7-11-18 – 7-12-18 Lime Island and Sault St. Marie

7-11-18 – 7-12-18 Lime Island and Sault St. Marie

We left the Les Cheneaux knowing we would be back.  We headed up the St. Mary’s River.  It is miles wide at some points yet has narrower dredged spots at other points. There is a lot of freighter traffic on the river.  Some are a thousand feet long, they make us feel like a little water bug when they go by us.

Here is a freighter right next to us. Pictures don’t do it justice. It’s huge when you are in the water next to it.

We stopped at Lime Island.  It is a historical island which we were a bit disappointed in.  The hosts were not there and there were no signs explaining anything. Nonetheless it had interesting things to look at. There was supposed to be a fee, but the only guy we met said no fee unless we spend the night.  We hiked to the north end on the island to the historic ruins of the kilns they used in processing the Limestone, but nothing explained why, but we suspect it made it into a cement type ingredient as there was a huge pile of what looked like white cement by the kilns.

Karen in front of the Lime Island sign
Old mining equipment decorated the front lawn.
Last Call on the Lime Island Wall with a freighter passing by.
Scott by a steel boat. I know he was secretly restoring it in his brain.
Clever!
School house being renovated. Some people told us it was in desperate need and they were glad to see it being worked on and not let fall down.
One of the ruins of the kilns used in processing Lime Stone
We were told there are bears on the island, but this is all we saw. Cutie.
This tripod is over a brass survey steak that is imbedded in the mound of what looks and feels like cement. This is outside the kiln. Must be spillage or spoils from the kilns. Note: we have seen these tripod in various other places.  Hmmm.
There were two huge oil tanks on the island. We found out they held 1, 750,000 gallons of fuel. This one had what appeared to be stairs to climb to the top. Yikes no thanks.
There is a foam insulation on the outside of these oil tanks. People have been throwing rocks to see if they can get them to stick in the foam insulation. Many were successful and many not so much.

The island is a nesting ground for the Common Tern.  At one time there were 6000 mating pairs on the island.  The numbers dropped drastically but are now on the rise with 1500 pairs on the island.

We were tied up on the wall and could have stayed the night, but it was hot noisy and had great potential of having a stinky bird poop covered boat by morning.  Plus, they want $22 for a crumbling wall with nothing else.  Off to anchor we went. The water was cool and fresh after our hot sticky hike. Not to mention we love the peace and quiet of being at anchor.

We had a peaceful night and no bird poop, but we did wake up to this. Hello May Flies didn’t you know it is July. At least they don’t poop on our decks and wash off easily. I’ll take them to bird poop any day.

The next morning, we headed for George Kemp Marina in Sault St. Marie, USA.  We went through the museum and learned a lot about the history of the locks.  One thing I never knew, was that an antsy ship captain hit the lock doors and broke them in 1909.  Wowsa, that had to have been a mess to fix.  The water was pouring through like a waterfall in the photos.

Story about the 1909 Accident.
How do you stop the this water after the lock door breaks.

The US side of Soo Locks has upgraded the locks many times to accommodate for the ever-enlarging ships. There are 4 locks on the US side but only two are in use.  We watched as 1000’ freighters were locked through.

This is one of freighters we watched lock through. It is just leaving the lock.

We were able to go to the top of the History Tower to over look the locks and the whole town.  Interesting fact is that the Catholic Church next door funded the $600,000 to build it.  The church couldn’t come up with all the funds, so a priest traveled to fund raise for it.  It was then given to the city after it was built.

The Catholic Church that is right next to the Tower o History that they are responsible for building it. This lovely church was slated to be torn down and built in a more modern style.  Glad they left it as is.  Its is beautiful!
The Tower of History.
Fun Facts
Indian Artifacts in the Tower.
This rattle made from a turtle looks like it is straight out of the Flintstones.
Your typical child’s moccasin and your not so typical.
Elk Hoof Shoes. Looks like I would trip a lot wearing these.
This Edison power plant is 1/2 mile long. Neat building.
The Soo Canal Park is guarded. They search purses and backpacks and ask about guns and knives.
Soo Park building. Grounds were well kept.
Ship coming out of the lock. Impressive.

It was a good day with a few scattered showers and we learned more history about our country.  When it rains, we pour.  We ducked into a winery/brewery for an hour and waited it out.

The perfect place for a beer drinker and a wine drinker. 1668 was the year Sault St. Marie was founded. Thus the name.

We had dinner at a quaint little place where we could watch the locks from our seats. They made Pasties the way we do with the meat and veggies chopped into chunks not shredded, like so many are. They were served with an onion mushroom gravy, which was delicious. The wine and beer they served were only their own, and the food was mostly local when they can get it.  Love that kind of restaurant.  Surprisingly we really liked one of the wines.  Most of the Michigan wines we have had are too sweet. Need to try more and keep an open mind.

Thanks for reading,Karen and Scott

m/v Last Call

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