Endless Dark Skies & Deep Blue Water

Last Friday the forecast for Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) was high in our area so we ventured out after dark, which in the summer in Michigan means a late night, in hopes of catching them. On Saturday I saw lots of great photos of other locals who got good shots of the show. It would appear we were a bit too early. My pictures, with a lot of wishful suggestion, show a small tad of the purple. But I did catch a nice shot of the Big Dipper. The sky in northern Michigan is so much more vivid than in central Indiana where the light pollution washes the details away. Some nights the Milky Way is so bright it seems like I should be able to touch it. We love spending time by the fire watching as the stars start to pop one by one once the sun sets low below the horizon. We easily lose track of the number of satellites zooming past overhead, the International Space Station being a special treat. And nothing beats the entertainment of the occasional meteor showers. Sitting by the fire, staring off into the dark sky stirs up so many deep thoughts about creation and our part in it. Despite deep space unmanned exploration and the latest greatest telescope pictures, there’s still so much unexplored. For me these quiet times meld metaphysics and science.

Hiking wise, our outdoor adventure was unconventional. Instead of lacing up the boots I wore water shoes and we forged a path without edges, heading out atop the water of Higgins Lake. G. has a kayak that doubles as a pedal kayak or sailboat. To justify including this in my hiking blog we waited for a calm day to use our feet to explore the surface of the lake. He had my 6 on this “hike.” (A NCIS reference for my fellow Gibbs fans) We logged about 2 ½ miles as we ventured out slipping past the anchored boats at the popular gathering area, occasionally sharing a short conversation with interested folks. Not too much wildlife to cross paths with except for a sea gull and some young men learning how to navigate their water hoverboards…that was really wild to watch.

Higgins Lake, known for its deep clear water, is sometimes referred to as “The Caribbean of the North.” It is a 9,900 acre recreational glacial lake. The water is crystal clear and a beautiful blue. It is the 10th largest in Michigan, with 21 miles of shoreline. It is a twin lobe lake, receiving ½ of its water from submerged springs the remaining from rainfall, streams and runoff. It supports a populated small island and a submerged sandbar fondly referred to as the Sunken Island that attracts lots of day users for anchoring and spending the day in the sun. The deepest depth of the lake is 135 feet, but there are also many areas of the lake that are shallow enough to allow boats to anchor and the occupants to hang out and play in the water. Much of the area that we kayaked over I could’ve walked in if needed. Straight out from our beach we can walk for 500 yards before reaching what is referred to as “the drop off,” imagine an underwater, tall sand dune with a steep descent into a dark abyss.

There are two State Parks on the lake. South Higgins Lake State Park being the oldest, largest and most developed includes a mile of shoreline for visitors to enjoy. The North Higgins Lake State Park was established where the largest seed nursery once was in the 1930s. I shared about that and the CCC several weeks ago when we hiked that area. We purchased a pop-up camper at a RV & Camper show our first winter after moving to Michigan. We planned out a 2 week vacation in the Upper Peninsular for the following May. Ironically, our maiden camping trip before heading out on the big trip, we decided to camp at South Higgins Lake State Park. Higgins Lake called to us from the get-go.