Mosquitoes, dirt, and power outage. The three words that the average person does not want to hear. This is the U.P. The U.P. has always been a great place for our whole family to meet and spend time together. In fact, our family is living proof that some traditions never change.

I remember the first time I went up to the U.P. for deer season. I always somehow seemed to enjoy the ride up to the U.P., as silly as it sounds. Our first stop was the Lake City Wesco, there we got gas and whatever snacks we needed. Our next stop, was the Burger King in St. Ignace. Now, by the time we got there it was about 10:30pm, you wouldn’t believe how tired we all were when we stumbled in to Burger King. By the time we reached the cabin it was quite late at night. We did not waste any time getting our belongings out of our vehicle before we went to bed.

The next morning was my favorite part of the trip. The day started with a yell from downstairs, “Get up, we don’t have all day!”Some were more excited about starting the day than others, but nevertheless we all got up.  As soon as everyone was up and ready, we were off to the local cafe for breakfast. This was going to be our “fuel” to make it through the day. Once we were back to the cabin, it was all business. We wasted no time getting things ready for the long day ahead of us. Then we were off, our goal for the day was to bait every single hunting spot at deer camp. Many times we were stumbling our way through the woods and had absolutely no idea where we were. The whole time I knew that if we were legitly lost that we would be in trouble because none of us had cell phone reception. The older guys always start out strong, but soon they start to delegate much of the work to younger guys.Carrying bags of bait may seem like an easy task, but the terrain we had to trudge through was not a walk in the park. Although, we had ATVs that were capable of carrying the load, most spots were not accessible by an ATV.

I always knew that if we encountered any sort of vicious animal , that I would surely not be eaten. The reasoning behind this is due to the fact that I could run much faster than many of the old men. Once we were halfway through, the people who were out of shape volunteered to go back to the cabin with the kids and watch them. This was another highlight of my trip. The U.P. taught me that you don’t need technology or things we consider “fun” to necessarily have fun in the U.P. A simple frisbie gave us the most joy out of anything, not to mention the fire building contests we had.

Once all the other guys got back it was dinner time. This was the time when we all got together and shared stories and thoughts about the day. One time, an older friend of the family was driving a boat down the river and stopped to fill it up with gas. Little did he know that the current was turning him around in the opposite direction. So, when we all arrived back at the cabin, we could not find where he was. Soon enough, we called 911, only to find him speeding down the river with a sheepish grin on his face. We roasted hot dogs and ate s'mores. There was no place I would have rather been when I was up there. It’s impossible to think about anything that worries you when you’re up there. We always go to bed at around 8:00pm when we are at the cabin. This was not early at all for me because I was so tired from the long day. Sadly, once we all got up, it was time to pack up our belongings and head home. This concluded our trip to the U.P.

Most people don’t understand what is so special about visiting the U.P., but the people who go up there do. Sometimes, the quietest places can be the most enjoyable places. There is something about the stillness that allows me to drop everything I was thinking about and just find a certain peace up there. There is something there that recharges me. For other people it may just be a boring old cabin, but to me it’s much more than that. I believe that even when I get older I will still find my way to the cabin.