Pictured Rocks Cruise

We decided to go to Munising, MI, on Monday afternoon to take the Pictured Rocks Boat Cruise.  There are several hiking trails at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore but we thought the rock formations along the water could be better viewed from a boat than from a hiking trail.

As we drove through downtown Marquette, the clouds looked like we might get some rain.

And they were still hanging around when we drove through Christmas, Michigan.

But by the time we got to Munising, most of the clouds had moved off and we had lots of sunshine and blue sky.  We got the last 2 tickets on the 4:00 pm cruise and were at the back of a very long line waiting to board the boats.

Most people get to the cruises early so they can board earlier and get a seat on top for a better view.  Since it was a little cool and windy, we were just find being inside on the lower deck with the big picture windows.  The captain/narrator of the cruise provided a lot of information about Lake Superior and Pictured Rocks along the way.

Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake by surface area in the world with an average depth of 500 feet.  If you took the amount of water in Lake Superior and filled it in a 5 foot deep swimming pool, that pool would be the size of the continental United States!  That's a lot of water!

As we approached the start of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, we began to see the tall sandstone cliffs.

Our first stop was the most famous formation of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore:  Miner's Castle.

Pictured Rocks Lakeshore is continually changing as the sandstone erodes and falls into Lake Superior.  In April of 2006, one of the turrets of Miner's Castle fell into Lake Superior.  Below is a picture of what Miner's Castle looked like before the turret fell into the lake.

And this is what Miner's Castle looks like today.

Many people like to kayak around the shore and there are several kayak tour offered.

With the wind and 2 and 3 foot swells, these kayakers were really being challenged today.

The next landmark we passed was Bridalveil Falls.  Unfortunately, it stops flowing around the middle of June and is more like a drip.

This sandstone cliff looked like it could calve off into the water at any time.

The next landmark was the Painted Coves with their beautiful sandstone cliffs of many colors.

Pictured Rocks got its name because of how people can see different pictures or images along the rocks.  The below image looks like the face of a Pharoah with a goatee.  Can you see it?

Next, we passed the Caves of All Colors...

...and then we came to Lover's Leap.

I missed getting a picture of the arch under Lover's Leap so I stepped out on to the deck to get a picture out the back of the boat.

The next landmark was Rainbow Cave...

...and then Indian Head Point.  Can you see the Indian Head?

How about now?

We next passed by the Grand Portal -- a big sandstone arch that is gradually being filled up with eroded sandstone.

For most of the cruise, the boat rarely stopped but when we got to this point, the captain stopped the boat...

...because he spotted an eagle way up there in that tree.

I spotted it too!

Our next landmark was Chapel Cove.  When the lake is calmer. they pull the boats up into the cove but it was a little too bumpy for that today.

We passed by a small beach... 

...and some hikers enjoying the small waterfall at the edge of the beach.

Probably our most favorite rock formation was Chapel Rock.  

The rock formation was beautiful but what was really cool was the big tree growing on top.  How does a big tree survive on that rock?  Notice the big root growing out across to the other cliff.  The rock that the tree is sitting on does not provide enough water and nutrients for it to survive.  The tree gets its water and nutrients through that big root from the land over 15 feet away.  

Our last stop was Spray Falls which shoots out 70 feet over the Pictured Rocks Cliffs.

At this point, the boat turned around and began the 1 hour and 20 minute journey back to Munising.  

I got a little better picture of Lover's Leap on the trip back.  

The last landmark we passed was the East Channel Lighthouse which is privately owned and maintained by the few residents who live nearby.

I think everyone was a little tired by the time we got back to Munising but we were glad we took the cruise.  

Since it was so late when we got back to Marquette, we decided to stop at the Mexican restaurant I had noticed on our bike ride today:  Sol Azteca.  

We had a beautiful view of the harbor where we had ridden on the bike trail that morning...

...and shared a delicious plate of the nachos supreme.

A perfect end to a perfect day!  :)