Last weekend, I had apparently become enough of a whiner to deserve a day trip to the North Shore. To make the most of it, we got up early enough to make it to Thompson Hill by 9:30am. The cloudy sky blended in with the horizon and we could just barely see the lift bridge below. This was the first of many free Duluth sites Nate had never been to before, so he snapped quite a few photos in the fog anyway. (One of Nate’s complaints about going to the North Shore is that everything is too expensive, but I was happy to prove him wrong- our only expenses of the day were gas, coffee and Thai food. And, really, if he was feeling more cheap than usual, we could have cut out those last two, packing our own caffeine and food from home).
The kindly Interpretive Information Worker gave us directions to Enger Tower along Skyline Parkway – a somewhat difficult to follow 36-mile route on the bluffs above Lake Superior. If only we had known there was an audio guide!
This nice little park overlooking the harbor is named for the local furniture store owner who bequeathed land to the city of Duluth. We climbed up the 5-story tower for some more foggy, but enjoyable views. We walked around some meticulously cared for hosta beds. And we watched a bus full of seniors take turns ringing the gigantic Japanese Peace Bell.
We got back on Skyline Parkway and headed towards Hawks Ridge and Seven Bridges Road – both interesting enough to warrant their own posts – stay tuned!
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