Lighthouses & Beer – Duluth, MN
There are certain things that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. You know what I’m talking about right? Like that special blankie you carried everywhere as a kid, or that old, comfy chair that just you’ve sat in so many times it just folds around you like a glove. It’s that feeling of comfort, that deep sigh that escapes your lips when you settle in, that indescribable sense of security and contentment.
What may surprise you (or not) is that I get that same feeling around lighthouses.
When I see an old beauty on the shore, her tower standing tall, steadfast and true. When I see the light that shines so brightly to the horizon, a light that’s guided so many before me, a lifesaver that’s warned and protected for decades or hundreds of years. When I stand there before that historic structure, so full of stories of light keepers, wild weather and dedication. Yup, I get all warm and fuzzy inside.
I’m a lighthouse nut, no doubt about it and I’m not really ashamed to admit it. And as a certified nutter, I’m attracted like a zombie on raw brains to the Great Lakes. And it’s all about the numbers…
There are a mere 11 lighthouses in Oregon, a more impressive 60 lighthouses in Maine, but there are over 125 lighthouses in Michigan alone! The number might be surprising until you’re able to grasp how much water is really out here.
Lake Superior spans a massive area of 31,700 square miles (82,100 square kilometers) and holds 3 quadrillion gallons or 10% (!!) of the world’s surface fresh water. To put that into perspective, that’s enough to cover both North and South America under a foot of water, or enough water that the entire population of earth (all 7 billion people) could drink a half gallon a day for 2,348 years (and no, I’m not making this stuff up). Put all 5 Great Lakes together and you’ve got the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth containing 21% of the world’s surface fresh water by volume.
Those are mind-blowing numbers and mean these lakes act more like oceans than anything else. They get crazy storms, they generate 40-foot waves, and they have thousands of miles of dangerous nooks and crannies of coastline. Plus they are major shipping arteries. Which is of course exactly WHY there are so many lighthouses here.
We decided to get our first taste of the Great Lakes in Duluth, MN the second-largest city on Lake Superior’s shores. Nestled right at the very Western corner of the lake it shares a heavily active harbor with next-door Superior, WI and together they make up what’s known as the “Twin Ports“. The combo of shipping & location means there are no less than 5 lighthouses just around the city itself, with 2 more within a mere 47 miles. Lighthouse Scooooooooooore!!!
There’s plenty of other stuff in Duluth too. Some good breweries, some excellent beaches and many miles of biking trails & hikes. Oh and wild rice…seriously! Wild rice has been traditionally hand-harvested by the Ojibway along the lakeshore for centuries and it’s still very much a MN thing. Duluthian’s (is that a real word?) eat wild rice much like the Danes eat potatoes. So, if you come here you have to try at least something that contains it.
We arrived on a grey Thursday afternoon and settled “the beast” into a lovely green County Park only 15 minutes from downtown (review coming). The next 2 days we loaded Polly in the car, ran around and explored. Here’s what we got up to…
Split Rock Lighthouse, MN
Located just ~47 miles NE of Duluth, Split Rock Lighthouse is one of those lighthouses that’s been on my bucket list for years. She’s a gorgeous red-brick beauty built on a rocky shoreline high above the lake and her light first lit the water in July 1910. What makes her unique is how well-preserved she is, not just the structure itself but her “innards” too. She still has the original bivalve 3rd order Fresnel lens which still rotates on seven quarts of mercury and still has all the original clockwork mechanism! The keepers houses are also all intact and one of them has been fully restored to 1920’s era. Wow!
I was so keen to see this gal I was the very first person in line for a ticket and the very first and only person in the tower when they opened the door. I think I also freaked out the volunteer keeper a bit because I was there when he wound up the lens and got so excited I might have babbled incoherently and gone rather weak in the knees. After he left and I was able to compose myself I enjoyed 10 glorious minutes completely alone watching the 2.5 tons Fresnel rotate in the lens room {{swoon}}. What a beautiful girl!
VISIT NOTES/ The lighthouse is open 10-6PM daily and costs $10 to visit. If you come outside of visiting hours the gates are open (you can walk around the grounds at no charge), but you cannot enter the buildings or lighthouse. Ground tours are offered, but the lens room & keepers houses are self-guided. More info HERE.
BRING DOGGIE? YES, if there’s two of you. Dogs are not allowed into the historic area of the lighthouse (around the buildings), but they are allowed in the doggie exercise area just outside and on all the other trails inside the state park. You can also take doggie to the pebble beach by the picnic area down the road. Paul and I took turns visiting the lighthouse while the other walked Polly on the park trails.
Two Harbors Lighthouse, MN
If you’ve made the pilgrimage to Split Rock, you might as well do the short drive to Two Harbors on your way back to Duluth. This equally beautiful lighthouse is actually the oldest active lightouse in Minnesota and developed in synch with the boom of iron ore shipping in the area. She was first lit in 1892 and consists of a two-story, square, redbrick dwelling with gables facing the south and west, and a twelve-foot-square light tower attached between the gables. She no longer has her original lens (unfortunately), but still boasts a rather interesting twenty-four-inch aerobeacon. These days the lighthouse is in private hands, but she’s beautifully maintained & definitely worth the visit!
By the way for those of you who are “pie fans” there are two famous pie shops in the area. Betty’s is perhaps the better known and most touristy, but the locals apparently all go to Judy’s Cafe. We didn’t try either so I’m leaving that review for you.
VISIT NOTES/ Lighthouse is open May-Oct, 8-4PM Mon-Fri. Cost $5 to visit, self-guided. More info HERE.
BRING DOGGIE? YES, if there’s two of you. Dogs are not allowed into the lighthouse grounds, but there is plenty of space to walk doggie outside around the little lakeshore park. Paul and I took turns visiting the lighthouse while the other walked Polly on the park trails.
Duluth Breakwater Lights & Lakewalk, MN
Downtown Duluth oozes with the charm of old cobblestone roads and restored industrial brick buildings, but our fav part of town was undoubtedly the Lakewalk by Canal Park. Offering over 3 miles of hiking/walking/biking trail, it runs right alongside the lake and ends by the Maritime Museum (free to visit and very cool, by the way) and the man-made Duluth Ship Canal that provides the main shipping entrance into Duluth Harbor.
This is where you’ll be greeted with 3 lovely lighthouse specimens North Breakwater Light (1909), South Breakwater Outer Light (1901) and South Breakwater Inner Light (1901) which are all in wonderful condition. None of the lighthouses are open for visitation, but you can walk right up to them on the pier and (if you’re lucky) even snap a selfie with 2 of them in the same frame. A great little outing, especially when the weather is nice.
VISIT NOTES/ Lighthouses are not open for visitation, but you can walk right up to them on the Canal piers for free. If you want stamps for your lighthouse book, you can get them next-door at the Maritime Museum.
BRING DOGGIE? YES. The lakewalk and the walk out on the lighthouse pier(s) is dog-friendly.
Wisconsin Point Lighthouse, WI
The last lighthouse outing we did from Duluth took us just over the bridge to the WI side and down a long natural sand spit. The lighthouse at the top of Wisconsin Point (also known as Superior Entry Lighthouse) is another gorgeous specimen located at the end of a long rocky pier. It’s a bit of an expedition to get here (long, bumpy road), but if you make the pilgrimage you’ll find not only a very pretty lighthouse but over 2.5 miles of fine red dog-friendly sand beach, woods and trails. It seems to be a local kite-surfing spot too so you might get to see a few kite-surfers zoom across the waves. This area is remote, wild and gorgeous!
VISIT NOTES/ Free to visit. Road to the point is open 4AM-11PM. You *can* scramble over the rocky pier out to the lighthouse, but it’s considered dangerous and at your own risk. When we were there the waves were high and there was no way we were willing to do it.
BRING DOGGIE/ YES. Lovely, dog-friendly beach to romp w/ doggie while you enjoy the lighthouse view.
Breweries & Beer
There is quite a serious brewery scene in the Mid-West and when we hit Duluth we knew we had to try at least a few of the local options, even if we only had 2 days to do it.
Fitgers Brewery, Duluth, MN – Fitgers Brewery is actually more like a brewery & mall all-in-one. They occupy a huge building by the Lakewalk, offer several different bars & restaurants on-site and seem very popular indeed. The beers were decent, but not outstanding in our opinion. The Apricot Wheat was tasty, as was the Mariners Mild, but the Hefeweizen was actually my fav here and would do well for a hot day. We also tried the burgers which were decent, but not overly exciting. No dogs allowed here.
Thirsty Pagan Brewery, Superior, WI – We hit this brewery with Polly on the way back from visiting Wisconsin Point Lighthouse and it was the perfect spot to quench our thirst. Thirsty Pagan Brewery have a cozy pub-style interior and 4 outdoor tables on the sidewalk where you can sit and enjoy a brew with pooch. Lovely set of beers here and much higher quality than Fitgers IMHO. We particularly enjoyed the Burnt Wood Black Ale, the Pagan IPA, the Saison and the Triple Belgian (the latter was Paul’s fav). They apparently serve a good Pizza here too, but we didn’t try it.
Sadly we missed the Bent Paddle which was closed while we were there.
BRING DOGGIE? YES to Thirsty Pagan, NO to Fitgers.
That’s about all we managed in our short 2 days in the city. We hit quite a bit of rain, especially on our 2nd day so we didn’t get to try any of the extensive bike trails, many of which looked very much Nina-friendly. We did however discover an excellent grocery store, Whole Foods Co-Op which also carried some outstanding local gluten-free bread from 3rd Street Bakery, so I you need to stock up on veggies and specialty stuff that’s your spot.
From here we move Eastwards towards the middle of the south shoreline of Lake Superior. Got several stops planned, all rather fast but hopefully giving us enough time to get a taste of more of the Great Lakes. Onwards we go….
Useful Links:
- Visit Duluth -> Main visitors page. Link HERE
- Duluth & MN Lighthouses -> Click link HERE (map)
- Duluth Breweries -> Click HERE
I am totally excited to check this area out and recently had a conversation about the pie and other places in the area with a woman at a historical site in Bloomington, MN. I saw some lighthouses on the eastern shore of WI when leaving Door County plus one on Lake Winnebago in Fond du Lac (free and open to the public with a nice view and history/photos documented inside it.) Loved Lake Michigan and eagar to see Lake Superior!
Fun times!
I thought Split Rock was the prettiest lighthouse I’d seen when the picture came up – but Two Harbors definitely comes close. How wonderful to see them both – and so many more!! I can tell you’re in lighthouse heaven 🙂 We have to see the northern part of MN next time through for sure. Good to see Polly looking so spry – you and Paul too :-)))))
I have to admit we’re enjoying the lighthouse abundance up here. Been hitting some rainy weather which had been hampering our efforts a bit, but hoping for some sunshine soon. It’s a pretty area of the country.
Nina
I have been to Split Rock lighthouse many times since I was a child. She is a beauty. I have stayed overnight at the lighthouse in Two Harbors, as it is a bed and breakfast run by the local historical society. I got to watch one of the big ships dock late one night from my bedroom window! Cool!
Sweeeet! What a great memory!
Nina
We loved our time along the southern shoe of Lake Superior last year and was fun to see your pictures again. We enjoyed the campground and food in Two Harbors including the wild rice in everything. Duluth was a great place to visit also. Glad you are getting your lighthouse fixes.
The wild rice thing was a total surprise to me. I ate it as a child in Asia, but I’d never really seen it in the USA before, at least not on a regular basis. I couldn’t really understand why all the restaurants in MN were offering wild rice until I read about the history. So interesting.
Nina
Some years ago we traveled to Minnesota while pulling a trailer and had an awesome time and we decided to visit my sister in Michigan and agreed to meet her in Sault Ste. Marie. Instead of taking the southern route we chose to go around Lake Superior on the Canadian side and I have to tell you it is the most beautiful drive in North America. We were simply blown away… if you ever get the chance, take that drive. You will fall completely in love!!!
Love your words and pics.
We hit the road fulltime in the spring of 2019… hoping to see you in our travels.
Chuck and Tammy
One day we definitely want to do this whole drive on the Canadian side. In fact I have a dream of driving entirely across the continent on that side. One day…
Nina
Love this post, Nina! Split Rock is a gem, isn’t she? Two Harbors was built the same year as Old Mackinac Point, and you will note some similarities in the design. We loved the Duluth area when we were there.
If you do get to Mackinaw City, be sure to stop into the Great Lakes Ligthouse Keepers Association directly across the street from Old Mackinac Point. Great people, and they can give you tons of information.
Have fun!
We sure will. Can’t wait to check out Mackinac. That’s another “bucket list” lighthouse for us.
Nina
We made it to Split Rock and Two Harbors Lighthouses but didn’t make it to Duluth, as we toured the North Shore up to Isle Royale NP. Duluth looks like a city we should have included. Excellent photos of lighthouses Nina. And that sunset shot looks so serene.
There’s so much coastline here it’s hard to see it all. I knew the Great Lakes were big before we came here, but I don’t think it *quite* hit me how big they really were until we were actually standing in front of them. It’s such an odd feeling to be at a “lake” and not be able to see the other side.
Nina
Hi, Fellow Travellers! Great shots of the lighthouses!
We are leaving the SOO after loving to watch the huge lakers traveling through the locks. A major “highway” supplying incredible tonnage to the rest of the Nation and Canada. Watching a huge laker passing by from our campsite at Soo Locks Campground. Friendly staff, good amenities, right on the river.
Heading to Munising tomorrow, will check out the lighthouses (didn’t know you were there when we booked it), then off to Duluth to see the Tall Ships Festival. Have to boondocks there, as everything in the full service parks for 50 miles around has been booked for this since February!
The Tall Ships sounds like sooooo much fun! We’re doing the exact opposite of you. We’re in Munising for 1 day only and then zooming to Sault St.Marie next! I’m hoping this rain lifts and we’ll finally get some clear weather.
Nina
I spent 11 of my 21 yrs in the Coast Guard on the Great Lakes and share your love for these old Maritime sentinels. So much so that I replaced the awful Winnebago art in my Horizon with Leo Kuschel lighthouse prints. Leo was a very gifted artist who specialized in lighthouses and ships of the Great Lakes. His print of Split Rock LH is one of my favorites. Google Leo Kuschel prints to see was he lefts us (he passed last April at 83).
Oh how lovely! I will certainly look up his art work. We have a lighthouse night-light and several other lighthouse-themed stuff in our rig. Gotta have a sentinel somewhere even if we can’t be close to one in real person.
Nina
great post…although I am not a nutter about lighthouses I can appreciate their beauty and diversification..(we did visit a few while in Michigan) .BTW you would love the ones in New Foundland..
I’m sure I would. The East Coast lighthouse have so much more history too. A lot older than the West.
Nina
Funnie! You’re there…we’re in Oregon actually traveling this summer! We’ve been to the lakes! Had Betty’s pie! It was worth the very very long wait on a Sunday!
Have fun!
Good to know the pie is worth it. There’s certainly a dedicated following both online and at the shop. Parking lot at Betty’s was full even on the Monday when we went through.
Nina
We loved Lake Superior and Duluth, too. We did get to ride the trail on our bikes several times. We did the Fitger Brewery, as well! Glad you are getting to see so many lightbouses:) Your face is going to ache by the time you leave this area from your continuous grin:)
Thank you for sharing information with us about an area of the country I’ve never visited & probably few of us have. I had no idea how large the Great Lakes were singularly & cumulatively!
The lighthouses are gorgeous! They look as if they’re very well-preserved & loved.
It’s wonderful seeing Miss Polly looking so chipper & happy! You’ve all been through a lot the past few months.
Happy Trails, Nina & Paul
Thanks for sharing! You always make us feel like we’re there! We’re hosting a Lighthouse in Michigan now for two weeks.
How cool! Which lighthouse are you at?
Nina
Great write up Nina! It’s amazing to see how different all of these lighthouses are. Here on PEI, many of the lighthouses are very similar to one another. To see how different each structure is in regards to these lighthouses is incredible.
There’s definitely lots of variety here. Interesting for me to see the red brick options and some of the square towers (we don’t have those in Oregon). Lots more to come…
Nina
Oh! We are in the same neck of the woods! Will you be going to Mackinac Island or ? In the next couple days? Would love to meet up with you two (or three) and share a beer and story or two, if you are open to it. We will be at Sleeping Bear tonight, Wilderness Park for a couple nights, then on to Munising on Wed. Hope to visit Mackinaw on Tues or Wed.
Hi Renee,
We’re not scheduled to be in Mackinaw until later this week (maybe Friday?). We’re currently in Sault St.Marie, and will have to see if we can snag a spot somewhere in Mackinaw later this week. I think you might be gone by then?
Nina
Like ships passing in the night. Dang! We are heading to Mackinaw Island in the morning, then on to Munising. Will watch for another opportunity in the future. Enjoy! I heard that Sault St Marie had great town parks for ship watching. Thanks for continued inspiration!
Yup we’ve got a nice water view site here in Sault St. Marie. Hoping to get to Mackinaw next, but everything is booked solid. We’ll see…
Nina
” And as a certified nutter, I’m attracted like a zombie on raw brains to the Great Lakes.”……..
HaHaHa! …. Way, way too funny!
Although not the Great Lakes for me, I too am a “certified nutter”. I go off on tangents.. I am one who stops by the side of the road to stare at and ponder the deeper meaning in shiny objects more often than not..
They tell me I may be crazy.. But deep inside I know.. 🙂
Thanks Nina for sharing your awesome photo’s, writing, trip reports, info and most of all thoughts..
It’s good to have a healthy tangent is what I say, especially if it gets you outside 🙂
Nina
Love all your posts, pictures and statistics (I am a Maryland Master Gardener). Very beautiful and interesting. I am putting this on my bucket list. Thank you.
Yep, another set of great pictures:)!
Don’t know your direction, but we really enjoyed all that Racine, WI had to offer. The SC Johnson tour, as well as the Johnson family home, worth the trip alone. Toss in 10+ Wright Homes in the area, and a bonus old lighthouse too.
We enjoyed this park:
http://www.rvparkreviews.com/regions/wisconsin/caledonia/cliffside-county-park
Some cut pathways thru the taller grasslands around the park, makes for some good hiking and doggie’s sure seemed to enjoy it too.
Travel safe, and I know you two will keep having fun:)!
Smitty
Lovely tip! We kind if rushed through WI to get to MI, but tears a great tip from r when/if we go back.
Nina
Thanks for this stop in your journey. You continue to nurture my adventure lust and inquisitiveness of lighthouses and related relics of this beautiful country.
Impatiently waiting for the next installment …. (tap, tap, tap)
Really enjoy reading your travel posts. Hope you have/had time to visit our favorite place up the north shore Grand Marais, MN.
If you do, you will enjoy all the galleries and eatery’s. Angry Trout Grill is the best ! You can sit right on the lake harbor and the food and view is awesome !
Nice tip! Don’t know if we’ll have the chance to stop, but if we do I’m adding that restaurant to my list.
Nina
Enjoyed your post.
We are currently in MI on the Leelanau peninsula NW of Traverse City. We love the area and have traveled around the state enjoying the lighthouses for a number of years. Beside lighthouses MI has quite a few good breweries. One is Founders in Grand Rapids. If GR is not on your stop list Founders ‘Dirty Bastard’ is a very excellent ale that can be found around the state in bottles and is excellent in the bottle. I’m an IPA man, but this ale is most excellent! By the way, there are 24 wineries in the Traverse City area, also.
We looooove Founders. One of our fav breweries. We hope (maybe) to make it up there if we can. Paul also likes “Dirty Bastard”. He’s an IPA man through and through.
Nina
You two are in our back door. Kristy and I were up in that area last week. Come to Door County that’s where our Seasonal spot is. We’ll take you on a local Brew Tour 🙂
I had to look that up, but I found your location. Cool spot to spend the season! I don’t know if we’ll be making it to that side of the peninsula, but if we do I’ll def let you know!
Nina
I have lived around the Great lakes most of my life and enjoyed many lighthouses and boating on most of them. Love watching the freighters as well. Enjoy you time in the area, so much to see.
We are lucky enough to live halfway between Duluth and Two Harbors. My wife was a park volunteer at the adjoining State Park (cart/walk in campsites only) for a few years after she retired.
Professionally, I have been involved in understanding how air and moisture travel through the double skin of Split Rock Light. The lighthouse is actually a steel structure clad in and out in brick. The builders of old put perforated brass vents low on the inside and steel hoods high on the outside to keep the steel dry, but they could be a bit bigger, especially with all the heavy breathing from people climbing the stairs.
We smoke bombed the vents to make sure they were working: have some cool photos of that. (And yes they do still work, but some caulking needed around the windows.
Cool info and history! Quite a few lighthouses on the west coast are double-walled and have those same type of vents (they still work in Cape Blanco too), but I had no idea Split Rock had steel underneath that red brick exterior. Somehow I totally missed that when we were there. And how interesting to be involved in that part of the lighthouse. Thanks so much for sharing that! Love it!
Nina
As a long-time Duluthian (yes, it’s word :D) — but who’s out on the road now instead — I really enjoyed reading and seeing your take on my home patch. Got a bit mistily nostalgic.
I know you won’t be there, but in November, on the anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, they light the light at Split Rock. Being out on the big lake in a kayak to watch it is a neat experience.
Don’t know where you are heading (and there are so many nice spots), but you might enjoy the Keweenaw Peninsula, which also has some pretty lighthouses (some a bit more secret than others).
Duluthian is a real word! I love it! Really enjoyed exploring your old home town. It’s a vibrant little city and packs in so much more than I ever imagined. It was a lovely introduction to the Great Lakes area.
Nina
We are spending the summer as volunteers at Grand Portage National Monument – up the shore from Duluth just short of the Canadian border. Never knew this part of the world was so beautiful or had such wonderful weather in the summer. We have hiked in all the state parks along the North Shore and had supper at Betty’s Pies. Not only are the pies delicious – the pasties are also excellent. The Coho Cafe in Tofte is another great place to eat along the shore. We now have wild rice as a staple in our cupboard.
What an awesome volunteer gig! Cheers for the extra tips in the area too.
Nina
Welcome to the Great Lakes!
When I was but a wee living in Two Harbors with a view of the lighthouse out our back window, it was all rather mundane. The lighthouses were old and run down and I think you could tour for free. The rocky shore inside the breakwater was lined with old dilapidated boathouses, some still in use. The iron ore tankers would come in to the bay on a regular basis with assistance from the Edna G. tugboat and get loaded from trains a hundred feet above. In the winter they would crash through the thick ice like it was slush. My favorite place was the museum. It was packed with cool and interesting things from days long past. They have since renovated and all the cool stuff is gone. We would play on the steam trains on display. I remember the storm of the Edmond Fitzgerald and the waves crashing high over the breakwater while the foghorn wailed. I would fish from that breakwater trying to catch a great northern pike. That was lifetimes ago and a very different world of miners, hippies, wilderness, bears, smelt fries and old cars. It was exciting and interesting times. It seems so quiet now. I loved growing up there.
Love hearing people’s personal stories about an area we visit. The “mundane back yard” thing is a common phenomenon when you live somewhere. We lived in San Francisco for years and although I always thought the city was pretty, I don’t think I ever realized HOW pretty it was until we left. Thanks for sharing your story!
Nina
There were mornings I would awaken to a dense silence, as if the world outside had ceased to exist.
I eased out of my warm cocoon for a look through the pane to discover the house had lifted into the clouds. No, not just the house, the yard and the lake too.
Then a familiar calling, deep and reassuring, somewhere distant, further than usual. The fog horn could barely penetrate the damp mass.
Then a flash. Piercing the cloud with insistent determination, the light of the house on the rock would not be quenched. Electricity burned through her filament and heat traveled through her giant eye focused intently on the shrouded horizon. A deep yellow beam, the accidental wavelength of a power hungry orb and the tinted impurity of the glass, perfect for penetrating into the void. Sweeping the fog, ghosts scattering in the light, she sliced futilely over the lake. The fog horn moaned, then listened, deep silence, moaned again.
Success! Mission accomplished, the giant rope of light snagged a ship and its deep red hull materialized slowly from the mist, pulled along the beam from a distant mysterious realm into the safety of the harbor. The fog horn yawled like a cow guiding her calf. The tug at her side shouldering her into dock. It all happened so silently, so efficiently, so easily missed by those still dreaming.
Even in the earliest hours when all are asleep and the air rests heavy while the land and the lake float in the clouds, there is never nothing going on.
A story for you, Nina, of lighthouses and wonder, from one morning in my childhood. At the time, only the lighthouse seemed mundane.
Very poetic and well-written. Love it!
Nina
Awesome lighthouse photos!
hi. I have just found your site and love it. We are from MN and love Duluth and the lighthouses. We have always wanted to fulltime rv once we retired,We got a few snags with Our daughter having major anxity and very high IQ yet many social issues so she will likely always be with us and no income. I was diagnosed with cancer and 2 weeks to live almost 7 years ago. I have been disabeld sence never knowing what each day will bring. we use to travell on the road all the time motels,can,t do that anymore but we can travel in an rv so now that my husband (steve) is 2 1/2 years ftom retirement planig stages are starting.
I have a question about rv memberships. I found american campground membership that is $10 a night at public rv parks have you heard of it and if so what do you think?
Thanks for all your effort on your blog i look foward to reading it all. Thanks DonnaSue
So very sorry to hear of all your troubles. Regarding campground membership I’ve never heard of American Campground and that makes me very suspicious. I don’t know of any “membership” deal that gives you $10 camping at public parks. Each state is different and managed individually so I don’t believe the deal is real.
What I’d recommend for you is looking into the Golden Age Passport (senior passport) which offers 50% off camping in National Parks, National Forests and COE. Also check for disabled passes for your state. Many states offer either discount camping or (sometimes) a limited number of free camping days. I’ve got more about memberships that I recommend in this post:
RV Camping Club Memberships – Are They Worth It?
Nina
Awesome post and did not realize all the information you put in there. Especially all the lighthouses. I could feel your excitement as I read the post and think its awesome. Definetly postmarking this to check these out. Thanks so much for sharing and happy travels.
Hey Nina and Paul!
Thanks for sharing all the info about lighthouses – I had no idea there were so many out there! My mom loves lighthouses too. I’m hoping we can take her to one soon. I think it would make a nice birthday present, but unfortunately, her birthday is on Christmas…
Maybe I’ll call it a Christmas in July gift haha. Anyway, thanks for writing this up! I can tell you put a lot of work into it. 🙂
Cheers!
Bill
Well, depending how nuts you want to go you could actually celebrate Christmas at a lighthouse! Many lighthouses have restored (and furnished) keeper houses that are rented to the public (e.g. North Head in WA is an example). Some lighthouses even put up Christmas trees and create a festive atmosphere (e.g. Dungeness Spit in WA comes to mind). It’s not cheap, but it’s a totally unique experience and it happens at many lighthouses across the country. Not sure which part of the country you’re in, but perhaps it’s a possibility?
Nina
Hey Nina, thanks for the reply. 🙂
Christmas in a lighthouse sounds awesome! I’m sure she’d love that. She lives in the NE of Pennsylvania. No lighthouses near us, unfortunately. 🙁
Maybe one day, though!
WOW!! Seems you were in Duluth the same weekend we were! Ron has absolutely fallen in LOoooVE with your posts and reads them religiously! Thanks for the inspiration and the encouragement! We have yet to buy our RV but…..it’s coming, and I’d love to share our picture of the lighthouse at Split Rock…..I’m going to recreate it in stained glass.
We also went to the falls and ate at Joe’s Pickwick Tavern. It’s not a craft brewery, but they have a FAB selection of beers and the food was just as good as the stories from this 1914 tavern!
On your next trip to Duluth you MUST stop at Gooseberry Falls. AHHHHHHmazing! and then there’s also Enger Observation Tower and the surrounding gardens. Also glorious!
Thanks for the beauty you share!
Oh I’d LOVE to see your stained glass creation if you decide to make it. Do send me a pic if/when you do!
Thanks for the lovely compliments and the extra tips. Sorry we missed each other in the area.
Nina