"Day"te Trip Part 4

Up the road from the Old Presque Isle Lighthouse was the NEW Presque Isle Lighthouse. At 113 feet, it is the tallest Great Lakes lighthouse that can be climbed by the public. I am happy to claim that I made it to the top!

I must admit, however,  that I was a little confused by the claim stated on www.presqueislelighthouses.org--I seemed to remember that one of the Sable Point lighthouses on the west side of the state was taller. After consulting the U.S. Coast Guard website, I did confirm that the New Presque Isle Lighthouse does reach one foot higher that Big Sable Light in Ludington. It was a close "one"!

Surrounded by woods, the New Presque Isle Lighthouse gives a majestic impression when you drive up.

We walked around the keeper's quarters while waiting for others to climb the light tower. What do you notice about this U.S. flag?

The view from the top was worth every step! Here we are looking north at the mouth of North Bay.

...looking south...

...and looking southeast. It appeared as if the fall foliage was just beginning to peak with mostly yellows and some light reds mixed in. 

A common sight in the Great Lakes...a freighter is headed northbound. At first it looked like the Great Republic, however when I later looked up a photo I realized that this is not the case. They look similar though! 

We attempted to make it to the Lighthouse Festival's convention at the Sanctuary Inn, however we didn't make it quite in time. So, before the long drive home we found JJ's Steak & Pizza house in downtown Alpena and ordered ourselves a unique and delicious deep dish BLT pizza--a good way to end the day!

It was wonderful to have the opportunity to spend some quality time with Bryan after having him gone for almost six months. I'm glad he's finally home! 

"Day"te Trip Part 2

NOTE: This is a continuation of a blog post series that I began back in October. I wanted to finish what I originally started. I also enjoy looking back at summer photos during the winter :). Not exactly what I envisioned my first 2016 to be, but they are good memories to reflect on. Enjoy!

After Ocqueoc Falls, our next stop was at a location I've been wanting to visit for quite some time: 40 Mile Point Lighthouse. I'm a lighthouse enthusiast (kinda hard not to visit at least one when you live in Michigan), having been to over 30 in the mitten state, but Bryan and I haven't ever reached the heart of northeast Michigan, even to drive through.

I must admit that I was quite impressed when we drove up. There was just so much! And it was situated beautifully on the Lake Huron coastline. Lake Huron is sort of the "forgotten" Great Lake in our state. Sadly, people don't see it as being quite up to par compared to the other Great Lakes that we have access to. Truly, it's a hidden gem, and this lighthouse helps it to shine at its best.

Bryan and me on the beach at 40 Mile Point. One of my favorite photos of us!

40 Mile Point Lighthouse. According to www.40milepointlighthouse.org, it's located about forty miles southeast of Old Mackinac Point and about forty miles northwest of Thunder Bay.

The grounds were very pleasant.

There is no bad view here!

Beautiful stonework

One of the neatest things at Lighthouse Park (the grounds surrounding 40 Mile Point Lighthouse) was the wheelhouse of the decommissioned freighter Calcite. I'm kicking myself for not writing down any information about this. It was very interesting listening to the gentleman tell us about the life of the ship, how they obtained the freighter's wheelhouse, and how many hours went into its refurbishment (I don't remember the number, but it was large!). 

40 Mile Point fog signal building

Inside the fog signal building is a load of information and history on the surrounding community. It's also has some tables and chairs for event gatherings. I enjoyed this historic American flag, as well as the number of "Don't Tread on Me" flags.

The light tower

Near the light tower was a sign directing people down to the beach to view the wreck of the Joseph S. Fay.

Looking southeast

We found some of the remains of the Joseph S. Fay just a short walk northwest of the path leading from the light tower to the beach. 

After exploring the grounds, we climbed the light tower. The view was beautiful from the top, as it usually is!

From the tower we could see the white bouy indicating where a portion of the Joseph S. Fay ran aground. It eventually broke up and part of it sank in this location. Its story is quite intense, and can be found here.

The sun peaking through.

More beautiful grounds.

We're headed back to our car parked behind the lighthouse and headed to our next destination!

After 40 Mile Point, we continued on to Presque Isle...