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Great Lake Road Trip Day 8 Part 3; MN 61 back to Duluth along Lake Superior

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After finishing MN 1 I turned south on MN 61 towards Duluth.  Given that MN 61 is along the shore of Lake Superior I made several stops, the first being the Split Rock Lighthouse.  The Split Rock Lighthouse was completed in 1910 on top of a 130 feet sheer cliff above Lake Superior.  The Split Rock Lighthouse is 54 feet tall and was in operation until 1969.  The lighthouse is now part of a State Park of the same name which includes a rocky beach below the cliffs and the ruins of a tramway.









Next on southbound MN 61 was Gooseberry Falls State Park.  Gooseberry Falls refers to series three falls; the upper, middle, and lower falls which run under MN 61 along the Gooseberry River before it empties into Lake Superior.









I did manage to get the MN 61 "END" sign as I-35 was beginning in Duluth.  Odd to think that US 61 was really truncated with the huge coastal highway heading north to Thunder Bay in Ontario.





Before heading to the hotel I went to Park Point to get a better view the Blatnik Bridge over Superior Bay.  I crossed the Aerial Lift Bridge which was completed back in 1905.  Apparently Park Point didn't used to be an island until the early 1870s when a canal was built which now crossed by the Aerial Lift Bridge.



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