One of our best days in Michigan was spent in the Upper Peninsula during our final week. We packed up the dogs and headed to Whitefish Point so the kids could experience the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum (and hear “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” a time or two).
Rachel and I visited the museum in the summer of 1997, and we were struck by how much it’s grown. Back then it was a bit of an outpost highlighted by one small building with the artifacts and Gordon Lightfoot’s song blaring on a loop.
Today, the museum itself is vastly improved, and the grounds also include access to the Lightkeepers Quarters, the Surfboat House (Viv and I are fans), and a boardwalk to the Superior shoreline.
Poor planning meant eating vending machine “uncrustables” for lunch, but the place was a hit with the kids, who later were able to skip stones in Superior.
On our way back to Charlevoix we visited the upper falls at Tahquamenon State Park and were not disappointed. Nathan (13) and Vivian (10) are at ages where scenic views don’t move the needle much, but this was an exception.
The Sutherlands 