Ice caves

Every year, the red sandstone cliffs that rim the south shore of Lake Superior put on one of the greatest shows on earth. Snow, melting and refreezing, creates enormous ice waterfalls that cling to the sheer cliff walls. Moisture oozes and drips from the cave ceilings, forming sparkling, delicate crystals. Some formations are clear, others are milky or tinted with soft pastel shades of rose and turquoise.

Between February and March, the caves are accessible by foot to the public as the lake freezes to a considerable depth. These are the same caves that we kayak into during the summer when the water is "soft" as my friend says.

A warmer than ususal day brought out a great number of nature lovers who, like us, had to trek across the frozen, snow-covered lake for about a mile and a half. Six inches of snow and concealed, jagged ice shards made the walk somewhat treacherous. The only ones who didn't have any trouble were the numerous dogs that people brought!

Please look at the rest of these when you have some time. Choosing only one to post was near impossible!

Edit:
I've changed the image after I've had some input from folks, including non-blippers who have seen all the pictures and think the original upload is pretty but doesn't quite get the splendor across.