At the end of every year I think about my favorite places that I have been in the year.  Are there places to which I am eager to return?  What are the best memories and are they tied to the people or the place?  This year I have six favorite places I want to highlight. …

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While we were in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, we realized that we were spending a lot of time hiking the North Country National Scenic Trail.  As I saw the signs over and over, I realized that there must be a Passport stamp for that!  And so our quest began:  to find the passport stamp …

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The last National Park site we visited on our September trip was Huffman Prairie Flying Field in Dayton, Ohio.  Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park has five sites: the Wright brothers’ printing office, the bicycle shop, Wright mansion, Paul Laurence Dunbar’s home, and Huffman Prairie Flying Field.  Each site requires driving to reach it, and …

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The Ice Age National Scenic Trail runs through Devils Lake State Park.  When Tom and I went to the Devils Lake Visitor Center, I was able to stamp my Passport Book with the Ice Age Trail stamp. The Ice Age National Scenic Trail meanders 1,200 miles across the state of Wisconsin.  The trail traces the …

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As Tom and I headed south from the Apostle Islands, we stopped at the Namekagon District of the St Croix National Scenic Riverway.  We visited St Croix National Scenic Riverway last year when we were in Minnesota.  I got my Passport stamp at that point. This year we stopped at the Namekagon District in order …

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After spending three weeks in Michigan, Tom and I headed next door to Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Wisconsin.  Hitting Apostle Islands meant that we visited all three national lakeshores in one month:  Sleeping Bear Dunes, Pictured Rocks, and Apostle Islands. When Tom and I planned this trip, we had multiple days at Sleeping Bear …

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Fort Wilkins Historic State Park includes the campground where we stayed in Copper Harbor.  It also includes another large campground on the east side of park, which is only open through Labor Day.  In between the two campgrounds lies the reconstructed and restored Fort Wilkins Historic State Park.  This is an unusual pairing:  state parks …

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After leaving Calumet, Tom and I headed up to Eagle Harbor.  We wanted to see the Eagle Harbor Lighthouse, one of the partner sites for the Keweenaw National Heritage Park.  We had already seen a bunch of lighthouses, so we weren’t expecting much.  But the site exceeded our expectations and became one of our favorite …

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After visiting the Grand Canyon of Michigan, Tom and I headed north to see the Keweenaw National Historic Park in the Keweenaw Peninsula.  The peninsula is all about copper mining, milling, smelting, and shipping.  Every town of any size has some connection to the copper industry.  When mining stopped in the 1970’s, the people in …

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