16 August 2015, Sunday

Here we sit at the Grand Portage laundromat, which happens to be right next to the Sheriff’s office. Can’t trust those grungy campers!

Camp was quieter last night, but the weather remained humid. Everything felt wet. We were waiting for the cold front. At 5:45 local time O woke
me. He had been watching lightning flashes, but now he heard
thunder. We decided to pack up before everything became even more
damp. We were on the road within 30 minutes.

We returned to Grand Marais having already chosen our breakfast
destination, The Pie Place. We had a traditional
breakfast, but of course ordered some pie-to-go for our early
morning breakfast on the ferry Monday morning.

Grand Portage is on Ojibwe land in what is referred to as the arrowhead
region of Minnesota. We found our lodge, most of which appeared to be
under construction. We entered, hoping for our room to be available. The
young ladies at the desk told us to return at 4 pm. We explored the
area and found the marina for tomorrow’s departure to Isle Royale. Next we visited the Grand Portage National Monument. We were glad we stopped in. There is a very interesting museum there focused on the history of Grand Portage and the effect of the fur trade on the Ojibwe people.
We suddenly realized that the reason Grand Portage was so important is
that it is just about at the midpoint of the continent. The Northwest
Trading Company shipped goods from all around the world past
Montreal, through the Great Lakes and on to Grand Portage. From the
west, water routes made trade possible all the way from the Pacific
Coast with no portage greater than 10 miles. Grand Portage was at
the end of the longest, hardest portage, around the falls and rapids of the
Pigeon River. Looking at the various maps at the exhibits, O & I
realized we made it half way across the country.

We continued our explore at Grand Portage State Park. The picnic tables
and brisk breeze provided an ideal place to dry our tent and sleeping
system.

We returned to the Lodge to ask for directions to the laundromat. Although we drove to the location, we saw no place for laundry. We found a senior
center and drove up to ask directions. We were helped by an Ojibwe man
with dark eyes and a long graying ponytail. Somehow he could tell we
were lost.

Laundry done, we finally get access to our room. After showers and dinner,
time to pack for our 5 day expedition in Isle Royale National Park. We practically have to unpack the entire car to get access to the snack food we will need. It is getting late and we are very tired. I hope we have packed enough snacks. We are both disappointed we can’t call the kids before we go, no Verizon service here.