June 2023
Different spot, another sunset
Sunset at Au Train Beach
I stay busy on Little Bay de Noc on Lake Michigan, but I’m usually fishing. For real fun at the beach, we gravitate toward Lake Superior. If you haven’t visited the Great Lakes, you can’t really grasp just how massive these bodies of water are. Of course, one of the things you’ll quickly discover on Lake Superior is that the water is cold. That’s not to say you can’t enjoy a dip, but you have to wait until summer really kicks in and warms things up a bit.
We also get regular pop up thunderstorms in the summer. They usually blow through fairly quickly, but they often leave gorgeous sunsets in their wake. On this trip, we had to wait a bit while a storm blew through, but once it did, the remainder of the evening was spectacular.
Au Train is a small community on the Lake Superior shoreline between Marquette and Munising. It’s best known for the lazy river that curves and meanders through the little city on it’s way to Lake Superior where it empties out. As the crow flies, it’s a short distance. But the river winds around so much that the float takes hours. I think the river’s nice, but it gets very busy in the summer, and people tend to party more than they kayak. Not my scene. I’d rather enjoy nature.
There are several nice things about the Au Train beach. It’s not crowded, especially if you wander away from the bridge over the mouth of the river where there are still plenty of parking areas. The sand is fine and squeaky. And because the bay is fairly shallow, the sun can easily warm up the water. We sometimes bring along a little grill and do a picnic while we’re there.
As a bonus, there are several waterfalls in the surrounding area. If you’re making a day trip, enjoy your time at the beach, but be sure to check the falls out, too.
