The fall colors had already started to show themselves when we arrived, but with each passing minute, they seemed to change quicker and quicker.

For the first part of this hike, we decided to stop by the observation tower first.  There were quite a few steps to the top of the hill, but they were easy going steps.  Along the trail to the tower, we even came across a young deer.  I don't recall ever getting this close to wild deer while out on a hike.

The Dough Boy Trail was built by World War I veterans during the 1930s.  It is a 1.7 mile trail that follows the Bad River and takes you by The Devil's Gate, Brownstone Falls, the Cascades, and Copper Falls.  It is a nice loop that crosses the river three in different places and has only a couple areas where there are some steep steps to climb.

One of the trails in the park that we found, passes by a small lake.  It was a a bit difficult to locate and there were no paths from the trail to the lake, but it was worth the adventure it took to find it.

The above series of pictures were taken along the shore of Ashland, Wisconsin.  I have found, over the past few years, that I am drawn to the goings on around marinas.  I think it is interesting to see the larger boats up close, and I am always amazed at how people store them on land.  I know it works, but I would have a difficult time trusting the way the sailboat in the second picture is stored and held upright.

One of the things I really enjoy about coming to Lake Superior, is to see the life of the lake.  One moment, it can be as calm as a pond back home, the next, it can be a churning, boiling body of water just as fierce as the ocean.  The geese in the last picture can attest to that one.

This series of photos is from the ferry landing in Bayfield, Wisconsin.  This ferry will take you across the bay to Madeline, Island.  It is the only way to get to and from the island in warm weather.  Once the lake freezes enough, an ice road is built between the island and the mainland for people to use.  It is estimated that in the off season, 220 people call the island home.  During the busy part of the year, the population swells to 2,500 people.

The series of photos above shows you how efficient the ferry system can be.  It was only a matter of minutes from when the ferry turned the corner at the breakwater, to when it was in place with the ramp down, and people were driving off of the boat.

The series of photos above is from our second drive along the south shore of Lake Superior.  This time we drove a little further west with a few stops along the way to check out the wave action.  Believe it or not, the storm had passed early, but with the winds and the currents, the lake was still being stirred up quite a bit.

The photo series above goes to show that you just never know what you may find.  These lake boats were on display at one of our stops and I found them to be quite intriguing.  There was nothing nearby that explained why these boats were on display in the conditions they were in.

This was loading the ferry heading to Madeline Island.  I would have thought there would have been more traffic, but as you can see the ferry was barely half loaded.  That still didn't stop them from packing the cars tight, as they should.  I could barely get out of the car once it was parked.

The 2.5 mile trip across the bay from Bayfield to La Pointe takes about 20 minutes, but I found it to be an enjoyable trip.  The waters were calm, the breeze was a bit chilly, but I've always enjoyed being on the water.  Especially something as large as a ferry.

There is a good sized modern state park on the island called Big Bay State Park.   Besides being on an island, there didn't seem to be much difference between this park and other state parks we visited; which is a good thing.  I wasn't sure what types of amenities would be available being in a fairly isolated location, but it has all the comforts of home that a modern camper would enjoy.

All of the pictures in the series above are from a hike we took along the Bay View Trail.  We spent about an hour or so exploring the trail, but there is far more to the trail than we had time to explore.  You can see from the pictures there are some really interesting spots to get off of the trail and explore the rock outcroppings along the shore.   A nice advantage we had by coming late in the season was that we got to enjoy the change of seasons without having to fight large crowds.

We spent a good portion of the afternoon driving around the island.  There is a short 7 mile road on the east side of the island that leads to the Big Bay State Park, then there is a much longer road, roughly 14 to 16 miles long, on the west side that takes you nearly to the northern tip of the island.  About or 8 miles north of La Point, there is a location called Town Park.  This is a park run by the town of La Point and it has a nice camping and picnicking area, as   well as a place to rent kayaks, canoes, and other various manual powered water craft.

There is also a beach called Barrier beach that runs about a mile from Town Park over to Big Bay State Park.  The first two pictures in the second row are of Big Bay State Park Beach, and the last two are of the Town Park end.  If you follow the shoreline in the second picture of the second row along to the right, that is where Town Beach is located.  In the third picture of the same row, you can see the point of Big Bay State Park, and if you follow it to the right, it will lead along the state park beach, back to Town Park Beach.  I was tempted to walk it, but we had time restraints that prevented us from doing so.

Of course, there are always the little curiosities that one runs into when exploring new areas.  The second to last picture is of some sort of debris.  We looked at it for a bit, but couldn't quite figure out what it was.  The metal bits don't look too terribly old, and I highly doubt it is a part of any boat, but it is fun to dream.  The last picture was of another Scamp that we found located along the east side of the island.  While there are many people who build nice weekend homes, or permanent homes, many are content with purchasing a piece of land and setting it up as a private campsite.

Of course the trip had to end, but at least the last part was just as fun as the first part.  We loaded the ferry for the return trip and once again, I wandered the boat to see what was loaded aboard.  I found the large utility truck to be quite interesting sitting at the center of the ferry.  The last picture was added because I noticed our reflections in the back window of the car as we stood on the observation deck.  So far, that is the only picture this trip with both of us in it.

On the last day of our trip, we decided to take a boat tour of the Apostle Islands.  We had tried the day before, but the waves were still too high from the previous days' storms.  Even though the trip was full, we added our names to the standby list.  As it turns out, we were the first on the list and were able to get a seat on the boat.  The tour is about a three hour tour and winds through the chain of islands called the Apostle Islands.  While a good portion of them were originally in the hands of private individuals, the Federal Government enacted emanate domain, took possession of the islands, and turned them into a National Park.  The only exception to this was Madeline Island.  Since most of it was owned by private citizens and fairly developed, they decided to leave it as it was.

The boat used for the tour, the Island Princess, was originally constructed as a passenger ferry and was used to ferry passengers back and forth from Mackinaw Island.   Now it is used to take visitors on a wonderful tour of the islands.  Along the tour, we were treated to stories of the islands and their occupants, close up looks of a few lighthouses and their support structures, an old fishing camp, and day to day boating life in the islands.  I would strongly suggest this tour if you are in the area, but remember to call ahead early to reserve a seat.