We headed out the door on a major run for the day: 140 miles each way. We wanted to scout some campgrounds in Munising for next summer.

Were a little disappointed when we saw them, but the trip wasn’t a waste….we ate pasties from Muldoons, voted “best in the UP”!

But we looked on our maps and realized Marquette was only 40 miles up the road, and they had a campground that sounded interesting.

Good move.

As we came into town, we realized there was more to this place than we’d reckoned. Yeah, it’s the biggest city in the whole UP!

Still, some perspective: its population is less than Centerville, one of Dayton’s suburbs that serves as our legal address.

For us, the most notable feature was the town’s sudden rise from the surrounding flat countryside. Turns out it has an elevation change of 600 feet, enough to downhill ski on the outskirts of town!

Not this time of year, silly….

It was lovely when we arrived. Took a couple pictures of their downtown harbor, whose most noticeable feature is a huge abandoned dock formerly used to fill ships with iron ore. No matter, Lake Superior is still lovely and very much accessible!
The campground was great, and we’re making plans to spend time there next summer!

As we left town, we passed the county road commission headquarters and its very creative sign out front.
As we traveled home, the full moon rose ahead of us as the sun set behind. The photo below captures the moment without bothering too much with clarity….