Yooperlites!

We spent a recent weekend in a lovely spot up in the UP. We've wanted to stop there for a while, but we've been told it is usually quite crowded and very buggy. We thought waiting until fall might give us a better chance and we were right - somehow we managed to snag the last campsite available at The Mouth of the Two Hearted River. 

It was gorgeous, and totally worth the hour-long drive on sandy washboard roads to get to the campground. The shore of Lake Superior was a quick walk from the campground and it did not disappoint.

The beach is a rockhound's dream. We found a ton of interesting rocks for Allen to tumble, including this one I dubbed "The Heart of Lake Superior."

I was surprised at just how many people were there looking for rocks. There were people everywhere with scoops and buckets finding treasures. We didn't do a whole lot of searching during the day - we couldn't find what we were after until after dark.

After a beautiful sunset and a nice walk away from the mouth of the river, we broke out the black lights, specifically blacklights with a 365 nm filter, and started searching. 

We were a little worried that the beach would be too picked over to find anything, but we had great luck. Allen and I managed to find sixteen syenite rocks rich with sodalite - a mineral that glows bright orange under blacklight. (They are also called Yooperlites, but that is a trademarked name.) That's why you have to look for them after dark - it's that bright orange glow that helps you find them, and that glow isn't easy to see in daylight. These rocks, first found along Lake Superior in 2017, have become a "thing" and lots of tourists are looking for them these days.

The Mouth of the Two Hearted River was a beautiful place to explore. I'm not sure we'll go back, but it was a great spot for a fall getaway.