Backroads Journal
Reliving Old Memories

Over the years, one of my favorite memories was a road trip taken as newly married college students. We had only been married one year, still had stars in our eyes and the world was ours. The year was 1970 and the Carpenters had a hit song, “We’ve Only Just Begun”. That song was our favorite and said everything we were feeling back then!

In those days, our needs were pretty simple! We had a Coleman stove, a few pots and pans, a wooden crate to carry our food, a cooler and one old, red kerosene lantern. Those were the days before cell phones, Bluetooth speakers, satellite TV’s, LED party lights, navigation apps or digital anything. It was just us, a map and a transistor radio playing the hit songs, when you could find a station.



Fast forward nearly 50 years and we are now traveling in our new version of Huffy, now in the form of our little Airstream Basecamp, Wallie. We are tracing the route of that 1970 trip, again meeting my sister and her husband in Bayfield. After leaving our great harbor-view condo in Bayfield that we booked, we headed east to Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula and the campground I had reserved for the night.
America’s regions that at one time relied on mining for their lifeblood have taken a hit over the years and the Copper Country of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is one of those. The town of Houghton was one of those copper boom towns. Evidence of the past prosperity exists in the beautiful red sandstone and brick buildings lining the business district. Houghton, boasting a population of just under 8,000, and the entire Keweenaw Peninsula now relies on year-round outdoor recreation for its livelihood.
The F. J. McLain State Park is one of the most popular parks in the area and is just a few miles from Houghton. We had reserved one of the last campsites two months earlier since it was mid-way between Bayfield and Munising, where the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is located. We had never done the Pictured Rocks and they were on our list of stops.

Settling in for a great evening of cocktails and snacks prior to trying out our old campfire skills of pigs-in-a-blanket on hotdog skewers, we noticed campers beginning to gather by the lake in anticipation of the sun setting. Not being ones to miss a sunset, we gathered our drinks and snacks and headed over and staked out a set of the great Adirondack chairs provided by the state park. As the crowd grew we realized that we had joined their nightly celebration of nature’s beauty. The sunset that evening happened to be dulled by the Canadian forest fire smoke, but many toasts were still made to life and enjoyment of life’s beautiful moments! During the minutes before the sun set into the haze, a seaplane just off-shore dipped its wings to the crowd in acknowledgement of the event. We have witnessed many sunsets over the years, but something made this evening more special that most!



So, here’s a toast to young love, memories made and being able to relive our good times again as we grow older!
And as the Carpenters sang, “We’ve only just begun to live, white lace and promises, a kiss for luck and we’re on our way… Before the risin’ sun, we’ll fly. So many roads to choose, we’ll start out walking and learn to run… Sharing horizons that are new to us. Watching the signs along the way. Talking it over just the two of us, workin’ together day to day… And when the evening comes, we smile. So much of life ahead, we’ll find a place where there’s room to grow…
And yes, we’ve just begun!”