Summary

A Minnesotan family embarks on a road trip to the Split Rock Lighthouse, reconnecting with nature and reflecting on the historical significance of the lighthouse after a period of pandemic-induced isolation.

Abstract

The narrative recounts a family's journey from their home in Minnesota to the Split Rock Lighthouse, a trip that marks their first significant outing after 16 months of pandemic restrictions. The author, Ellie Jacobson, captures the essence of the trip through personal reflections and photographs, highlighting the contrast between the isolation of the lighthouse keepers in the past and the family's own experience of social isolation during the pandemic. The visit to the lighthouse and its museum, along with the restored light keeper's home, provides a glimpse into early 20th-century life and the importance of lighthouses as symbols of guidance and connection. Despite the haze from Canadian wildfires, the family finds beauty in the lighthouse and Lake Superior, drawing parallels between the end of their social isolation and the lighthouse's role in guiding ships through fog and darkness.

Opinions

The author expresses a deep personal connection to northern Minnesota and the north shore of Lake Superior, valuing its water, peace, and nature.
The Split Rock Lighthouse is portrayed as a place of historical interest and natural beauty, with the photographs taken by Ellie Jacobson emphasizing its aesthetic appeal.
The author nostalgically reflects on the similarity between the lighthouse keeper's isolation and their own family's experience during the pandemic, finding a relatable human connection across time.
The visit to the lighthouse is seen as a symbolic end to the family's period of isolation, with the lighthouse serving as a metaphor for hope and guidance through difficult times.
The author appreciates the preservation of history in the restored light keeper's home and the museum, which allows visitors to step back in time and imagine the lives of past inhabitants.

Split Rock Lighthouse. Photo by Ellie Jacobson

Finding our Way to the Split Rock Lighthouse

A summer family road trip to northern Minnesota

Lighthouses are endlessly suggestive signifiers of both human isolation and our ultimate connectedness to each other. — Virginia Woolf

As a native Minnesotan, I’ve always been drawn to northern Minnesota, the north shore of Lake Superior specifically. Water, peace and nature.

After 16 months of the pandemic bubble, we were ready for a road trip. We took a road trip to Duluth, about a three-hour drive from our home.

Split Rock Lighthouse Museum. Photo by Ellie Jacobson

I knew my sons would love seeing Split Rock Lighthouse in Two Harbors (another 30 minutes north of Duluth). It had been 20 years since I last visited.

Haze from Canadian wildfires blanketed the sky that day and most of our trip. But the grayness could not block the beauty of Split Rock and Lake Superior.

On the tour, we got the chance to walk up the green iron spiral staircase up to the light to see the lens in action. I thought of the people that climbed that final ladder up to the lens, what their life was like here in northern Minnesota in the early 20 century.

We also toured one of the historic buildings on the property, the restored light keeper’s home. Stepping through that front door, we were transported in time. My grandmother had a similar Singer sewing machine like this one. I told my boys how, when I was little, I would sit on the foot pedal thinking it was a fun little ride.

I imagined the letters written with this typewriter. Months upon months of isolation at a lighthouse in northern Minnesota during the winter months could not have been easy.

It was fitting our first family trip was to a lighthouse after months upon months of social isolation. I felt comfort because no matter how hazy and dark the sky, there is always a light shining a path.

— Photos and story by Ellie Jacobson

Two Chairs

Six Word Photo Story Summer Challenge

medium.com