The Big Two-Hearted River

My buddy Matt fishing the famed Two-Hearted River this past week.

Covid. 

That sums up the year to date here at the Amber Liquid Anglers' clubhouse. Probably sums up your year,too.

We took a socially-distancing camping trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula this past week. We each had our own tent/trailer/van. We socially distanced. We wore masks. It worked well enough.

The U.P. is a tough place to sight-read.The water was high as we arrived. The Two-Hearted itself came down eighteen inches while we were there.

These pictures represent some of our "lessons-learned."

Above: the Two-Hearted at Reed and Green bridge. It is lovely water -- once the river goes down. A great deal of tannin is present which makes wading a little uncertain. The bottom is hard and firm and wading is easy using ordinary caution.

Above: Lake Superior shoreline looking west near dusk. We camped at the Mouth of the Two-Hearted State Campground and found it easy enough to avoid other campers. I think I used about 125 sanitizer sheets while I was there. Superior having a surface temperature of sixty-four degrees did not attract a large number of swimmers, sunbathers, or aquasports enthusiasts. She kills a number of folks each summer who fall off their kayaks, go into the water, cramp, and drown.

Above: Paws in water.  One must experience the local waters for themselves. Superior can be refreshing on a bright eighty-nine degree day. Yes, fishing was tough in those conditions.

A typical U.P. road. Most of the roads are of this sort: dirt or sand running miles through forest without a break.. We covered a great deal of water and so roared down many miles of these. Keep an eye on the gas gauge. These are indeed the "boonies."

The Two-Hearted campground area suffered a massive forest fire a few years ago just as in Hemingway's day. The country near the lower end of the Two-Hearted is brutal. 

Obligatory tourist photos:

Two-Hearted (lite) on the Two-Hearted.

A river and some D.B. pointing to the sign instead of the water.

The North Country Trail and my friend Kevin making a short trip.

The Senator on the trial about one hundred feet above Lake Superior delighted to check messages thanks to Rogers in Canada. It was the only signal he could find for much of the trip.

The view from where The Senator stands in the above picture.

Those are two of our crew on the beach.

My crew beside a small unnamed lake. No masks as this is the "proof of life" photo. They worry about me sometimes.

A plaque to Hemingway at the Fox River (believed to be the actual river used in the Nick Adam's Stories).

That's my 8'  McKellip rod on a Steffen Bros. blank with a stacked leather grip and a Hardy Perfect which was indeed perfect.

The Fox is a mess, by the way. It is jungle fishing here on the east branch.

A typical U.P. hiking trail. Yep. That's the trail.

Above: The benefits of foraging in the right season. The general crop was almost ripe. Just mind the locals if you go picking.

The berry patch is never quite yours alone.

I hope your health is sound and the trout are happy to see you.

Prost. (My thanks to Larry Bell and company!).