“Look a little closer, a whole new world…”

08 Aug “Look a little closer, a whole new world…”

By Staffer Lena Wilson

When we are tourists checking out a new place we are prone to merely take a quick look and moving on to the next point of interest. However, if we exercise our sense of sight more deeply and look a little closer, a whole new world opens up to us. We can choose to feel the water, wind, dirt, rock, smell the rain after chancing a storm, take a moment to really take in that cup of coffee, listen to the birds, chat with and listen to a local or taste a wild thimbleberry. In order to really dive into a place and have a more profound experience, one must find a way to access the community.

Often times one can visit one of the community oriented businesses to learn more. In Copper Harbor, just about any business will do whether you stop in here at the Keweenaw Adventure Company, the Gas Lite General Store, Brickside Brewery, or Grandpa’s Barn — to just name a few. Check the walls for posters on community happenings; talk with the people running shop and see what’s going on. At the Keweenaw Adventure Company our mission is to facilitate memorable, adventuresome experiences for those who wander to the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula. A lot of the experience is up to you, you travelers. How will you engage with the experience?

The longer one spends in a particular spot and the greater the frequency of visits, the more one will feel a sense of belonging and connection. Next time you wander into Copper Harbor and take a walk down Hunter’s Point Park, try finding a nice spot to sit and stay for a while. Listen, feel, smell, see, hear it – even if it’s just the crashing of the waves or complete silence on a still day. Perhaps when biking down Brockway’s mountain bike trails, take a moment to stop at a point you’ve never stopped and stay a while. What’s there that has always been there but you have never noticed?

As a fun exercise, I drew a map covering the area we often cover during the Porter’s Island paddle. By drawing the map I became even more familiar with a place that I’ve visited frequently. Each time I go out with a new group, we try to find something different. Many visitors have encouraged me to explore places I hadn’t yet bothered to explore… and often we were very please with what we found! It’s a fun exercise: Think of a place you’ve visited and from memory, or imagination, draw a map of that place with every detail you can remember – including more than what the eyes can see.