{"id":5079,"date":"2012-07-26T11:16:50","date_gmt":"2012-07-26T19:16:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/drewbrophy.com\/?p=5079"},"modified":"2012-07-26T11:16:50","modified_gmt":"2012-07-26T19:16:50","slug":"caves-and-waves-exploring-lake-superior-michigan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drewbrophy.com\/caves-and-waves-exploring-lake-superior-michigan\/","title":{"rendered":"Caves and Waves – Exploring Lake Superior Michigan"},"content":{"rendered":"

On our Surf, SUP and Paint Tour<\/a> across America, I was really looking forward to seeing the Great Lakes for the first time. \u00a0 Here’s a rundown of our first couple days.<\/p>\n

\"Pictured<\/a>

Pictured Rocks Cave on Lake Superior<\/p><\/div>\n

LAKE SUPERIOR SURFING:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

I had heard stories and seen videos of dedicated surfers outside of Deluth, Michigan, riding waves on the Lake, and I wanted to see it for myself. \u00a0There’s even a Lake Superior Surf Club!<\/a><\/p>\n

Lake Superior is the biggest, deepest and coldest of the Great Lakes and it was our first stop.<\/p>\n

We started at Stony Point<\/strong>, a surf spot that is rumored to get good waves.\u00a0 It\u2019s about thirty miles North of Deluth.\u00a0 We drove down a gravel road in a heavily wooded area to reach it.<\/p>\n

I was hoping for waves, but Stony Point was flat. \u00a0However, it was picturesque and clear as the Caribbean, perfect for the paddleboard.<\/p>\n

The water was unusually warm, almost 70 degrees.\u00a0 Maria and the kids had a blast climbing on the rocks and exploring the coastline. \u00a0We just got Dylan a pair of Keen water sandals<\/a> which came in handy as the bottom of the lake here was all rocks.<\/p>\n

I took out the Rivera inflatable; it was on top of the van and quick to grab.\u00a0 The inflatable is my recon board \u2013 I can just easily throw it in the water to check things out! \u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The kids enjoying Stony Point Rocks<\/p><\/div>\n

As I paddled around the point, I met two local surfers on their paddleboards.\u00a0 They greeted me with a warm hello, friendliness that you don\u2019t find in many places.<\/p>\n

The three of us sat on our boards and exchanged surf stories.\u00a0 We found that we had mutual friends; Greg Long and Colin McPhillips<\/a> from San Clemente had come in the past and surfed the waves on the lake.<\/p>\n

They said that it gets so cold here that icicles will form on your hoodie when surfing in the winter season.<\/em><\/p>\n

This summer they have had more waves than normal and that there have been many good surfing days.\u00a0 I imagine it being like the Minnesota Waikiki \u2013 but with only a couple guys out!<\/p>\n

They told me that I have to see Pictured Rocks on the other side of the lake \u2013 about a 7 hour drive.\u00a0 The perfect place to take my family paddleboarding.<\/p>\n

So I did.\u00a0 And it was one of the most amazing things I\u2019ve seen.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Michigan or the Carribean?!<\/p><\/div>\n

PICTURED ROCKS – MINERS BEACH AND SANDSTONE CAVES<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

We drove all day around Lake Superior to get to Pictured Rocks. \u00a0After seven hours of driving, we still weren\u2019t halfway around the lake.\u00a0 The lake is IMMENSE.<\/p>\n

The Pictured Rocks Park is over 40 miles of cliffs, waterfalls, forest, rivers and sandy beaches; a paddleboarder\u2019s dream.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to believe that Pictured Rocks is in Michigan.\u00a0 This has to be one of the most beautiful places I\u2019ve ever seen.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a mix between Hawaii and New Zealand, with its Caribbean-blue waters and forested coastline.\u00a0 The water was unbelievably clean and clear.<\/p>\n

To get to the sandy Miner\u2019s Beach area, you drive through a dense forest.\u00a0 Despite the awesomeness of the place, there weren\u2019t many people on the beach.<\/p>\n

As we paddled below the cliffs, exploring the caves, water was bouncing and churning and there was a strong current, much like the ocean.<\/p>\n

Maria hopped on the Coastal Cruiser<\/a> with Dylan and followed as Mia and I led the way on our boards.<\/p>\n

We paddled to one of the many caves in the area and anchored the boards so we could explore it.<\/p>\n

All four of us climbed inside the cave \u2013 the sound of the waves echoed throughout the rock, creating a thundering BOOM each time a big wave came.<\/p>\n

There was a crack that you could crawl through to get into the cave, then swim out to the other side where there was open water.<\/p>\n

It was the perfect natural playground; there were slides on the rocks and sandstone ledges to jump off of, all under towering cliffs with giant, green forests on top.<\/p>\n

After caving, we went back to the sandy beach and started packing up to go. \u00a0That\u2019s when I saw a big passenger boat passing us on the lake, generating a wake.<\/p>\n

This was my chance; the set wave was coming!<\/strong>\u00a0 It was only about shin-high, but I paddled my new 9\u20190\u201d Riviera Paddleboard out and caught the first wave of the set.\u00a0 I rode it to the sand.<\/p>\n

Glad that I can now say I surfed Lake Superior!<\/p>\n

Lake Superior and Pictured Rocks is a hidden treasure.\u00a0 I think they should call this place the Superior Sea, because it doesn\u2019t feel like a lake to me!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Life is Good \u2013 Drew<\/p>\n

PS:\u00a0 I finally got some good surf last night on Lake Michigan \u2013 I\u2019ll post on that next!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Maria at Miners Beach, Pictured Rocks, Michigan<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On our Surf, SUP and Paint Tour across America, I was really looking forward to seeing the Great Lakes for the first time. \u00a0 Here’s a rundown of our first couple days. LAKE SUPERIOR SURFING: I had heard stories and seen videos of dedicated surfers…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,17],"tags":[182,505,506,626,630,759,841,1121,1146,1156,1205,1368],"class_list":["post-5079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tripping","category-behind-the-scenes","category-surf-sup-and-paint-tour","tag-caves","tag-lake-superior","tag-lake-superior-surf-club","tag-michigan","tag-miners-beach","tag-paddleboard","tag-pictured-rocks","tag-stony-point","tag-sup","tag-surf","tag-surfing","tag-waves"],"yoast_head":"\nCaves and Waves - Exploring Lake Superior Michigan - Drew Brophy - Surf Lifestyle Art<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/drewbrophy.com\/caves-and-waves-exploring-lake-superior-michigan\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Drew\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/drewbrophy.com\/caves-and-waves-exploring-lake-superior-michigan\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/drewbrophy.com\/caves-and-waves-exploring-lake-superior-michigan\/\",\"name\":\"Caves and Waves - 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