On Friday morning, we drove/hiked to four waterfalls. I took a bunch of pictures, but none of them came out well, even by my standards. We also went to Sand Point, which turned out to be one of the highlights of the vacation. The lady at our motel told me it had been rated one of the top five beaches in the United States. I’m not a big beach guy, but it was certainly beautiful, uncrowded (we had the section we were on all to ourselves) and covered with sand, so it makes my list.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore headquarters are located in an old U.S. Coast Guard station built in 1933 and operational until 1961. During that time, the staff assisted an average of two boaters a month and, in 1940, helped rescue the crews of two steamships that ran aground in storms.
The boathouse houses the Coast Guard rescue boat Grand Marais and other exhibits.
The Beach Apparatus Cart was used to rescue boaters from shore. It contains a small cannon that shot a thin line out to a sinking craft. This line was used to carry a stronger rope that could hold a breeches buoy to take the crew off the boats one at a time. The cart also holds shovels, an ax and cutters, a sand anchor and, of course, a red chair.
The remains of the Nokomis rest on the beach near the boathouse. It was used as a training boat for the Sea Scouts.
The Grand Island East Channel Lighthouse was across the way. You can also see it in the upper left of the above photo.
We were in no hurry. We waded along the shore, chasing schools of minnows and leaving messages in the sand. My wife explored a desert island.
A few minutes later, my daughter joined her — and was very proud of her achievement.
