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Madeline Island and Richard I. Bong Museum PIREP
At 6 PM last Tuesday, Mary and I found ourselves with four unique
attributes: 1. Both kids were away at camp -- for a week (that's 168 hours -- but who's counting?) 2. We didn't have to work for the next 2.5 days. 3. The gas tanks were full. 4. The weather was good throughout the Midwest. We looked at each other, shouted "We're outta here!," drove 200 yards to the airport -- and aimed Atlas north.... By sunset we made it as far as Ashland, WI (KASX) that night, landing at their pretty little airport on the southern shore of Lake Superior. We had intended to make it all the way to Madeline Island, just 18 miles farther north, but the thought of landing on that little strip -- without hotel reservations, in the dark -- didn't thrill either of us. When we noted that they didn't sell fuel on the island, that cinched the deal for Ashland -- and, boy, was THAT a great decision! As we shut down, with the last light of an absolutely gorgeous July day bathing Atlas in orange, a fellow strolled up to say hello. Turned out he was the FBO manager, working late on his own plane, and asked us if we needed anything. Well, we needed *everything*, since we had no hotel reservations, no rental car, and no knowledge of the area -- so we simply asked him how we could get to town, and where he would recommend we stay. He just chuckled, and told us we could take the airport's courtesy car overnight down to the Hotel Chequamegon -- the nicest place in town, located right on the lake shore. We thanked him profusely and headed into town, arriving at the hotel just as darkness settled. The Hotel Chequamegon is a huge structure, built in 1986 to resemble the original hundred-year old hotel that preceded it. Had I not read that fact, I wouldn't have guessed it, as all the rooms and structure look precisely like a very old hotel -- right down to the authentic antique furniture, and the 18-foot ceilings. Our room was nice, and fairly reasonably priced at $82 per night. (The bed was hard as a brick, and there wasn't even a coffee-maker in the room, but I digress...) The restaurant served a wonderful "Northland Chowder" that alone was worth the trip, and the bar had a special blend of Leinenkugel that was brewed especially for the hotel. Very nice, indeed. The next day dawned fresh and clear, so before breakfast we explored the waterfront, paying special attention to the abandoned taconite loading dock. This gigantic structure is over 100 feet tall, several blocks long, and juts out into the lake like a dry-docked aircraft carrier. They used to run trains right out on top of this pier, drop car-loads of taconite (iron ore) into the giant chutes, and then pour the ore directly into ore carriers docked right below the chutes. They could dump an entire train-load in minutes, quickly filling the ships that would then hustle the ore to the steel mills in Gary and Detroit. At one time the docks were working night and day, and -- judging by the trappings of wealth that are visible to this day -- the community obviously prospered from the shipping industry. According to locals, however, the last ship left that dock in 1965, and the entire structure has been slowly rusting away ever since. It's an immense structure, too big to ever be demolished yet no longer safe, and it's sad to think that this kind of infrastructure is slowly decaying all over the country... After breakfast we drove back to the FBO, and had some time to better appreciate the wonderful log cabin that the city had built for them to use. It's a real 2-story log cabin, with gigantic whole logs for beams, and is rustic and well done. But they don't scrimp on niceties, as they have computerized weather and a great pilot's lounge, too. In fact, Ashland's terminal facility easily puts it in the top ten nicest FBOs Mary and I have visited at an airport their size. Soon we departed, having donated $20 to the "courtesy car fund" (this airport is one of the few I've seen that actually has envelopes pre-printed, with a formalized procedure for "suggested donation" amounts printed on them.), and were winging our way 18 miles out to Madeline Island -- a pretty spit of land in the lake, and the largest of the Apostle Islands. We circumnavigated the island once, in a clockwise fashion so Mary could take pictures. It's a beautiful island at this time of year, heavily forested, deep green, and surrounded by calm, blue waters. It didn't take much imagination, however, to picture this island in winter -- one of the coldest spots on earth -- totally encrusted in ice to the horizon. (Islanders actually use an "ice road" to the mainland for several months during the winter... Brrrr!) Even at this time of year the water was in the upper 40s, and we knew that ditching would mean almost certain death -- even in July. After landing at their very nice -- but unstaffed -- airport, we wandered around a bit, trying to figure out how to get into town. (With more prep time we could have brought our bikes, but, alas, we did not.) Eventually we called the Chamber of Commerce (the number was on the wall), and they recommended that we just start walking toward town, and someone would soon pick us up. They told Mary that "everyone picks up people walking in from the airport"... Well, not that day. It was a pleasant enough walk of maybe 1.5 miles, and we were luckily in the shade, even at high noon (the trees come right up to the road) -- but none of the dozen or more cars ever stopped to see if we needed a ride. (In fairness, it's not like we had our thumbs out.) So, we just set a good "Oshkosh pace" and headed into town. LaPointe, the only city on Madeline Island (actually, the only city in the Apostle Islands), has a small downtown, but it's bustling at this time of year. We chose to eat lunch at a waterfront cafe with a great view of the ferry docks. The ferries run every 30 minutes at this time of year, and run from "break up" in the spring to "freeze up" in the late fall, early winter. (After that there is a period where neither ferries can run nor the ice road is safe -- so they run "ice boats" to the mainland -- essentially air boats, just like you'd see in the Everglades. Double brrr!) Prices on the island were amazingly reasonable, considering that everything had to be brought over by ship or by air, and considering that the businesses are only open for a few months each year. A Coke was just 75 cents, and lunch -- a wonderful Lake Superior broiled whitefish sandwich with fries -- was just $6.00. Having mentally prepared myself for "Mackinac Island prices" (double what everything costs at home), this was a pleasant surprise. Wandering around downtown a bit, we were somewhat surprised at the lack of "tourist trap" stores. We only found two T-shirt stores, and -- GASP! -- we never found a single store selling any of those stupid (and ubiquitous) lighthouses that have become so popular throughout the Midwest. (Hell, you can buy them here in Iowa, where the nearest lighthouse is 400 miles away...) We found the authenticity of the place to be really refreshing. Obviously tourism, while important, isn't the only reason these people are here. The ferry company also runs a tour bus, which, in our car-less state, sounded like just the thing. Tickets were just $11 apiece, and the tour lasted several hours. Our tour-guide was a full-time resident (there are only 250 of them) who had lived on "The Rock" (as she called it) for 25 years, raising a family. She was also an EMT and a history teacher, and had done extensive research on the history of the island -- so we were truly blessed with an outstanding tour of the island! (One juicy tid-bit: The Ojibwa Indian tribe still regards the island as somewhat "taboo," because their ancestors over-populated the island to the point where they had to resort to cannibalism to survive. At one point there were over 20,000 Ojibwas on that little island! Interestingly, the tribe left right just a few years before the French "discovered" the island -- the Indians were never driven out, as happened in so many other places.) The tour also includes chances to hike along the Lake Superior shoreline -- a truly worthwhile experience. The water is absolutely clear and clean (our tour guide and her family have no compunctions about drinking it straight out of the lake), and the scenery is stunning. To see the Big Lake -- the largest in the world (by surface area) and containing over 10% of the world's fresh water -- up close and personal is worth the trip alone. (Although they DO have a bear hunting season on Madeline Island, and we were warned semi-seriously to watch out for them...) Our tour guide kindly agreed to drop us off at the airport near the end of the tour, so we bade farewell to our fellow tour-mates, and were soon winging our way west, toward Superior, WI, located along the southern edge of Lake Superior adjoining Duluth, MN. As Mary flew along I gazed out at the lake in puzzlement, trying to figure out what the weird white swirly stuff was in the water. At first I thought it was a glare on my window, but Mary pointed out that it was in fact the white puffy clouds above us, being perfectly reflected in the mirror-like calm waters! There probably aren't three days in any given year where Lake Superior (aka: The lake made famous by the "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald") is as smooth as a kiddy pool -- but we were there to see it! Approaching Superior we were surprised to see the hills -- almost mountains -- behind Duluth, rising up from the water's edge. I had never been to Duluth, and had no idea that the terrains was so quasi-mountainous! The whole effect was quite beautiful, and this lovely approach was only slightly marred by trying to figure out the almost intersecting landing patterns of Sky Harbor (Superior's "Meigs Field", out in the bay) and Bong Airport. Mary was landing on Rwy 31 (which the AWOS made clear the winds were favoring), while another pilot was landing on Sky Harbor's Rwy 13 (?) just three miles away -- which seemed pretty bizarre. Between her and a student doing touch & goes in the pattern, Mary had her head on a swivel looking out for traffic. After we tied up and went into the FBO, I inquired about the runway difference, and the guys behind the counter told me that it was quite common for the wind to be 180 degrees different at Sky Harbor, due to the lake-effect winds. Amazing what a huge body of 48 degree water can do to the winds on a hot summer day! Again, we had no reservations, no rental car -- we were just relying on the recommendations of the folks at the FBO, and the kindness of strangers. We've never been disappointed yet, and this time would be no different. The line guy first recommended a chain "McMotel" -- at which we expressed dismay, of course! -- and then the FBO's head cheese recommended Barker Island Hotel, an independently owned hotel within walking distance of the Bong Museum, a floating nautical museum (the last surviving whale-back ship in the world, built in 1896), and several good restaurants. I called the hotel to reserve a room, and they offered to send us a cab. Upon over-hearing this, a nearby "hangar flyer" in the FBO -- obviously a regular -- offered to give us a ride over instead. We eagerly accepted his offer, and piled into his Subaru wagon for the short drive to the hotel. "Les" turned out to have gone to college in Iowa City back in the '60s, had a doctorate in engineering, and had just written a book about the technical aspects of the Wright Brothers aeronautical achievements. He let us look through his manuscript as we drove, which had just been approved by his publisher, and we were blown away at the truly technical nature of the book. It was equal parts prose and long, mathematical formulas -- some of them full-page length -- explaining how the Wright Brothers had actually achieved flight! Now that's not my cup of tea, but Les was incredibly friendly and outgoing, sharp as a tack, and more than willing to drive us anywhere in Superior. After Les dropped us off, we dropped our stuff in our room, and immediately set out for the nautical museum and dinner. The museum was closed, but we were able to walk all the way around the old freighter (it's land-locked), which turned out to be enough nautical stuff for us. We then set out for the Boat House, an excellent waterfront restaurant with somewhat "fru-fru" food, which was great nevertheless. The pace was almost painfully slow, but -- without kids -- we were able to actually sit and enjoy it! After walking miles and miles around Barker Island, we returned to our hotel to watch the planes landing out on Sky Harbor -- right in front of us! A floatplane was practicing docking and "getting up on the step" -- so we had our own private airshow as the sun slowly set on another beautiful day. The next morning our weatherman predicted that things might fall apart later in the day -- so we scooted over to the Richard Ira Bong World War II Memorial museum, just a few blocks from our hotel. Admission was $8 apiece, which at first I thought was rather high for what appeared to be a "one-hangar" museum. Once inside, however, we were amazed at the number of exhibits, and the truly marvelous high-tech video display systems. Being computerized (and practically new), all of the displays were crisp, informative, and -- best of all -- they were ALL in working order. (How many times have you pushed a button on a display at a museum, only to see and hear nothing?) It literally took us several hours to work our way through all the displays, and then we spent 30 minutes admiring the museum's beautifully restored Lockheed P-38L Lightning, painted just like Major Bong's plane, with his girlfriend/wife's picture ("Marge") painted on the side. The story of the aircraft restoration is amazing in itself. After Major Bong, a true national hero, was killed at age 24 in 1944 while testing a new Lockheed P-80 jet fighter, the air force donated a P-38 to be displayed in his home town of Poplar, WI (near Superior). Because of a lack of funds, they literally parked it out in a corn field, where it sat for several years. Eventually they got enough money together to mount it on pylons -- which they achieved by cutting off the landing gear, and welding the stubs to the pylons. There it sat for many years, slowly corroding away -- until plans were made to build the grand new facility in Superior. The Minnesota Air National Guard, in Anoka, MN, volunteered to restore the Lightning to pristine condition (along with the help of dozens of volunteers), and they slowly (it took over 5 years) brought it back to the almost-like-new condition seen today. The museum's gift shop was chock-full of P-38 and Bong memorabilia, and we picked up a boat-load of it, all to be displayed in our soon-to-be-opened "Lightning Suite." Prices were not unreasonable, and the selection was unusually rich. We highly recommend paying a visit to this fabulous museum. Our only nit to pick with the whole thing was that they chose to build the museum on the waterfront, rather than at the Bong Airport. I spoke at length with the FBO manager, and apparently the original plans were for it to be at the airport -- but developers demanded that it be placed on Barker Island instead, because of the greater traffic. While this may have made sense economically, I'm sure Richard Bong would have preferred his museum to be located at an airport, where his fellow-pilots could fly in to visit. (At the following year's budget presentation, the Airport Manager supposedly sarcastically proposed that the city of Superior build a boating museum at the Bong airport! I like their airport manager -- a lot.) After a short cab ride back to the airport, we were soon aloft and bidding Lake Superior farewell. An easy 2.5 hour flight later (during which we saw nary a cloud), we were back in Iowa City, wondering if we had merely awakened from a dream. Atlas had once again given us with a vacation that only a personal airplane could provide, and it was with pride and reluctance that we closed our hangar door and returned to "real life"... -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" |
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Mary was landing on Rwy 31 (which the AWOS made clear the winds
were favoring), while another pilot was landing on Sky Harbor's Rwy 13 (?) just three miles away -- which seemed pretty bizarre. It does, till you're heading in to one and hear someone on the frequency aiming for the other. Heads up! They're so close, it kinda makes sense to have them on the same freq, in case you don't have 2 radios to monitor traffic at the other strip, which could wander into your pattern. I love Sky Harbor, even though I couldn't spot it the first time I went there until I saw a floatplane landing on the "runway" next to it...in Duluth Harbor! There's nothing like flying downwind for Sky Harbor's runway 14 and looking out over that vast lake. You can't see the far shore and just as you think how cool it would be to go fly out over it you hear the strains of Gordon Lightfoot's "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" in your mind and realize how cold and hungry that water looks...it's about 40 degrees year-round, and has the greatest depth of any place in North America. Don't ditch. You won't last long treading water. Is the restaurant on Bong Field (nautical themed, with a few nods to aviation) closed now? Is Barker Island another length of the Park Point strip that shelters the harbor from the lake? If you ever get a hankering to go even further north, Ely with its wolf museum is a wonderful destination. Feels like you're at the top of the world, and the sectional will warn you of the areas where the concentration of iron ore in the ground tweaks your compass... |
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Is the restaurant on Bong Field (nautical themed, with a few nods to
aviation) closed now? The restaurant is open, although we sadly didn't get a chance to eat there. Is Barker Island another length of the Park Point strip that shelters the harbor from the lake? Barker Island is that little spit of land between Sky Harbor and the actual lake shore. It's full of tourist stuff, from a maritime museum, to a marina, to hotels, to the new Bong Museum See a map here at http://visitdouglascounty.com/maps-page-superior.htm . It's hard to see, cuz when you click on it to enlarge the map, it neatly splits Barker Island in half! If you ever get a hankering to go even further north, Ely with its wolf museum is a wonderful destination. Feels like you're at the top of the world, and the sectional will warn you of the areas where the concentration of iron ore in the ground tweaks your compass... Yeah, the iron ore does do strange things to a compass. Of course, navigating from Ashland to Superior is as easy as pie -- just follow the lake shore west! Who needs a compass? :-) -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" |
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