I know we have some UPers here–I think I’m going to go to Pictured Rocks this summer but my husband has an aversion to camping. In fact, he’s quite the cush-butt. I know there are some decent hotels (from my internet search) in Marquette, but I’m wondering if anyone knows of any places closer? Preferably with the possibility of 2 person whirlpools in the room.
Any thoughts?
Does it make sense to want to rent a good telescope? Can you even do that? I have no idea if maybe it would be cheaper to buy a good pair of binocs. Part of the reason I want to go up North is because of the stars. I’ve used my extreme beginner-level telescope, so I have a little experience. I want the best bang for my buck in viewing whatever happens to be out there…
Even though it’s been a while since I’ve been to Munising, I’m pretty sure I remember seeing some motels there. Can’t help you any more than that, though. Maybe Athena will be in in a moment with a trusty phone book or something…
There are many places to stay in Munising. It’s more or less a tourist town, with snowmobilers in the winter and picture rocks tourists in the summer.
Trouble is, few of them are high end. You may be able to find a suite or something at a Day’s Inn or equivalent that has a whirlpool, but if I were you I’d set my sights on to a real UP experience, and rent a cabin with a sauna. Do Google searches on Munising cabins or Au Train cabins - there are tons that show up, many of which are on Au Train river or the lake there (Au Train is about 10 miles away from Munising. It’s resort area around a couple lakes and a river.)
I wouldn’t stay in Marquette if your main focus is going to be pictured rocks. It’s a long drive - 30 minutes at least from the closest hotel.
re: stars. Mr. Athena is big into astronomy, so I got the story on that. Summer isn’t great for astronomy in da UP, but you could get lucky. You tend to either get cloudy nights, or northern lights screw up the view. If you do get a clear night, it’s amazingly dark. I highly doubt you can rent a telescope in Munising, or anywhere in the UP.
I’d go with binoculars if I were you. You can see a TON with them, and they’re a lot easier to carry around with you.
What else do you plan to do in that area? We go there at least a few times every summer… it’s a great place. Feel free to ask any questions!
Is there a month in the warm season that’s better for stars? It wouldn’t bother us if it were slightly chillier, but I don’t want it to be below 55-60 degrees F in the day. I’ve been up there several times with family (hence monster’s comment), and the reason about the stars is because I remember camping on Indian Lake one night and I came out to go to the bathroom and was completely bowled over by the night sky…I had NEVER seen anything like it in my life! I want to see that again…I was reminded by a client who camps in the UP how it is up there.
I still may be able to talk Mr. Heart into one or two nights of camping yet.
I’ll possibly visit some relatives in Manistique, and we’re also are stopping at Washington Island in Wisc. to see other relatives. I’m thinking between that and pictured rocks we won’t have time for much else.
Thanks for the Au Train suggestions–I’ll definitely follow-up on that.
I know you want to see stars, but I have a seemingly odd suggestion for Pictured Rocks, themselves. If it is raining, take the boat tour then. A lot of the richer colors get washed out in direct sunlight (or disappear into shadows if you take a morning excursion with the sun behind the cliffs). A drizzly day actually brings out the colors.
Sorry I can’t help with accomodations–we always camp.
Warm season? What is this “warm” that you speak of?
hehhe, that said, maybe I was too harsh about the cloudy sky thing in my first post. There are plenty of clear nights, but not always the best kind of clear for finding elusive dark sky objects. Sounds to me like you just want to have some nice stargazing nights, and you’ll probably have a few of those.
July and August are your best bet for warmish weather. You know how the UP is, though - some years we just skip summer. Other years - like the past few - the summers have been glorious. An even 85 degrees or so every day, lots of sunshine, mmmm… I love the UP!
Remember to have at least one meal at the Brownstone Inn, in AuTrain. It’s worth it.
If you have a spare day, check out Grand Island. Not as popular as Pictured Rocks, but just as nice in a different way. We rode our bikes around it last summer and were absolutely blown away by how gorgeous it was. Nothing like taking a leisurely bike ride and ending up on a pristine beach where you’re the only people there.
Around here, Winter has much better viewing for deep sky objects. The atmosphere is steadier. But, then, Oklahoma Summers are very hot, and the convection currents make for some very bumpy air til just before sunrise. With that large bit of water you guys got up there, it’s bound to make some air steadiness differences.
