2026 – Michigan’s UP

We had a nice, relaxing weekend in the UP. There’s so much snow up there!

Snow-covered landscape with trees and a frozen lake during sunset, featuring a cozy cabin in the foreground.

Our Airbnb cottage was on a very small, very quiet lake… there were other people around, but I didn’t see them.

A snowy landscape featuring birch trees and red outdoor furniture partially covered in snow, with a serene lake in the background.

A few inches of snow fell while we were there. There was never a big flurry, just very lightly falling most of the day (or at night when I wasn’t looking).

Snow-covered road stretching into the distance under a cloudy sky, with trees flanking the sides and a faint sun visible through the clouds.

The roads were mostly snow-covered from Escanaba north…

A black Subaru Outback covered in snow parked in a lot, showing the rear view with a clean area on the snow-covered license plate.

…and sure made a mess of my car! This was my Subie’s first road trip & she did just great, though!

We discovered that The Up North Lodge was only a few minutes away, so we headed there on Friday night. Food & service were both great.

A wooden tabletop displaying different types of wood samples labeled with their names, including beech, black walnut, and white pine, with the phrase 'WOODS OF THE UP NORTH' prominently featured.

There was a huge, curved, custom bar featuring cuts of “Woods of the Up North.” It was so cool, but I was only able to see a very small portion of it (without being rude). Alas, a good enough reason to go back? I think so.

We went up to Marquette on Saturday for much of the day. I dropped Rusty off at a book store while I went on a mission to Alley Kat’s Quilt Shop! I’m sure that’s no surprise.

A vibrant assortment of fabric swatches arranged in a circular pattern around a color wheel on a wooden table.

Needing some sort of direction, I printed a simple color wheel & tried sorting my FQs that way — it really helped, and also made me aware that I have enough for another two or three projects. Anyway, I found a few cuts at Alley Kat’s to help fill things out (or give me some choices). (I also had a couple of cuts from a local-ish Etsy seller waiting when I got home.)

A wooden table covered with colorful fabric pieces, measuring tools, and papers, with a snowy landscape visible through a large sliding glass door in the background.

I commandeered the table for our most of our stay! Once I figured out where I was headed & got things sorted, I started pressing & squaring up my fabric.

An ironing board with a patterned cover set up on a kitchen countertop next to a blue steam iron and a spray bottle.

A pile of colorful fabric scraps and threads scattered on a wooden surface.

For a relatively cozy cabin — and even though Rusty & I both immediately thought about how we’d have arranged it all differently — there was a lot of room!