Grand Marais is located in Michigan’s remote Upper Peninsula along Lake Superior’s shoreline.  Originally an active fishing and logging village, today it is a quiet, often-missed gem of a tourist attraction.

We recently took a day trip to Grand Marais, although there are motel and cottage accommodations available, as well as a campground for longer stays.  The paved roads through the center of town are lined on both sides with a few business establishments.  Some pedestrians make their way along the sidewalks. The ambiance is that of a “step back in time”…comfortable and inviting.

We began our day with a stop at the City Park near the main drag of town.  A sloping lawn expanse leads down to the sandy beach area of the marina harbor.  The waters are calm here, protected from the wind and waves of Lake Superior.  The soft sand is pliable and damp…perfect for making sand castles.  The water is warm, as we wade; walking all the way around the harbor until we see the breaking waves of Lake Superior.

From the City Park, we drove to the Lighthouse and Mariner’s Museum.  We pass the United States Coast Guard Barracks; an attractive, clean building.  We park in a gravel lot and read the memorial sign about the two boys who lost their lives in the mid-1990′s while walking on the breakwater structure to the lighthouse; swept overboard by a huge wave.  Today, Lake Superior looks calm and the wind is light.  We take the hike out to the lighthouse along a concrete barrier until we reach the rocky breakwater connecting the lighthouse to the mainland.  What a beautiful view!  The crystal clear blue water of Lake Superior makes the underlying boulders seem as if they’re only ankle-deep, when, in fact, they’re several feet below the surface.  Two teenage boys take turns diving and jumping off of the breakwater platform into the cool depths of the water…climbing back up to do it again and again.

Around the bend, we see another expanse of beach area, so decide to explore that, as well.  From the small, paved parking area, a ramped boardwalk leads up to a stilted viewing area.  This flat deck is large enough to allow wheelchair accessibility and has ample bench seating for comfortable viewing of the gorgeous blue water of Lake Superior, as well as beautiful sights of the surrounding sand dunes.  There is a double staircase leading down to the thick sands.  Walking toward the water, millions (maybe billions) of Lake Superior stones and rocks are visible; the colors glistening in the sunlight.  Wading in the water in this area is difficult because of all
of the stones and rocks.  But, it is a gorgeous sight, nonetheless, and impossible not to pick up some of the rocks for closer inspection or to take as souvenirs.

Heading back into the downtown area, the Pickle Barrel Museum and Post Office are well worth the time to explore to gain insight into the history of the area, as well as learning how to identify the famous Lake Superior rocks.

The day would not be complete without making a stop at the Lake Superior Brewing Company, which has a menu offering appetizers, sandwiches, basket meals, and full dinners.  A special snack is their freshly popped parmesan and garlic popcorn…the serving size is ample enough to share with the entire group.  Of course, you can order a refreshing drink of soda or spirits on tap.  However, the most unique feature is that they brew their own root beer and creme soda…a refreshing treat after a long day of beachcombing, rock collecting, and exploring.

Our day at Grand Marais, Michigan has given us the opportunity to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, away from the hustle and bustle of modern conveniences, while enjoying the natural beauty of the area.

Author: Laura Weaver

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It’s an absolute must to carry one of these for anybody who is going to dive into low-visibility areas or murky water or doing a night dive. Most diving schools have fun outings like wreck explorations-and if you wish to do a Titanic-esque discovery, you should carry your flashlight and of course, it would need to be water-proof. Make sure you stock it with full-power batteries. Of course, if you are planning to make diving a consistent part of your life, it would make sense to go for rechargeable batteries.

Flashlights are a very good way to light up your diving experience. You are able to peek in those dark corners where some fish tend to hide. It is good to have backups for lighting equipment if you plan to do a night dive or have a long diving trip.

There are many instances of flashlights slipping away from the diver’s grip. So, it is imperative to attach your dive torch in such a way that there is absolutely no chance of losing it. In times of trouble, a flashlight can be used to catch the other divers’ attention and even to send a message. However, diving partners or teams must decide upon common signals and hand signs before the dive.


There are some diving etiquette regarding use of light underwater. Directing a strong beam of light into a diver’s eyes usually is avoided for it may take them a while to be able to see. Aquatic animals may not enjoy the light and may try to swim away. So, it must be used judiciously.

Keep the torch handy always and mark yours with distinctive fluorescent stickers, symbols or tape. That way, you can recognize it in the dark even falls down or gets stuck somewhere. Be careful not to wander too much away from your dive team/partners.

Worst comes to worst, a torch could also be used as a handy weapon to knock out an apparent attacker, if any. That said, it is always safer to venture into the aquatic world with a buddy, or even better, a team. Diving is an incomparably magical experience and the silence of the seas will remain with you forever.

The same is true when it comes to scheduling a holiday.  Generally, one does not think that anything will happen which will prevent the individual from enjoying their trip. 

However, there are variables in life and these variables can spoil even the best laid plans.  Therefore, an individual may wish to purchase single trip travel insurance.  Subsequently, it is important to know what single trip travel insurance is and what are the benefits of purchasing such a policy.

What Is Single Trip Travel Insurance?

Single trip travel insurance is that insurance offered by an insurance company for those individuals who want to ensure that their single trip is as worry free as possible.An insurance company provides this type of insurance.  This insurance company can be one that is in the local community or insurance coverage can be purchased through the Internet.  In addition, there are some vacation plans that offer, as a service to their customers, single trip travel insurance at a lower cost or premium.

Obtaining the best single trip travel insurance is very important for an individual.  This determination can be made based on recommendations, reviews by customers and what the terms of the insurance coverage are.

Specifically, single trip travel insurance is like any other insurance that protects the individual from unforeseen circumstances.   In addition, if something happens that is unavoidable or if something goes wrong, depending upon the insurance purchased, this particular service may compensate the traveler for that particular circumstance.

Examples of single trip travel insurance coverage can include protection against lost luggage, canceled flights, cancellation of the vacation (due to unforeseen circumstances), overbooked hotel lodging, illness, loss of financial resources, etc.

The Benefits Of Single Trip Travel Insurance

There are many benefits associated with the purchase of single trip travel insurance.  First of all, because it is single trip travel insurance the payment for the premium is for one time.  This particular benefit is not only convenient but saves on financial resources as the individuals needs to purchase it for the vacation or business trip that they will be taking.

The peace of mind is afforded by single trip travel insurance.  Therefore, even though events may occur that are unforeseen on a vacation or business trip, it is reassuring to know that the individual has the single trip travel insurance and that most unforeseen circumstances will be covered by the insurance.

The other major benefit of purchasing single trip travel insurance is that if these unavoidable events happen, it is good for the vacationer or business traveler to know that there will be financial compensation.  This due to the fact that the single trip travel insurance company will reimburse, according to the policy, the traveler for losses occurring on the trip or other circumstances that occur and that have been insured against.  

Lately it is possible to learn in an infinite number of different ways, of course there is a style there that suits you and your preferred learning pattern. There are video, audio and games to help you with your quest to learn Spanish. These can be put onto a CD, or directly onto an MP3 player, then you can learn Spanish on the train, beach, bus or wherever.

Learning another language has to be made chilled out and fun, so it’s necessary to begin the right way.

Where ever your motivation is coming from, don’t make learning Spanish harder than it really is. Nearly all of today’s courses have chat rooms and video classes to keep it light and enjoyable. This hoodwinks you into believing you are partying when really you are learning plenty! So learning never becomes a drag.

If you are intending to embark on learning Spanish alone the motivational side of things is very important.

Have a regular daily or weekly unique time solely for Spanish study! It may suit you better to learn while at the gym, doing the housework, or to use the PC in your lunch hour?
Pick a course which offers MP3, CD, online lessons, whatever works best for you. If you don’t have a lot of time in the day make sure you prepare short manageable lessons. In fact, a lot of short sittings will always help you learn easier than one long sitting.

A good way to be certain you remain on track is to join in with one of the thriving Learn Spanish Forums online.

All courses appear to have forums so it would be best to stay loyal to the one you decide to buy! That way there will always be someone available to answer your queries, and a welcoming group of fellow Spanish students. The downloads likely to suit most contain a versatile system that lets you to concentrate on the elements you need, when you want them. Parroting the spoken word is the largest part of learning any language, but visual aides are just as important to accelerate the learning process. Try to find a course that builds conversation level, one that has native speakers so there are no problems with accent or pronunciation. Click here for a selection of our recommended top courses.

Right so you’ve decided to learn Spanish on your own, have you decided on the studying method required and arranged the time to fit it in with your busy schedule?
With so many courses to choose from, each with such varied teaching systems, it can be hard to decide which one.

Just remember the points that are relevant to you and your studying style, and that should help in narrowing your choices greatly.

Good Luck and Enjoy Learning Spanish!

PS Here’s a quick, free introduction to the Spanish alphabet pronunciation.

A convenient contour pillow travel design is the one that users memory foam since it is very easy to roll up to make smaller and be put in a tiny compartment of the travel bag. Lots of applications exist for a contour pillow; travel positions are not always the most comfortable for sleeping, to give just an example, and one feels the need for a pillow under the neck, the back or the bottom to make the traveling a better experience. The use of a pillow case is also possible in order to avoid washing the contour pillow too often, but this is not a rule.

Besides the little space required for transportation, the contour pillow travel design has other very useful features, thus, the heat sensitivity of the material allows the maintenance of a constant body temperature, not to mention that it also gets the anatomical shape of the body too. You can choose from all sorts of designs and sizes for a contour pillow; travel issues will be gone particularly when you have kids with you and they need their sleep in the best of conditions.

It is important to choose the travel contour pillow carefully, since some are made for all sorts of health problems such as alleviating sleep disorders, like snoring, and they are not suitable for traveling purposes. Then, the different transportation means have all sorts specifics if we are to judge the amount of space you have to use the pillow for sleep. Sometimes, the contour pillow travel idea saves you from a very uncomfortable position in a too rigid or too upright chair. Whichever be the case, such an item is not expensive and it should not miss from any traveler’s bag.