The North Shore in Duluth

Where ever we go we have taken the time to look for interesting places to go and see. 

In Utah we spent a lot of time at different parks both in the valley and in the moutains. 

Here, with older kids, we have spent a lot of time  hiking. We've been to Wisconsin a few times for interesting parks and here locally. 

But, on my bucket list was the North Shore. As researching things to do in Minnesota this was one of the most popular places to go. It is three and half hours north. I had planned to go next summer. Well, I won't be here next summer and I can't forsee many times in the future for us to go to Duluth. So, this Sunday (yah, I know) we packed up the family at 8:00 and drove north with some friends.

It was beautiful. Cold and wet, but beautiful. I hadn't seen any of the Great Lakes before and I was impressed with how big the waves were. The rocky shores were beautiful and even though we were a little late in the season, the leaves were pretty too.

Our first stop was an overlook of the shore along side some pretty steep and cool rock formations. Kids found pirates too.

This was the wettest stop and probably the coldest.

Next stop was at Gooseberry Falls. It is a series of five falls. We hiked down alongside them. It was stressful. Slippery, muddy, steep areas with wild fearless children...but, now that they are all home alive, I can say it was beautiful.

Our third stop was an overlook of Split Rock Lighthouse. Once again pretty. Caroline was upset because dinner time was soon and Tyler had jokingly said that we had stopped to look for food and the only dinner they would get was what they found. She burst into tears because she "isn't good at finding things." We don't kid about food.

On a side note, getting family pictures with a nine year old boy impossible. Or with a four year old girl. Or a two year old boy. Only Maddie Mae loves the camera!

Our last stop was on the shore of Lake Superior. Tyler took the kids on a walk around the shore. August helped us get the fire going. By this time it had started to get pretty cool again. I think the high during the day was somewhere around 53*. We had a winnie roast when the kids got back. 

We quickly packed up and made one last stop at a "world famous" pie shop. We got a coconut cream pie. It was good.

We put kids in jammies, turned on movies and started home. At 9:00 we pulled in, put the kids in their beds. Tyler and I fell asleep soon after. It was a wonderful day and I am so glad we took the time before we left to visit. Until yesterday, Duluth was just a city name on the game Ticket to Ride!