Today was very special as we took the Painted Rock National Lakeshore cruise out of Munising MI. Of course, while waiting to board our cruise boat, we were not taking things too seriously.
However, once the Miss Superior left the bay and turned toward the rocks in the lake, we were stunned and awe-stricken by the beauty of what we were seeing. The weather was cloudy but warmer than it has been lately for the first half of the cruise, and we did have a brief sprinkle of rain, but then the sun broke through for the remainder of the trip. There is a 42 mile long hiking trail along the top of the cliffs and several beaches below. The colors in the cliffs are created by the large amounts of minerals in the rock. The streaks on the face of the sandstone cliffs come from the groundwater leaching out of the rock. With it come iron (red), manganese (black-white), limonite (yellow-brown), copper (pink-green), and other minerals. As the water evaporates, these minerals leave streaks of color.
We highly recommend that anyone in this area take advantage of this cruise. In spite of the large number of pictures we took, I can only include a few here, but I hope they inspire others to see this beautiful area of Michigan.
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Kayakers by the rocks.
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| Looking good! |
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| Getting awfully close to chapel rock! |
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This tree extended its roots to the mainland for nutrients.
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| Bald eagle in the dead tree. |
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| Enjoying Lake Superior. |
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| Old wooden Grand Island Lighthouse |
Today was very special as we took the Painted Rock National Lakeshore cruise out of Munising MI. Of course, while waiting to board our cruise boat, we were not taking things too seriously.
I did not realize there was so many colors in the rock around the lake.
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