Lake Superior

Much of my drive today was along the north shore of Lake Superior. Thunder Bay is a decent-sized town, but otherwise, this stretch ranges between rural & desolate. The place I stopped for gas still has a gas pump without a credit card reader, so one pumps the gas & then goes inside to pay - a real throwback. Like most of these places, they offer a combo of gas, rooms, & convenience store.

Outside of Thunder Bay, this modern bridge was the only thing that felt like the 21st century all day.

There were some aspens along the edges, but most of the forest here is a mix of evergreens.

It's surprised me how few (white-tailed) deer I've seen, especially compared to other animals. The 2 deer I saw together today were quite small with definite spots, like what I'd expect to see in June. Hope that they are developed enough to make it through the long winter here.  

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Wildlife sightings (not counting those in the conservation preserve or the aquarium)

--> --> today: 2 baby deer            

--> --> trip total so far: 

    black bears - 27       deer - 16 (12 Sitka)             grizzlies - 8          moose - 8

    stone sheep - 17        elk - 1                   caribou - 15            bison - 42    

    Dall sheep - 11        porcupines -1         mountain goats - 3       lynx - 1

    trumpeter swans - 34+        many bald eagles    black oyster catcher - 1 (rare)

    sea otters - 27             harbor seals - many, many, many         orcas - 1

    many sea stars & jelly fish        Dall's porpoise - ~ 20

    North Pacific Humpback whales - 2 pods of ~ 12 each + 1 + 1 + 3

    Stellar's sea lions - many, 100+ incl 60 pups in 1 spot (counted by scientists)