Michigan's Upper Peninsula

Slightly disillusioned with the first taste of the East, we were excited to see the worlds biggest lakes!

Heading to Deluth, {a tourist town on the far west side of lake Superior}, we lost count of the abandoned factories and ghostly smoke stacks lining the highway towards the lake.

Deluth was a friendly and welcoming town, although we felt like Evergreen fashion victims, surrounded by the flocks of conservative, polo shirt wearing, preppie college kids and their trailing supportive parents.

Watching the 1000ft grain tankers pass just feet from the boardwalk was impressive, but seeing people fishing next to sewer pipes was new to us.

Billboards advertising the beautiful and idyllic wilderness of the 'Upper Peninsula' of Michigan, led us East along the South shores of Lake Superior.

Driving for hours through towns interspersed with patches of thin woods, we were waiting for the wild to begin; we stopped at a Wall-Mart for ice when suddenly we realized, this was it... the eastern wilderness.

It seemed impossible to escape human development; at the furthest most point there were still visible streetlights and old chimneys peering through the defeated deciduous forest.

Trading the woods for 200yrs of industrialization led us to a copper mine tour; the hills are littered with mine shafts and smelters left from the wealth of abundant copper once beneath them.

The mine was cold, crampt and flooded; everything about mining is hard, heavy, polluting and generally scratchy. Above ground the people are accustomed to harsh, cold winters and seem blind to the surrounding mechanical carnage; the mine owner had found treasure in the form of pet, {sent gland removed} skunks! Fat snugly and completely spoilt!

Lake Superior was impressive but we longed for isolation, and we know where to find that in spades... Canada!

The Badlands of South Dakota

From Wyoming we entered South Dakota, stopping for some much needed supplies; food, water and restoring my vision with a quick repair job to the spectacles. Leaving town we came across some true Americana, a car battery store with a much needed monster truck to deliver all the hefty 20 lb batteries. We then headed to South Dakota's 'major attractions,' Mt. Rushmore and Custer State Park. Winding through the beautiful rocky landscape, the bright red sun rising in front of us, the view was suddenly blocked by a toll both and multi-level parking structure. We decided to see the monument from the luxury of the Camry as we slowly drove past the commercial complex. The 'locals' told us the real attraction was Custer State Park so we headed onwards. The best part of the park were the begging donkeys; they pulled me in with their huge eyes. As they munched away all of our veggies, they moved onto my sweater and I had to make a quick break for the car. At this point Julian and I had decided we had seen enough of South Dakota and made for Minnesota.
On our way we came across the Badlands National Park, and decided we would have a quick look. This turned out to be the real jem of South Dakota. The arid plains had given way to pinnacles of crumbling red, orange and pink clay. Contrasting the extreme terra firma, were the colonies of cute and squeaky prairie dogs. Their towns were littered with small fat babies, and their protective parents chirped of danger at the slightest noise. After watching the sun set over the Martian landscape, we cooked up a stew and slept uncomfortably in hotel Camry.

We entered Minneapolis, MN, looking forward to some urban conveniences, only to find tweakers and drunk hoards in an apocalyptic Mad Max like city. We escaped the following morning and headed to the charming sister city of St. Paul. There we walked for miles in safety through beautiful Victorian houses, including the childhood home F. Scott Fitzgerald. On our way out of town we stopped by the Mall of America in search of a better bed. Adjustments were made and we headed to Michigan's Upper Peninsula looking forward to the country and a good nights sleep on our new Ikea bed.