large Voyageur statue. I was the only one to get out for a picture and I very innocently tried to give him a hug. (Laura's picture coming soon).

There is a pretty little lakeside park on the north end of Duluth so we stopped for a few pictures and then took the icy road to see where it went, which was to hook up with the "old" Hwy. 61.

Gooseberry Falls was frozen and beautiful.

We stopped somewhere near Two Harbors to watch some Bald Eagles who had been feeding on a carcass next to the road, along with a dozen or more ravens. The eagles stayed in a tree while we were stopped but we got some great pictures (not me, the others) and it's always cool to watch them.

We reached Bluefin at 3:56 p.m. for 4 p.m. check-in. I've never stayed there, it's a very nice place...our condo was small but cozy, perfect for our group. Kathy and Lynne had brought all the things for dinners and breakfasts and they made us delicious chili while we watched the moon rise over the lake.

Not Bad For A Picture Taken Through a Window!

It was the perfect night for a moonlight snowshoe jaunt, so we got our gear on and headed out. I took the wrong road and ended up in someone's driveway attempting to turn around. They had a cool dogsled sitting out and I was tempted to have us all take a picture with it but chickened out. We found the right road and drove to the Britton Peak/Superior Hiking Trail trailhead. It was pretty cold but the moon was high and gave us light. We headed out on the trail to Britton Peak. It goes up pretty steeply from the Superior Hiking Trail and it was very icy...we finally decided it might not be smart to continue. We could have made it up, but coming down in the dark in snowshoes at that steep angle on very icy snow could have been dangerous. We hiked an hour or so down the Superior Hiking Trail instead. It was dark but the moonlight bathed the forest in just enough light to see vaguely up to maybe 50 yards away. There were snow crystals up in the tree branches that looked like "fairy lights" with the moonlight reflecting on them. It was magical...I can't find the words to describe it. One of the best nights ever!

The next morning we woke to a beautiful sunrise over Lake Superior, with wisps of steam coming off the lake, which was warmer than the air temperature.

Lynne and Kathy cooked a delicious breakfast and we headed out to climb Carlton Peak on snowshoes.

Once again, it was a beautiful day with blue sky and hardly any clouds. We met one couple on the trail who had been up to the peak and warned us about the "exposure" so I got a little worried. We took our time, stopping frequently for pictures. We found a beautiful snow/tree "tunnel" just below the summit.

Kathy Directing a Group Photo (will be posted here soon)

Then we were on top and could see for miles.

Carlton Peak

The Only Way To Descend This Spot - Sit Down!

On our way down we saw the sign for the spur trail to Tofte Peak and decided we should do that too.

No one had been on that trail since the previous weekend's snowfall, so it was "real" snowshoeing. Very fun and very pretty. There were some interesting tracks up there...not sure what from, I couldn't see them well enough.

Looking Up At Carlton Peak From Tofte Peak

Then it was back to the condo for sandwiches. Some of us took naps, and Kathy and Lynne went for a walk around Bluefin. When we got up we decided that Laura needed to see Grand Marais so we drove up there but of course it was dark when we arrived and so there wasn't much to see...there was also a VERY cold wind blowing off the lake.

Grand Marais Sunset

So we drove back to the condo for another delicious dinner (thanks again, Lynne and Kathy, for doing all the cooking!). We had a mellow evening just hanging out, talking, reading.