Catch the Northern Lights? Climb to the top of Hogback? Visit waterfalls? This is all right up our alley. When we were challenged by Travel Marquette to accomplish as much of the summer activities as possible on the Marquette Ultimate Bucket List, we were down to make it happen!
After going through the list, we outlined our plan and the first task was to hike up Sugarloaf Mountain. The goal here was to take a panoramic photo from the top. The views from the top were great and we got the photo!
Our next move was to go right into climbing to the top of Hogback. It had been a pretty busy day already, but we decided we were ready. This hike is next level compared to Sugarloaf—much more challenging and very fun. There were multiple times when we thought we were to the top and had to continue on our way. Once we reached the top, the views were stunning! This was a rewarding hike! If you set out to accomplish this bucket list, this was one of the activities that takes the most time but also one of the most rewarding!
We knew we had to now make it back to the car and get to Presque Isle to Sunset Point in time to catch the sunset. On the way there we were able to cross off an unexpected task from the list. The freighter, Saginaw, was at the Upper Harbor Dock. We jumped out and snapped some photos before setting up for an epic sunset. We decided to go live on TikTok for the sunset and found out a few of our followers were also at Sunset Point so we met a few people and gave out some stickers, so that was fun! We also decided to get a few more photos of the Saginaw on our way out.
That was it for Day One! It was fun and action-packed and we were ready for some rest before Day Two.
Day Two started off with supporting a small business as we had coffee from Velodrome Coffee. As you may know, checking out local coffee shops is always on our personal bucket list! Next up - waterfalls. We started at Wright Street Falls. This is a very unique spot and may be a spot you will recognize from photos. The area is covered in street art. We had some fun taking photos in this pipe!
After that, we were ready to fuel up with some food, and having a pasty was on the list. We decided to go to Jean Kay's and go eat it at the Superior Dome since visiting the dome was also on the list. This led to storytime for Nick. Nick played football at NMU and was an art student. He often would walk between the dome and campus and stop at Jean Kays for pasties. Here is Nick at NMU. It looks like cameras have improved since then!
After pasties and storytime, we stayed downtown to accomplish some more tasks. Ore Dock pic, check. Lighthouse, check. Take a brisk dip in Lake Superior, check. Look for rocks or sea glass, check (well, we looked very briefly, mostly sand!) We were also determined to spot an albino deer on Presque Isle. We did spot a deer, but struck out on finding the albino deer! We ended the day with a drive to the top of Mt. Marquette to take in the views.
Overall, our trip to Marquette to tackle this bucket list couldn't have been more fun, well, unless we would have spotted the albino deer! We still have some fall and winter items to check off the list, so we are not done yet!
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