Monday 3 September - in Wawa, Ontario.

We have spent the last 5 days exploring the shores of Lake Superior and last Friday we crossed the border into Canada. A little backgound information on Lake Superior ...

It is the largest freshwater lake, by surface area, in the world:  31,700 sq miles or 82100 sq kms
It holds 10% of the world's surface fresh water.
East-West it measures 350 miles or 563 kms
North-South it measures 160 miles or 257 kms
Average water temp is 40F or 4.4C
Length of circle tour is 1,300 miles or 2092 kms.

The Ojibwe also known as the Chippewa call the lake Gichigami meaning "big water."

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the name as "Gitche Gumee" in The Song of Hiawatha, as did Gordon Lightfoot in his song,"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald".

The first French explorers approaching the great inland sea during the 17th century referred to their discovery as le lac superieur. Properly translated, the expression means "Upper Lake," that is, the lake above Lake Huron. The English, upon taking control of the region from the French in the 1760s, following the French and Indian War, anglicized the lake's name to Superior, "on account of its being superior in magnitude to any of the lakes on that vast continent.”

Many towns around the lake are either current or former mining areas, or engaged in processing or shipping. Today tourism is another significant industry. The sparsely-populated Lake Superior country, with its rugged shorelines and wilderness attracts tourists and adventurers.

Lake Superior has been an important link in the Great Lakes waterway providing a route for the transportation of iron ore and other mined and manufactured materials. Large cargo vessels called lake freighters, as well as smaller ocean-going freighters, transport these commodities across Lake Superior.

The southern shore of Lake Superior between Grand Marais, Michigan and Whitefish Point is known as the "Graveyard of the Great Lakes" and more ships have been lost around the Whitefish Point area than any other part of Lake Superior. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was the last major shipwreck on Lake Superior, sinking 17 miles (27 km) from Whitefish Point on November 10, 1975.

According to legend, "Lake Superior seldom gives up her dead". This is because of the unusually low temperature of the water, estimated at under 36 °F (2 °C) on average around 1970. The water in Lake Superior is cold enough year-round to inhibit bacterial growth and bodies tend to sink and never resurface. This is alluded to in Gordon Lightfoot's ballad, "The Wreck of theEdmund Fitzgerald". The Edmund Fitzgerald's 29 crew members all perished.
So there you have it ... thanks to Wikipaedia

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On our last morning in Duluth we got up early to watch a freighter come in to Duluth port, which by the way is the further inland than any other port in the world.  It was a large ship; the bridge lifted right to the top and the ship glided under it, coming in between the 2 piers.  It was quite a sight. The bells started to ring about 20 minutes before the ship went under the bridge and traffic was held up for at least 25 minutes - you would certainly need to check the Shipping News before heading off to work!

 We took 'the road less traveled' out from Duluth - old Highway 61 - it was great! Driving beside the lake with constant views of the vast tract of water that we love!!!!  Well perhaps a little exaggeration but I am coming from a perspective of 500 miles later and we are still enthralled! We were headed for Grand Marais, Minnesota - yes there is a Grand Marais, Michigan directly across the lake! We had made bookings ahead as were approaching a long weekend in the states and Canada - Labour Day on 3 September and anticipated that camping spots might be tight. 

We stopped at Gooseberry Falls; water very low given the time of year but very 
pretty. Also went on a tour of the Split Rock Lighthouse. We were told of the weather on the lake in winter - quite a different story. Waves can be 30 feet high.
I forgot to mention morning tea at Betty's Pies! World famous so how could we drive by?  Delicious!!
Arrived at Grand Marais mid afternoon - a beautiful place.  The RV park is right on the harbour and handy to everything that we wanted - bikes to the fore! After evening meal we went for (another) bike ride to a pretty lookout.
The evening light created an impression of the lake, horizon and sky merging into one - almost like a watercolor. Just amazing!  I know we are going to enjoy our stay here.