[darstar]

The UP is about 360 miles long, and 312 miles wide. Its a large area , for being unto itself as part of the State of Michigan. We are a geographical curiosity , to most people down state. You would be surprised at just how many of them have never been up here. I think a lot of that is because of distance. Its just too far away , when you can travel half the distance from say Detroit , and enjoy scenic beauty , historic sites , and different cultures.
It is 617 miles from Detroit to Copper Harbor. It is 631 miles from Detroit to New York City. The shortest distance from most places in the upper Midwest are attained by not going through the UP. Strangely , the Canadians have found that crossing the UP is a shortcut for them when traveling across Canada. ( better roads is part of it also ).
We are off the beaten path , most of us like it that way , but , tourist comprise a lot of our income. We need to do a better job in letting the public know what we have to offer.

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by darstar

The UP is about 360 miles long, and 312 miles wide. Its a large area , for being unto itself as part of the State of Michigan. We are a geographical curiosity , to most people down state. You would be surprised at just how many of them have never been up here. I think a lot of that is because of distance. Its just too far away , when you can travel half the distance from say Detroit , and enjoy scenic beauty , historic sites , and different cultures.
It is 617 miles from Detroit to Copper Harbor. It is 631 miles from Detroit to New York City. The shortest distance from most places in the upper Midwest are attained by not going through the UP. Strangely , the Canadians have found that crossing the UP is a shortcut for them when traveling across Canada. ( better roads is part of it also ).
We are off the beaten path , most of us like it that way , but , tourist comprise a lot of our income. We need to do a better job in letting the public know what we have to offer.

Absolutely correct! The trick is to find that happy medium where the tourism is enough to add a good amount to local income, but not enough to turn into a pain with a big increase in traffic. There is MUCH to see in the UP and I would be back to being a Yooper in a second, if my DW could take colder winters than we get down here in the Ludington area.

[darstar]

Originally Posted by Bydand

Absolutely correct! The trick is to find that happy medium where the tourism is enough to add a good amount to local income, but not enough to turn into a pain with a big increase in traffic. There is MUCH to see in the UP and I would be back to being a Yooper in a second, if my DW could take colder winters than we get down here in the Ludington area.

Around Marquette ( close to the big lake ) , it does not get that cold. Inland and further south is much colder. Rarely drops below 0. So far this winter its been high teens low twenties, with a fair amount of sunshine. The cold is dry as well. I moved from South Haven , and while the temps stay more constant here , I do not feel any colder. ( We do get more snow however. )

[Houghtonnnnn]

Originally Posted by darstar

The UP has a long history of survival of the fittest. Substance living continues in the outback , however , today , its more about tradition than actual survival. The Deer Camps are more about male bonding , than hunting .
Aside all this is the love of the outdoors , the beauty of our natural settings that surround us at every turn. We all need to give a little , both sides, and find common ground in what we share , the UP , a very special place........

To Darstar I say "Amen". . .and well said. The U.P. is indeed a very special place. I am a recent transplant from the Detroit area (currenty residing in Houghton area) and it hasn't taken me long to appreciate "the beauty of this natural setting at every turn". For me, the initials U.P. stand for unbelieveably perfect!! No need to hesitate on moving here (at least not the Houghton area) , scenery and people here are A1. And I too posted on this forum not too long ago, tentatively asking people what they thought of Houghton and trying to get a feel for them. All were helpful and spoke from the heart. In fact, i'd like to invite them over for dinner sometime. . . .LOL.

[Bluefly]

I think it would make sense to condense a lot of the scattered wildlands into cohesive tracks to both make the "big wilderness" a lure to visitors and to provide ample corridors for big wildlife. Then, that would free up other land (less naturally pristine) for logging and sensible mining.

I have to admit, it's kind of sad how often I stumble on "wild" tree farms and clear cuts and areas abused by orv's.

[thelonegunman59]

I live in Oakland county Michigan Lower Pennisula, I have been visiting the UP since I was kid with my Parents. My duagter is a student at Northern Michigan Univ. Marquette, her best friend goes to Mich Tech.
as far as we are concerned she is an very safe community, when we compare it to most other college towns and some of the surrounding cities near our home.

As far as the people up there are concerned, I have never met a Yooper who was not, warm , friendly and did'nt make you feel welcome.

I have camped, backpacked, the Porkies, Pictured Rocks, Isle Royale. Tahquanemon Falls and lot of the national & state campgrounds. I am nut when it comes to the history up there, I can't get enough, all the way back 4,ooo years ago when they mined Isle royale for copper to the revolutanary war at Mackinaw. I have never left the UP without making at least one new friend.
A few of my favorite towns are Munising, Newberry, Marquette, Copper Harbor, Ontonagon, Brimley.

Here is something I posted on my facebook page it comes from the website: Wolves - Defenders of Wildlife

[SIZE=3]Threats[/SIZE]
The most common cause of death for wolves is conflict with people over livestock losses. While wolf predation on livestock is fairly uncommon, wolves that do prey on them are often killed to protect the livestock. Defenders is working with livestock owners to develop non-lethal methods to reduce the chances of a wolf attacking livestock. These methods include fencing livestock, lighting, alarm systems and removing dead or dying livestock that may attract carnivores like wolves.
Another serious threat is human encroachment into wolf territory, which leads to habitat loss for wolves and their prey species.
Overall, the greatest threat to wolves is people’s fear and misunderstanding about the species. Many fairy tales and myths tend to misrepresent wolves as villainous, dangerous creatures.
[SIZE=3]Diet (Notice Humans are not on the menu!)[/SIZE]
Staples Ungulates (large hoofed mammals) like elk, deer, moose and caribou.
Also known to eat beaver, rabbits and other small prey. Wolves are also scavengers and often eat animals that have died due to other causes like starvation and disease

Originally Posted by SpaceGhost79

I love the west side of the U.P., but that's because I like the hilly terrain more. The east side is very flat.

Houghton is home to Michigan Tech University, so it's a college town but a beautiful area.

I don't know what the population scale is in the U.P., but maybe there's been more crime on the west side due to more people living out there? I'd like to say there's more bigger towns on the west side than east. Outside of your petty stuff, though, hard crime in the U.P. is rare.

I don't hunt myself, but I don't have an issue with people who do as long as it's legal. But it does dishearten me when some idiot decide to illegally kill something for the fun of it or just out of cold blood.

There was a story on a local TV station's website a few days ago about a wolf that was illegally killed (they are federally protected here). The DNR found it's radio collar. I realize there's two sides to the wolf issue in the U.P., but like it or not they're here to stay. Personally, I love'em. But when some viewer actually commented on the website that it's great someone killed the wolf and encouraged others to shoot a wolf in the hind legs if they see one so it will go back to its pack and the pack will kill it for being weak (they meant it, too) That's just downright disgusting. People like that deserve to be shot. It's people like that that give the real hunters a bad rap.

Sorry for my side rant...people like that just bother me. Anyways, the deer population would get out of control if there wasn't a hunting season. For instance, drive a car up here outside the city between dusk and dawn and chances are you'll come across a herd or two of deer feeding along the shoulder of the road and praying that one of them doesn't decide to walk out in front of your car. I can't imagine what it would be like without a hunting season.

I understand your point of view, but in this area of the country having a hunting season is definitely needed.

[darstar]

Originally Posted by thelonegunman59

I live in Oakland county Michigan Lower Pennisula, I have been visiting the UP since I was kid with my Parents. My duagter is a student at Northern Michigan Univ. Marquette, her best friend goes to Mich Tech.
as far as we are concerned she is an very safe community, when we compare it to most other college towns and some of the surrounding cities near our home.

As far as the people up there are concerned, I have never met a Yooper who was not, warm , friendly and did'nt make you feel welcome.

I have camped, backpacked, the Porkies, Pictured Rocks, Isle Royale. Tahquanemon Falls and lot of the national & state campgrounds. I am nut when it comes to the history up there, I can't get enough, all the way back 4,ooo years ago when they mined Isle royale for copper to the revolutanary war at Mackinaw. I have never left the UP without making at least one new friend.
A few of my favorite towns are Munising, Newberry, Marquette, Copper Harbor, Ontonagon, Brimley.

Here is something I posted on my facebook page it comes from the website: Wolves - Defenders of Wildlife

[SIZE=3]Threats[/SIZE]
The most common cause of death for wolves is conflict with people over livestock losses. While wolf predation on livestock is fairly uncommon, wolves that do prey on them are often killed to protect the livestock. Defenders is working with livestock owners to develop non-lethal methods to reduce the chances of a wolf attacking livestock. These methods include fencing livestock, lighting, alarm systems and removing dead or dying livestock that may attract carnivores like wolves.
Another serious threat is human encroachment into wolf territory, which leads to habitat loss for wolves and their prey species.
Overall, the greatest threat to wolves is people’s fear and misunderstanding about the species. Many fairy tales and myths tend to misrepresent wolves as villainous, dangerous creatures.
[SIZE=3]Diet (Notice Humans are not on the menu!)[/SIZE]
Staples Ungulates (large hoofed mammals) like elk, deer, moose and caribou.
Also known to eat beaver, rabbits and other small prey. Wolves are also scavengers and often eat animals that have died due to other causes like starvation and disease

The question IS now , when are you moving up here ? I put it off for 30 years ,.... I wish I had mustered the courage long ago , and , followed my dream...then.

[BigLake]

Could someone just post some pictures of Western UP and Marguette already? Western UP is the most beautiful area in the Midwest-- at least to me.

Also, Im getting a hankering for venison. Enough with the hunt talk.

[SpaceGhost79]

Originally Posted by BigLake

Could someone just post some pictures of Western UP and Marguette already? Western UP is the most beautiful area in the Midwest-- at least to me.

Also, Im getting a hankering for venison. Enough with the hunt talk.

If you missed it in the Pics of Spectacular Michigan sticky thread, here were a few pics I posted last week:

Little Presque Isle Under the Lights
Taken from atop Sugarloaf Mountain in Marquette looking out at Little Presque Isle and Lake Superior



Lower Manabezho Falls
Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park



Fall at the tip
Fall colors from atop Brockway Mountain

[valzena]

Stunning Pics.