Melissa and I had a fantastic few days. Her Mom and Dad, Phil and Carol, along with her brother Jeff and his son Andy came to visit us in Minnesota, for our well drilling day. Its been nine months since I last saw Andy. Wow, he has grown up. He is no longer the little boy I remembered. At 13, he is a handsome young man nearly as tall as I am. We all met at our house on Sunday, where we enjoyed an evening at home. We havent remodeled the house yet, we have almost no furniture here and were waiting for our new well. With a variety of air mattresses, and cushions from the Scamp, we made beds and called it home. It was more like camping inside a house, and we were having a blast. Monday would be a new adventure as the well driller would be here to bring us a fresh new source of water. We spent the day amused by the big powerful machinery. I was in awe over the way Bob Rasmussen worked that machine so smoothly and the way it cut through deep layers of granite, gravel and clay so effortlessly. Toward evening when the well was done, the drillers left, Jeff and Andy created a feast of chicken legs and thighs. They cooked them on an old smoker Jeff got from his Grandpa Max. The chicken turned out fantastic. No doubt Jeff knew what he was doing, but I think the chicken tasted even better knowing the history of his smoker. We enjoyed a meal of chicken with potato salad, baked beans and cottage cheese. Having had more than enough to eat, we opted to put off dessert until later. Dessert was a fresh strawberry rhubarb pie I had made that morning before the well drillers arrived. While feasting on pie, we discussed the possibility of rising early to watch the sunrise over Lake Superior. That meant getting up early enough to be at the lakefront by 5:14 am. Melissa and Carol wanted nothing to do with such foolishness at that hour of the morning, especially after the full day we had. It was decided amongst the men we would get up at 4:40 am to watch the sunrise. To affirm our decision, we raised our hands bringing them toward a common area in the middle. Three of us had our hands making a fist, Andy raised his pinky. Dude! I told him, Youre one of the men now. We dont make pinky swears when its all guys, you gotta give me some knuckles. Andy and I enjoyed a good laugh over that. Then offering his own fist into the group, I said, To the sunrise. The four of us busted knuckles over it, and that makes it a binding commitment, stronger than a treaty between two nations. We retired for the evening as we were all ready for a good nights sleep. My alarm went off at 4:30 am. I got up to turn on the coffee. I was tired and wondered if the rest of the men would remember our pact. Part of me hoped they would not, so I could back to bed. Phil walked into the kitchen, so at least one of them remembered. Good morning! he said, How do the skies look? The skies were overcast. I considered using that for an excuse to return to my bed. But, sometimes when it is overcast on the north shore, it may be clear on the south shore, allowing the sunrise to be seen. A deal is a deal, so I went in to wake Jeff and Andy. We loaded into Phils car and headed for Palisade Head, a tall cliff that over looks the lake where we planned to watch the new day begin. Apparently no one told the park ranger, who locked the gates, of our early morning man plans. Driving the north shore looking for a new viewing point, I could tell there would be no sunrise to see due to the cloud cover. We needed some adventure to replace the canceled sunrise, so I headed for Illgen Falls, another waterfall on the baptism river near our home. On the way to the falls, I was keeping a lookout for wildlife. As we crossed the Baptism River, I saw something, and asked Phil to turn around, which he did. When we crossed the bridge again, I decided I did not see what I thought I saw...until Jeff blurted out A moose! Dad, stop the car! Phil took the first left, where we pulled into a campsite and walked down to the river. From this angle we couldnt see the moose. Perhaps it finished crossing the river and had gone into the forest on the other side. We got back into the car, drove to the park entrance, parked the car and then walked out onto the bridge. The moose was still there. Phil took a picture. Jeff and I watched the beast for just a couple of moments, then the two of us agreed...it was a big rock, not a moose in the river. We then went on to hike the trail down to Illgen Falls, where we had a good morning with plenty of good views. Afterwards, we returned home for breakfast with the girls. There were no deer in the yard this morning, which was unusual, and somewhat disappointing as Andy really wanted to see deer. I got busy at the stove making breakfast for everyone. I was rather enjoying showing off, making eggs for everyone as they wanted them. I was the short order cook for the morning, and having a blast doing so. Carol came into the kitchen to tell us the doe and her fawn were in the yard. We all crowded around the windows to get a view. The doe kept a close watch on the young spotted fawn. The fawn began kicking up her hooves, jumping and prancing around the yard, running back and forth and just having a grand time, as would any kid this age with that much energy. I was surprised at her speed and steady moves as she appeared to be pretty young. The doe became aware of our presence in the windows. She called her offspring to come with her, and they trotted out of the yard together, back into the woods. After breakfast, the six of us packed water bottles and a few things, then drove to Tettegouche State Park. We were headed for the trail to the High Falls, but thought we would try it from a different entrance this time. It was a mile walk into the falls. The day was pretty, the weather perfect for such a hike. The wildflowers were blooming in natural bouquets of beauty. At the base of High Falls, June splashed around in the river while Andy tried to catch a frog. When the frog got away, Andy jumped from rock to rock in the river, posing for some really cool pictures. The rest of us were just taking in the scenery, relaxing in the cool mist of the tumbling waters. After visiting High Falls, we decided to hike toward Two Step Falls, another waterfall in the park, on the Baptism river. Two Step Falls is just what it sounds like...two waterfalls together, one just above the other. Reaching the final segment of the trail to this sets of falls, we came to a series of stair steps. We were told it was 199 steps to the base of the falls. It was also 199 steps to come back up. It was time to decide if we wanted to go all the way in or come back another day. Carol spoke up saying, I didnt hike all this way to turn back now, lets go see the falls. And so we did. At the bottom of the falls, two teenage girls and a boy were watching something rather intensely. Their friend, another teenage boy, was climbing the rock wall between the two levels of waterfalls. Kind of spooky just watching him. My attention was soon diverted to a tiny snapping turtle in the water. Full size snapping turtles rate right up there with snakes and spiders. We respect each others space, keeping our distance, but this little guy was cute. His shell was roughly the size of a quarter. We picked him up for photos, wished him well, and placed him back safely in the water. After spending some time taking in the magic of the falls, we started our treck back up the trail...with its 199 steps. Considering the entire walk, including the steps down to Two Step Falls, Ill bet we went up or down between one thousand, and twelve hundred steps. By the time we got back to the car, we were all tired, but oh what a day we had! We stopped at the new Tettegouche State Park Visitors Center. I split an orange Twin Pop Popsicle with Andy. He asked me where I got it, and I told him I found it on the floor. We had a good laugh over that as we devoured its sugary goodness, full of artificial flavoring. I havent had a Twin Pop for years, and it was every bit as refreshing as I remembered. It was time for Jeff and Andy to head for home. We said our farewells and got into our cars. Jeff turned left headed back toward the south, while we turned right toward our house in the Northwoods. I thought about the day. We saw so many beautiful things and had a full day with family, making memories to share for years to come. I thought about Andy. He has grown so much. It was fun to have him along, not as the little kid Andy, but Andy...one of the boys. Then I smiled as it occurred to me, Jeff, Andy, Phil and I hiked the full trifecta. We hiked into all three waterfalls on the Baptism River, near our home. That is an accomplishment. I didnt know this day was going to come so full of adventure. But, the four of us men, committed to getting up early for the sunrise. We busted knuckles over it, and that makes it a binding commitment, stronger than a treaty between two nations.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 01:11:35 +0000
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