Michigan’s Western U.P. : An Old Professor’s Travel Guide of Twenty-Five Selected Locations (Ironwood to Baraga)
by Ralph G. Pifer
Archway Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-4808-7980-5
$13.95 Softcover
Ralph Pifer spent his working career as a professor of psychology and philosophy, but admits a lifelong interest in geology, nature and photography. For 40 years, he’s been packing those interests on visits to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. In December 2019, he unpacked what he knew and created a sweet and to-the-point guide of 30 desirable destinations in the western end of the U.P.: Michigan’s Western U.P. : An Old Professor’s Travel Guide of Twenty-Five Selected Locations (Ironwood to Baraga). It was produced through Archway Publishing, a self-publishing imprint of Simon & Schuster. Within the oversize 8x11-inch volume, each item entry features a single paragraph with definitive details and succinct observations followed by a description of driving directions. Punctuating the guide are photos Ralph has taken over the years. Editor Konnie LeMay corresponded with Ralph about how he chose his top 30 and other points of interest along the way.
LSM: At which universities or college did you teach?
RALPH: I first taught as a graduate assistant at Western Michigan University (in Kalamazoo), then part time at Kalamazoo College. After graduation from Western, I was hired at Sauk Valley Community College as a professor of psychology and social science. Sauk is in Dixon, Illinois, Ronald Regan’s hometown. I stayed there for a little over 30 years, teaching a host of different courses over the years.
LSM: Where are you from originally and how did you come to discover the Upper Peninsula? Do you remember your first trek there 40 years ago?
RALPH: I grew up in South Bend. Indiana. My parents had a small trailer at Christie Lake in southern Michigan near Paw Paw. In those years, it was very undeveloped and rural. There were a few cottages, but most of the lake was unoccupied. We spent as much time there as we could. My memories are of turtles, toads, frogs, fish fries, berry picking, owls at night, finding arrowheads and rock hunting. It was from this experience that I developed my love of the outdoors. I lived for several years in Valparaiso, Indiana, while I studied for my first graduate degree, then Kalamazoo for my last degree in those years. Kalamazoo then was a great place to live.
My then father- and mother-in-law were great travelers. They loved taking day and weekend trips. Late in the fall of 1977, they proposed that my wife and I get away for a long weekend with them. … We drove from Grand Rapids to Petoskey, then to St. Ignace, then sprinted across the U.P., arriving at the base of the Porcupine Mountains late in the day. We stayed at the Silver Sands Motel – still there, though unoccupied for some years. I think we paid around $24 a night for a double. The motel had just reopened after being mothballed for sometime. It was worn, spare, but clean and warm. The manager was extremely helpful pointing out things we should do. The first morning we drove into Ontonagon for breakfast at Syl’s. Syl’s was well known for their bakery goods and breakfasts. We did some beachcombing and visited many of the small shops. Early in the afternoon, we bought some hamburger, beans, chili powder, tomatoes and crackers. Later we would make chili over an open fire in the Porkies. It had turned cold, rainy and foggy, but we took a short hike at the Porkies. Ferns were so thick. Some trees had claw marks perhaps 6 feet off the ground from bears. White pines and hemlocks soared into the sky. We also visited the ranger/visitor center at the park. They had a small museum display describing the history and wildlife of the old mountains, a filmstrip about the park and other displays. We drove about the area the next day exploring near Bergland and took many backroads, seeing the Norwich mine settlement and Old Victoria site. That night we had the 1-pound pork chop at Paul’s Supper Club in Silver City – now the AmericInn hotel. The waitress became a friend of 40 years. She ran the Great Lakes Trading Company in Silver City for many years. We drove home the next morning, taking Route No. 2 along the top of Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful drive. We stopped frequently to stretch our legs, shoot pictures and collect rocks. The night was spent in St. Ignace – we all really liked the town – and returned there over the years a number of times. It was probably one of the most memorable and pleasant vacations I have ever been on (until a cruise to Alaska a few years ago).
LSM: How did you narrow your U.P. list to 25 (+5)?
RALPH: The 25 sites were suggested by the chairperson at the Settler’s Depot Gallery at Bruce Crossing. My photography has been shown there for some years. She wanted a guide we could sell to
tourists visiting the western portion of the U.P. She thought something short and sweet would be best. I added the extra five sites, feeling that the guide was a little short. We were also struggling to keep the price reasonable. I tried to select interesting, educational and historic sites for the guide. I also tried to choose some sites that were not as well known and one seldom saw in guides. Wolf Mountain is one of these. The view from this mountain top of the valley below is stunning and totally unspoiled. The Mary MacDonald preserve at Horseshoe Harbor is remote, but utterly breathtaking when one steps out of the woods onto the beach. Sites also needed to be relatively accessible for most people.
LSM: Since you are a professor of psychology and philosophy … what attitude do you suggest that newbies bring to a U.P. visit? Is there anything you learned over time about the best way to approach the journey?
RALPH: The “journey” should be undertaken with curiosity and an open mind. One must be prepared. This means being ready to get wet, muddy, cold, bitten by black flies and enduring weather changes that occur at the drop of a hat. It has snowed in late May while I have been there – later that day it got into the low ’70s. One year the temperature was in the ’80s many days in October. I wore shorts and short-sleeved shirts while exploring old mine dumps. The last full day I was there, it turned bitter cold, the wind came up and it started snowing. One needs to look on this variety as part of the charm and character of the place. If you want people, McDonald’s, shopping malls and bright lights, this is not the place. If you want quiet, peace of mind and a place where life moves at a slower pace that allows you to think, this is the place. It is a place to get close to nature and see her power.
LSM: What is one of your favorite “least visited” areas of the Western U.P.?
RALPH: Sylvania Wilderness or Wolf Mountain
LSM: If someone were to teleport in and out to just one locale in the U.P., where should that be?
RALPH: Teleporting to one location in the U.P. and only one? Two years ago, I visited the Porcupine Mountains State Wilderness Park the first week in October. Colors peaked early that year. They were intense. A few days later they were gone in wind, rain, sleet and then snow. But while they were there, they were memorable. … The day was hazy, but the beauty was crystal clear.
LSM: How has the book been received, and do you have any favorite comments about it?
RALPH: The book has been received well by those people who have gotten back to me. I gave a copy to a former student who snowmobiles in the U.P. She and her extended family took it with them and used it to visit places they never had been. They liked the places, the instructions were right on and the descriptions of the sites accurate. The photography has drawn the most praise. No one has reviewed it for Amazon yet. The few newspapers that spoke of it were generally laudatory.
LSM: What's next in the old professor guide series?
RALPH: I have been encouraged to put together a photographic tour of the Western U.P. While I have many pictures, I am presently working on a list of shots that are needed. I think a color tour of many of the great and memorable sights would be of interest to people traveling through the area or thinking about going there. It would also be something to take home. Pictures on a cell phone are frequently lost. Postage stamp shots cannot complete with full-page color pictures.