Aug 11 - Notes from the North

When we last heard from our Intrepid Explorers they were heading north to Door County in Wisconsin. It was just for a weekend... which turned out quite agreeable. We ate too much, picked a bucket-load of really ripe tart cherries (a local specialty), patronized a couple trendy local restaurants, and tried to work off all that food with a good hike along the lakeshore bluffs. Evening campfires were a must.

After a few days back in Beaver Dam to resupply we were again heading north. This time the destination was a small NFS campground at Colwell Lake in the Hiawatha National Forest. Dar's family has made camping here a tradition that's nearing a continuous 20 year run. The lake itself is small... about 80 or 100 acres... but large enough for fishing and water-skiing.  And water-ski they do, with several among them veteran bare-foot water-skiers. Here again, the nightly campfires are a highlight. And, of course, we ate too much, drank too much, and had a great time. I did have a moment of catharsis when I realized I was the oldest of the 20 or so people around the campfire one night. I got over it.

Cell phone and internet availability are spotty at best at Colwell Lake... so, other than a couple quick trips into Munising, we were "in the dark" for much of the week. Being away from all things electronic for a few days ain't all bad. You learn to adapt, find other things to do, read, and think a little differently than when you're a slave to the hand-held gizmo.

From there Dar and I headed over to our favorite Camp S... a private facility near Michigamme. Here, we hope to spend a few quiet days working and getting caught up again on photos and posts to the blogs.

A few pics from our week... (more can be seen by clicking on our Photo Albums tab above)

Trumpeter Swans at Seney Wildlife Refuge

Pictured Rocks Natl. Lakeshore and Lake Superior

Seem to find these wherever we go.

Breakwater in Grand Marais

Supermoon

Random Images from the Upper Peninsula

I'm getting a little behind again so I thought I'd pop up a few images from our time in the UP of Michigan... the first two weeks in September. I think it's plain to see why we like this part of the USA so much.

view from the bus-house

foot dip in the river

some time to chill and let the stresses of this summer go 

looking for an evening snack

a little exploring...

ho-hum... another nice day in the UP.

makes cool evenings a little more tolerable

We've been back in the Beaver Dam Wisconsin area since the 13th and are busy with projects and preparations for Sabbatical II. Should have the camper next week and we're anxious to get it out and spend a few nights aboard.

Sept 3 - Good Days Ahead

Sept 1 - UPpity for a Couple Weeks

After the rough summer we've had this year we were primed and ready to go somewhere... anywhere. So yesterday, without too much thought or planning, we fired up the bus-house and headed north, into the land of pasties... the UP of Michigan.

The route was all north - US151 to US141 at Green Bay, to MI95 from near Iron Mountain to Camp. Light winds and a few clouds made driving easy and enjoyable. Taking the bus-house on what could be it's last excursion with us aboard added a touch of emotion for us too. Making this a family outing, our little Ford Focus toad made the trip too... following the bus-house like a little lost puppy.

Out of respect for the owner's privacy we strive to keep the precise location of our "Camp" up here in the UP confidential. But I will tell you it's on a lake and the property is surrounded by trees. That oughta' narrow it down for the curious.

We hope to get close to two weeks of R&R in before returning to Beaver Dam for the Fall and all the tasks associated with moving most of our "stuff" from the bus-house to the apartment out at the farm, and then getting the new truck camper prep'd and ready to go. I'm sure we'll also make a few short excursions while we familiarize ourselves with the new rig and make sure all systems are "go". During the next couple weeks I'll write more about all that, as well as fill in a few other gaping holes in the record created by this blog-weary writer's sins of omission.

Sep 29 - Back in Beaver Dam

When I last updated this journal, we were in our last few days in the U.P. of Michigan... and that was more than a week ago (longer??). About time I get caught up.

Thursday the 20th of September, we took advantage of a hole in the clouds and escaped the U.P. while the gettin' was good. For much of the previous week this little corner of the country has been cold and wet... the result of a "ridge" over the eastern Pacific that was keeping the Northwest and Alaska warm, but was then diving southeast bringing all this unpleasantness to the northern Midwest. Weather satellite video was clearly showing this river of clouds and moisture. And we were there.

We woke to rain (of course) which reinforced my nagging fear that we may not be able to leave... even if we wanted to. You see, we're parked on grass here at the camp. The grass grows in dirt and most people know what happens when a lot of water is mixed with dirt. But the rain eased, and the dirt and grass supported the bus-house just enough as we backed, floated really, onto the more supportive driveway and road a good hundred feet away. At that point our escape was assured. Sorry for the ruts Dennis.

Our route was M-28 to M-95 to US-141 to US-41 to US-151. For the most part, and once we drove out of the rain, the drive was agreeable and the fall colors bordering on spectacular. The only time it really rained hard was when we stopped in Sagola Michigan for fuel. Figures. And while the station had separate truck pumps and a reasonable price for diesel (4.119), they did lack a canopy over the pumps... so I "got" a shower in the process.

Once we arrived in Beaver Dam we drove first to our favorite sani-dump station... at the famous Beaver Dam Sewage Treatment Plant. I wanted the tanks good and empty... and well-flushed... so I could replace the Valterra blade valves. After 5 years of full-time use, they were beginning to seep a bit... and when it comes to these valves, any seepage at all is unacceptable. Unfortunately, the sewage plant closes the gate at 3pm and we were aced out of a "dump for free" opportunity by a few minutes. The alternate was to drive to a local county campground where we had to pay $10 for the privilege, which we did.

The plan is to be here in Beaver Dam until the end of October. It's been 5 years since we've experienced a Midwest Fall. Both Dar and my favorite time of the year up here, we're hoping it's a good one.

Sep 18 - Yooper Dooper Autumn

Outside temp was 35f this morning. Expecting 28f tomorrow morning... likely the first hard freeze of the progressively advancing Fall of 2012. Our trip around the sun on the lifeboat "Earth" steadily carries us toward Winter again.

As you'd expect, Fall color is really starting to "pop"... noticeably more during the past week. The forest on the hillside across the lake from our camp (the view from our picture-window/windshield) is providing the scenic images we've been longing for... and the main reason we're up here as late as we are this year.

Locals are busily getting ready for Winter. Wood sheds are fully stocked... piers and docks are pulled ashore... most boats are out of the water and readied for a 7 month sleep in drydock. It's the semi-annual change-over that true Yoopers seem to live for.

The original economic engine of the UP, and the reason so many people flocked to this area between the civil war and the 1930's boils down to three things: logging, mining, and fishing. For various reasons all three peaked years ago but the decline leveled off at a lower level of activity that still goes on today, and still provides employment for many Yoopers.

We've been thoroughly enjoying our visit to the UP this year. A few days ago we got out and explored the area around Iron Mountain Michigan, one of the larger mining areas of the region. We visited the Cornish Pump and Mining Museum and the WWII Glider and Military Museum and got a healthy infusion of information about both. The Glider story is particularly interesting.

In the early 1920's, Henry Ford and the Ford Motor Company started acquiring large tracts of land in the UP. The consummate "vertical integrator", Henry wanted control of as many inputs to the process of building cars as he could get his hands on. In those days, the bodies of Model T cars were made up mostly of wood. His idea was to buy large tracts of forest land, establish saw mills, and build a large plant where the sawn wood would be converted to auto body parts. And that's exactly what he did... at one point employing over 7,000 people in the UP.

The plant was located near Iron Mountain, in Kingsford Michigan. It operated from the mid-1920s until after WWII, but the real "hey-day" was during the late 1920s... until the depression started to bite in the early 1930s. When WWII came along, Ford landed a contract with the government to build CG4A combat gliders for the Army. The wings and tail section of these big gliders was constructed of wood... something this plant knew something about and could certainly handle. So between 1942 and 1945, they built over 4,000 of 'em, and earned awards from the Army for the excellence of their efforts.

Besides being a vertical integrator, Ford's nature was to squeeze every possible bit of profit out of every aspect of the businesses he owned. Innovations were made to greatly minimize waste wood in the production of parts, and the waste wood material that remained was used to fuel furnaces and as input to a charcoal plant and a wood alcohol plant, also Ford owned and located right next to the parts plant. Driven by greed, he was recycling long before it became fashionable to be "green". The charcoal operation was sold in the early 1950s and, although they moved the operation to Kentucky, Kingsford Charcoal still is a recognized product and brand today.

Ford owned much more land around the plant than what was utilized for the plants he built. It's likely that Ford thought he'd be able to do the same thing with steel that he was doing with wood... own the entire process from top to bottom. While there had been large deposits of iron ore in the Iron Mountain area, it was mostly mined out by the time Ford started his UP operations. So when that plan didn't work out... and when the use of wood in car bodies came to an end in the 1950s (remember the last gasp of wood bodies... the "Woody"?), Ford closed it's UP operations and sold the plants. Eventually, they were bulldozed and today, virtually nothing remains.

 

More photos from our day in Iron Mountain available here...

Sept 6 - Ya Hey Dere...

We're camped in the middle of Michigan's Upper Peninsula (Yooper-land) at Dar's brother's "camp", as Yoopers refer to what most other folks call a cabin. We've been here before and just love the solitude and peace that this remote location affords. It's very high on our list of favorite places to be.

This past Tuesday we departed Hidden Ridge RV "Resort" near K-zoo and headed north. Our route was US-131 through Grand Rapids to Cadillac, M-56 east to US-127 north to I-75 to the big bridge over the Mackinaw Straits of Lake Michigan/Lake Huron. Conditions were fine for travel and we moved right along. Originally intending to get some U.P. miles under our belt before stopping for the night, we decided 280 miles was enough for the day and dropped anchor at Straits State Park just north of the bridge in St. Ignace Michigan. We'd camped there in the past and liked the location and atmosphere of the place. But Michigan is proud of their State Parks and tacked $16 onto the $28 campsite fee (30/50 amp electric, remote water and sanidump), making it an expensive stop. Oh well, it was just for one night.

On a recommendation, we drove into St. Ignace and had dinner at The Galley, located right on the harbor. Dar tried sauteed whitefish livers (!!)... who knew whitefish even had livers?  My fare was a more pedestrian Fish & Chips. An enjoyable evening.

Rain was in the forecast for Wednesday... especially later in the day.  So we got an early start, moving by a few minutes after 8am. We made it a whole 8 miles in the first hour. A decision to stop at McDonald's for breakfast and the pull of a roadside park delayed things a little longer than planned. But soon the miles were adding up as the predicted rain held off long enough for us to get almost to Marquette before the deluge started. Finding refuge at a very nice roadside park along Lake Superior, we waited out the storm... probably a half hour or so.

Underway again,  we made it almost to our destination before the next band of showers hit. Same routine... found a refuge in a parking lot and waited out the worst of it... this time nearly an hour. We then unhooked the car and drove over to our destination to check out access... the ability to get the big old bus-house into this private camp. From an asphalt road there's a quarter-mile long one-lane gravel and dirt road into the property. Because it's used only by a handful of property owners, the "tunnel" of trees and brush can get low and narrow at times, giving us the choice of "brush-busting" our way in or walking the road, pole-trimmer in hand, and expanding the "tunnel" to minimize interference with nature... not to mention scrapes and scratches on the sides and top of the bus-house. Considering the weather we went for option one... just busting our way in. It really wasn't too bad... and no new noticeable scratches or scrapes on the paint.

Got set up... walked over and said "Hi" to good neighbors Bill and Nancy... made a simple dinner... and settled down to enjoy the evening. The rain and clouds gave way to blue skies and sun... lighting up the trees on the other side of the lake. It's amazing how much Fall color is evident already.

Sept 3 - It's Just Stuff

We're parked at Hidden Ridge RV "Resort" located about mid-way between Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids Michigan. The move here was made necessary by the Labor Day weekend crowd reserving every single site at Markin Glen County Park, our usual K-zoo stop (and where we were until this past Friday). We have a great spot here at Hidden Ridge, on a ridge overlooking a pond... but we're certainly paying for it. No free scenery here, that's for sure.

Dar's about finished going through our stuff in her Sister's basement. She has reduced the pile by a noticeable amount, but it's still a much larger pile than I was hoping for. It amazes me how so many things we haven't used, looked at, or thought about for 5 years, still have the power to exert a "pull" on us... to manipulate us into keeping it a while longer. I've always believed that everything we have, that we own, consumes some small amount of personal freedom-robbing energy. And this experience does nothing to change that belief. At least there is a plan, a multi-year plan, to move some of it to our kids in the Northwest, some of it to one of our future base-camps, and some of it to friends and family who'll give it a better home.

Today is Labor Day. We're planning to spend one last pleasant afternoon with Jack and Cher, our gracious hosts here in K-zoo, while we leave the highways to all those forced to race back to their normal lives. Tomorrow everything becomes calmer for RV fulltimers like us. We're planning to meander North, toward the Mackinac Bridge and into the land known as the Upper Peninsula, where we'll hang out for a couple weeks. By mid September Fall should be evident, dry technicolor trees, shorter days, overnight temps dropping into the 30s... it's what we're here to experience this year.

Aug 28 - Alone... And I don't like it

On Sunday we pulled up stakes at the farm in Beaver Dam and, despite a steady slow rain, headed off for Kalamazoo. My distaste for driving in the rain (the toad becomes a filthy mud-ball) is exceeded only by my aversion to all things Big City (traffic congestion, haste, hustle, and way too many people)... and this trip was going to be done on Sunday come hell or high water. Getting to Kzoo requires driving through the Chicago Metroplex, and I really prefer enduring that gauntlet on a Sunday morning when traffic is marginally lighter than the usual gridlock. So the attraction of a sunny travel day on Monday had no effect on us in this case.

We left at 8am CDT and made our destination about 4pm EDT with 362 miles on the GPS. For us, this is a long day. We set up camp at our usual place in Kzoo, Markin Glen County Park, and enjoyed an evening with Dar's Sister and BIL.

Monday morning we spent a few hours in Dar's Sister's basement... starting to go through the much larger than remembered pile of stuff we left behind 5 years ago. What a job this is going to be. About Noon I was able to escape... to take the bus-house over to Spartan Chassis in Charlotte Michigan.

Spartan is just an hour away from Kzoo, so by 2:30p I was there and parked.  By 3:30p I had the paperwork wrapped up with the Service Manager, and it was time to set up a chair in the shade, open an "arrival ale", and get my nose in a book. Kinda nice, really.

But the solitude and personal time grew old as the afternoon lapsed to evening. I was missing my travel partner. I've had this thought before, but I think I'd have a real problem adjusting to solo travel if I ever lost my partner. Shared experience is a key element of our Sabbatical project.

Slow Week

Well, it's been a slow week here at Camp Soldner, far out in the wilderness of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Early in the week we had the place to ourselves and enjoyed the solitude. Tuesday night Dar's Mom and  Dad came up to spend a few days and we enjoyed that too. Looks like the weekend will be even busier as Dennis and Laura have a small party planned.

I've been getting in daily sessions with the kayak. Warm days with very little wind have made for perfect paddling conditions. Even though this lake isn't very big, any brisk wind can make the middle of the lake a tough place to be for a light kayak. Fighting both the wind and rough water isn't fun... at least for me. So I've tried to take advantage of the ideal weather during the past few days.

The sauna has been getting a pretty good workout too. In this part of the world saunas are common. They come in handy during the winter as a device that can warm a body all the way to the core. But even during the summer they're good for soothing aching muscles ( especially useful for me these days), deep cleaning the pores, and to just hang out with sweaty friends. It's a very social environment.

My hamstrings are healing nicely... I'm probably back to something like 70% or more. I've been stretching and taking walks, and that all seems like it's doing the job. It could also be that time is the biggest factor in getting back to normal. Either way, I'm resolving to warm up a little before trying anything so crazy the next time.

The way it looks now, we'll be leaving Camp Soldner on Monday or Tuesday... depending on the weather. The planned route is US Highway 2... all the way to Everett, WA, where the highway ends. We're thinking it might be a month or perhaps a little longer for this leg as we'd like to take some time in Glacier National Park and other spots of note along the way.

Waiting for the promised rain...
Thom

Dam Busters

Yesterday, Monday, we enjoyed a quiet day at the Camp. We had the place to ourselves. The day started out foggy but quickly cleared to a sunny and warm one.

About noon Dar and I took the canoe out on the lake with a mission in mind. The lake we're on is fed through a small stream from another lake higher in the chain. At times in the past, small dams, the result of debris or beaver activity, would plug up the stream and the level of our lake would go down. In the past week or so, our neighbor Bill has noticed this very thing. He thought we might have a dam again. So we headed out on a mission to find the plug and, if we found one, to remove it.

And, just as predicted, we found one... a small debris dam in a shallow area of the stream. After 20 minutes of dam hard work the stream was flowing strong again. The residents of our lake will be happy when the water level creeps back up a couple inches in the next few days.

We kept canoeing into that next higher lake and along the shoreline to a small sandy landing spot on the other end where we could pull the canoe into the brush and walk over to the finest dining establishment in Three Lakes... Stumps Bar... where we enjoyed a burger and a beer for lunch.

Later in the afternoon I actually napped, something I almost never do. In my previous life I knew of someone who could nap at will. Sitting or laying almost anywhere, with almost anything going on around him, he could force a nap in just a couple minutes, sleep for 20 minutes or half an hour, and wake up refreshed and re-energized. My naps (the few I've had), on the other hand, were uncontrolled in comparison. It took me forever to get to a sleep state, and then I think my body thought it was night and didn't wake up... for hours. Then I wouldn't be tired that night and struggle a second time in the same day to get to sleep.

I always envied that fellow with the napping talent. And today I enjoyed my little nap. My sore muscles from that foolishness the other day are slowly improving too. They now only hurt when I do certain things... like walk, sit, stand, or lay down.

Lounging on the lake...
T

Michigan State Capitol Building

A couple weeks ago, on July 23rd, Dar and I made a visit to Lansing and the Michigan State Capitol Building. We've been making it a point to visit capitols when we're camped close by, and this visit will make Michigan our 15th. I reported this exploration in the Journal for that day, but said I'd do a more thorough post at a later date. This is that post.

Michigan was part of the Northwest Territory established by the US Congress in 1787 and was made it's own territory, the Michigan Territory, in 1805. Michigan began applying for statehood as early as 1832 but was rebuffed due to a dispute with Ohio (already a State) over a strip of land called the Toledo Strip, a sliver of land that ran just south of the current border and included the City of Toledo, an important shipping port on Lake Erie. By 1835 Michigan formed a State Government without authorization by Congress and included the Toledo Strip in it's jurisdiction. A bloodless conflict, called the Toledo War, erupted between Ohio and Michigan that same year. In dire financial straits due to the conflict and the resulting lack of statehood, Michigan finally "surrendered" the Toledo Strip to Ohio, and was granted statehood in 1837. As a consolation prize, Michigan was granted rights to the western 3/4 of the Upper Peninsula, which otherwise might have been given to Wisconsin.

Detroit was the first Capital of the new state but concerns about the defensibility of a Capitol building such a short distance from the Canadian border (Detroit was occupied by the British during the war of 1812) and with an interest in encouraging western development of the State, the nearly uninhabited Lansing Township was named the new Capital in 1847. That same year, a temporary wooden building was quickly erected to the the Capitol.

The Civil War caused any consideration of a new, more permanent, Capitol to be delayed until the 1870's. In 1872 Elijah E. Myers of Springfield IL was selected as architect and construction began in 1873. Taking 6 years to complete, the building was dedicated on January 1, 1879.

The building is laid out in a fashion similar to the United States Capitol, with a central dome and rotunda, and the branches of government occupying the wings. This style became a common one for many of the subsequent Capitol buildings that followed. Myers went on to also design the Capitols of Colorado and Texas, and the territorial Capitol of Idaho -- the most of any other single architect.

Like many other statehouses over the years, the building itself wasn't a high priority for the growing State and it fell into disrepair and neglect. But between 1989 and 1992 an extensive historical restoration project restored the building to it's original grandeur.

Our first impression was positive... this looks like a Capitol should look. And that positive impression held throughout our visit. The grounds are neat and clean, the building is nicely appointed, with about the right amount of symbolism communicated through art. Portraits of former governors and notable people from Michigan are present. The restoration project was clearly well done, and, based on descriptions from our tour guide, was clearly necessary. It is also fortunate the restoration was done when it was -- during a period of relative affluence for the State. If it had been delayed 10 years, and with all the economic hits the State has taken since 2001, there's little chance it would have been done at all.

Ranking right up there in the top third of Capitols we've visited, the Michigan State Capitol was a sensory pleasure and an intellectual delight.

See these and other photos from our day at the Capitol in our Online Photo Album.

Yooper Busy

We haven't just been busy. We've been Yooper Busy!

Unusual small mushroom in the grass at Camp Soldner

So, what's "Yooper Busy"?  This is the condition in which those of us in the U.P. ("Yoopers") are preoccupied with trying to pack as much warm-weather activity and fun as you can into a very short summer... struggling mightily to take advantage of every day without ice, snow, and sub-freezing temperatures. I've said it before... for many Yoopers the only good use they have for summer is to prepare for the next winter. They're a hearty bunch with one thing in common. They ALL love living up here.  They'll do almost anything to stay here.

Besides hanging out and enjoying the amenities of Camp Soldner, we've done a couple area explorations that I'd like to note. The first was with fellow explorers Bill and Nancy, our next door neighbors here at the camp. The four of us headed into the Keweenaw Peninsula (that big finger of land that juts into the middle of Lake Superior). Dar and I explored the Keweenaw back in 2007 but somehow, inexplicably, when I went to get the link to that post I found that I never did post anything about that day. Hmmm.

The Keeweenau was a hoppin' place during the later 1800's and early 1900's. Mining was the reason and copper was the primary metal being mined. And a booming timber and lumber industry added to the fury. People came in droves, towns boomed, affluence reigned. But even in the scale of U.S. history, the boom time here was little more than a deep breath. It grew fast, reached an apex, and died almost as fast. The mines played out, the rich ore gone, the timber was cut, labor strife, competition from huge new western mines. People left, seeking jobs, many of them to the Detroit area where the auto industry was beginning a new cycle of growth and affluence -- which now, at least for Michigan, has followed the same boom-bust pattern.

Then yesterday, Friday, we joined Dennis and Laura in an exploration of the highest point in Michigan, Mt. Arvon. The nearby Mt. Curwood had been considered the highest point until 1982 when more accurate instrumentation determined that Arvon was actually taller by a mere 11 inches. Of course that fact got me wondering whether geological bandits could lug a 12 inch rock to the top of Curwood to regain the title?

From L'anse MI., the 28 mile route followed progressively worsening roads. The last few miles were little more than a jeep trail... barely wide enough for Dennis' full-size van... through ruts, wash outs, pot holes. About a half mile from the peak we found a place to park the van and walk the rest of the way to the top. A good jeep could, and occasionally does, make it all the way.

A picnic table and signs mark the point. And of course, the official USDI Geological Survey marker. Just a short walk down a trail to the north we found a fantastic view of Lake Superior and the Huron Islands about 15 miles off, and the Keweenaw Peninsula on the horizon.

From the mountain we headed for the shoreline. Lake Superior is the largest fresh water lake in the world based on surface area, and the third largest based on volume. We drove, again down progressively worsening roads to a beach near the mouth of the Huron River -- which we learned was a sort of secret recreation area for locals and those "in the know". We found campers, beach'rs, picnic'rs... all enjoying the wide, sandy, and very pleasant beach. Don't tell anyone, but this was a real "find" for a couple explorers like us.

Lollygagging to Three Lakes

Yesterday, Friday, we made the trek from Gladstone to Three Lakes. Since we knew it was going to be an easy 140 mile drive we dawdled and lallygagged our way down US-2 as it weaved from Michigan into Wisconsin and then back to Michigan again... from Eastern Time to Central and then back to Eastern again. We threaded our way through the towns of Bark River, Norway, Spread Eagle, Florence, and Crystal Falls. We stopped for supplies in Iron Mountain, enjoyed a picnic lunch at a Michigan roadside park, and checked in with the owners of Stumps Bar in Three Lakes where we've traditionally stopped and un-coupled the toad from the bus-house before snaking down to the camp.

As I've mentioned before, Camp Soldner belongs to Dar's brother and sister-in-law, Dennis and Laura. They graciously allow us to camp here and soak up the solitude, the sights and smells of a lake tucked into a heavy U.P. forest, and to enjoy getting out on the water with their flotilla of kayaks, canoes, a sailboat, and a pontoon boat. We'll be here for a couple weeks or so... in many ways we'd like it to be longer.

Glad to be in Gladstone

Boy, did I ever sleep good last night; didn't stir once until a little after 5am and then fell asleep again until almost 8am. Low dew points, cool overnight temperatures, no RV park security lights shining in through the open window next to my head, no mechanical drone of a fan or air conditioner -- it all came together and I was apparently ready for it.

By the time I finally got up for good Dar had the bus-house ready for travel. Today is moving day, and today we start our westward trek across the country on US Highway 2. The ultimate goal of this leg of our journey is a couple of grandkids that we can't wait to see... way out there in Washington State. But there's a lot of ground to cover and a lot of new areas to explore between here and there. We're also going to pause for a couple weeks at Camp Soldner, a little further down the road here in the UP of Michigan.

We left Straits State Park about 10:30am this morning and pulled into Gladstone Bay Campground in the City of Gladstone MI. about 1:30pm. This campground is owned and operated by the City of Gladstone, and is right on the shores of Little Bay de Noc, a bay of Lake Michigan. We selected this camp for tonight because of the full hookups. There's a bunch of laundry we need to do before getting to Camp Soldner and the $24 camping fee isn't much more than what it'd cost at a laundromat.

Water quality is another reason we look for laundry camps like this one. If the camp is on a treated city water supply, the quality of the water is typically much better than you'd likely find at a rural camp with well water. Good water cleans clothes better and is better on the wash machine.

We'll be here for just one night. Tomorrow, Friday, we're heading up to Dar's brother Dennis's place (Camp Soldner) near Michigamme. The last time we stayed there, two years ago, a couple readers of the Journal asked for information and directions to this great camp. Unfortunately, (or maybe fortunately??), this is a small family place that's not open to the public. I probably shouldn't keep referring to it like I do, but it's become a thing I do.
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By the way, a couple other notes: first, if you haven't checked lately, Dar is once again uploading photos to our online photo gallery (Click here). Since there's a lot of catching up to do, she's starting with the current photos and working backward as she has time to fill the gap. She does a good job adding captions and telling a story of the day's explorations, so check it out for another, more visual way, of reading our story.

A few days ago I mentioned that Dar's laptop bombed out. It didn't look good... the dreaded "blue screen of death". I'm happy to report that I was able to revive it. At least it looks promising so far. It's amazing what resources are out there on the internet to help a hobby-tech'r like me give cyber-CPR to a non-responsive computer. A few google queries, a little reading, researching, and vetting, a little luck and a dance to the silicon-gods... well, it seems to have worked out. The laptop is functioning again.

I wish I could report the same on Margaret, our GPS. It seems nothing can help her now. She'll be interred in the next few days up at Camp Soldner.

Mackinac Island

Today, Wednesday, is our planned resting and get-caught-up day before we leave St. Ignace tomorrow. I've been lazing around this morning -- even made a hot breakfast for my cute long-haired fellow explorer. But now it's time to get this journal post done and published.

We spent yesterday on Mackinac Island. Neither of us had ever been there before and regular questions and comments over the years from fellow explorers finally pushed us to do our part to help out the local tourism-driven economy of the straits area... to finally buy those ferry tickets and get over there. No longer will we have to reply negatively to the query "of course you've been to Mackinac Island, haven't you?"

We caught the 9:05am ferry ($20 each after coupon discount and $8 for each bike) from the Star Line railroad dock just down the road in St. Ignace. After talking with some locals the past couple days we made the decision to take our bikes over with us in lieu of spending as much as $40 each to rent bikes once on the island. And there are other benefits of taking your own bikes... you know the bike, it's quirks, it's feel ... you're comfortable on it... it fits right... you don't have to stand in line to to pick it up or drop it off.  It became obvious this was the right thing to do.

The weather was great, with sunny skies and cool morning air. The first thing we did was to circumnavigate the island on the shoreline path. An enjoyable ride right along the waters edge, it's 8 miles of mostly level asphalt. At that early hour (started about 9:30am), there weren't many people on the trail... we often felt like we had it to ourselves. I enjoyed that ride much more than I thought I would. With stopping here and there to explore things along the way, it took us about two hours to finish the loop.

The next item on the list was the requisite stop at the Grand Hotel. According to local lore, this magnificent place was built in just 93 days in 1887. Probably the main reason I've resisted a trip to the island before this was the fact that the Hotel is now charging the common folk $10/head to get on the grounds and into the building. But, after badgering by the aforementioned fellow explorers, and a "conversation" with Dar ("my next husband won't be such a tight wad!"), I relented and happily released a twenty for the privilege.

 

We wandered all around, nooks and crannies, with Dar leading the way and snapping picture after picture. We were both surprised at the settling that's occurred over the years. In many places stairways and floors aren't level and walls aren't plumb. According to the concierge (who surprisingly answered our questions without demanding a twenty), the building is built on rock and was plumb and level when constructed, but the ravages of time and weight have taken their toll. It's a constant effort to keep doors from sticking and walls from cracking. But it is a grand place and I'm glad we made the time to explore it.

As noon approached we found a couple rockers on the huge front porch, found someone who would sell us a libation (another twenty for a beer, a glass of wine, and a small tip!), and found some relaxation while looking out over the island, the straits, and the big bridge. You just gotta take time like this to take a deep breath and soak it all in.

The island has about 7,000 residents during the summer... many people supporting the hotel and working the tourist trade... but others, obviously wealthy, who own 5,000 sq. ft. summer "cottages" and who may arrive for their stays by yacht or private plane. During the winter, pretty much everything closes, including the Grand Hotel, and the population drops to about 500 hearty souls.

Because motor vehicles are not permitted on the island, bikes are the most common form of personal transportation. During our stay we rode around the perimeter of the island and then through residential and more rustic wooded areas in the island middle and don't remember seeing even one motorized vehicle... not a Gator, service truck, golf cart, a four-wheeler... nothing. There are a lot of horse drawn wagons and carriages that perform the function of taxi, tourist bus, and truck. Personally, I liked the glimpse into a car-free environment and experiencing what a true walkable community could be.

Later in the day we parked the bikes and walked down the two main streets in the commercial district close to the harbor, Huron Street and Market Street. The place was absolutely packed. We learned that the Chicago-Mac sailboat race had just completed the day before and most of the participants were on the island -- celebrating and relaxing after the big event. Boat slips in the harbor were packed with sailboats, tied gunwale to gunwale, filling every possible mooring spot.

With crowds and congestion starting to detract from our experience we decided it was time to split and head back to the mainland, where we found a little place along the water for dinner. While soaking in the view of the island from the outside restaurant deck we recounted the day and agreed it was time well spent.

A Day in the Life...

I was going to call this post "a detour on the road to De Tour" but I changed my mind. I don't know why. I've had a tough day, electronic hardware-wise, and I'm reeling from all that... so who knows what goes on in a preoccupied mind?

So what's the problem with the hardware? First, Dar's computer has presented us with the "blue screen of death". It's not good. It may be terminal. I've got a few leads on some solutions but any attempt at revival will have to wait until Wednesday when we plan to take a break from exploring.

Oh, and just wait... there's more. Today, during our little jaunt to Sault Ste. Marie my trusty GPS decided that life wasn't worth living anymore. Completely out of character, the dang thing didn't say a word... didn't say "That's it, You've taken the wrong turn one too many times... I can't take this anymore... I'm ending it here and now... bang!"... no, it didn't say a word. I just heard the click of the hammer as it was pulled back and the self-inflicted shot that ended its more than 5 year life with me. It's over. She wasn't high maintenance, didn't cost me a bundle over the years, normally led me in the right direction... I just don't know what to say. You'd think she'd say something before taking a final step like this. I may need counseling.

This morning Dar and I trekked northward about 50 miles to the town of Sault Ste. Marie and the famous "Soo" Locks. I've been there twice before... once as a kid while vacationing with my family and the other when Dar and I, before children, made a week long circumnavigation of Lake Superior. The first was probably in the early 60's and the second in the mid 70's, so it's been a while.

But very little has changed. We enjoyed watching the 720 foot Joseph L. Block lock through into Lake Superior and a few smaller tour boats full of tourists going up or down. The museum at the Locks is small but interesting, with history and information about the operation and why the locks are so important to commerce on the Great Lakes.

After a quick lunch at the Lockview Restaurant across the street, Dar wanted to explore a curious little village out on the extreme eastern edge of the UP called De Tour. From the "Soo", it's over an hour away, and off we go. But the route we chose was interrupted by a road construction detour... so we had a detour on the road to De Tour... get it? (I'm tellin' ya'... you just don't get writin' like this at most websites!)

At De Tour there's a ferry over to Drummond Island, an island that, when you look at the map, looks like it should belong to Canada. Islands on both side of it are Canadian, but Drummond belongs to the good old USA. Why?

Part of the answer may lie in the rich deposits of Dolomite that make up the island. A rocky mineral, Dolomite is used extensively in the manufacture of steel and is of strategic importance for that reason. I honestly don't know if this is a reason the place became part of the USA, but it sounds plausible.

We observed a ferry boarding and explored De Tour a bit before heading back to camp, more than an hour away. The road between De Tour and I-75 runs right along Lake Huron and there were a lot of public access beaches along the way. We stopped at one and dabbled our toes in the lake.

Straight over the Straits

Sunday was an excellent day for travel. We continued our survey of Michigan's Lake Huron Lakeshore starting from our Walmart camp in Tawas City and traveled through places like Au Sable, Alcona, Alpena, Rogers City, and Cheboygan. The shoreline is generally sandy but mostly private -- precious few places to pull over, pull out a chair, and dabble your toes in the lake.

About 2pm the bus-house pulled onto I-75 at Mackinaw City and started over the Mackinac Bridge -- it's third time over in three years. The first time was almost exactly three years ago when I reported on the locally correct pronunciations of the words Mackinac and Mackinaw. Just on the other side is Straits State Park which research indicated was probably the best of limited camping options in the area. We didn't have reservations opting instead to just "show up" and hope for the best -- a strategy that worked this time. Because the campground is old and really not designed for things like the bus-house there was only one site available that would work for us -- long and level.

The State of Michigan is proud of their campgrounds, however, as the charge for our site was $29/night plus all the entrance fees and park stickers and falala. I'll have to check but I think this may be the most we've paid since staying at the French Quarter RV Park in New Orleans back in the Spring of '09 where we had full hookups, a private pool, sauna, etc. Here at Straits State Park we have electric power... that's it. Alright... enough grumbling.

We'll be here until Thursday. And what will we explore during those three days?? Hmmm?

Another Walmart Overnight

Just a short update on our progress today: The rain stopped in Charlotte about 11am and we were on the road before noon. The skies remained cloudy for most of the drive but I didn't have to use the wipers until just before we got to Tawas City about 4:30pm --  and that was only a brief light shower and the sun was back out again.

Tawas City is right on the Lake Huron shore, about an hour north of the Bay City/Saginaw area. We stopped at the Walmart for provisions and, since they had a big level parking lot, we decided to save a couple bucks and spend the night. It's right along US-23, the shoreline drive, and we have a great view of the Lake from our impromptu campsite to boot.

Tomorrow we'll continue the drive northward and toward the big bridge over the Mackinac Straits. After crossing we'll be looking for a camp in the St. Ignace area where we think we'll spend a couple days exploring.

South Haven on the Lake

On Friday the four of us, Jack, Cher, Dar, and old what's-his-name, headed over to South Haven on Lake Michigan. It's a quiet and quaint little harbor town about 40 miles west of Kalamazoo -- well, at least it used to be. For the last few years it's been discovered by the good people of the Chicago Metroplex and, well, that's the end of quaint and quiet. For many, Friday is part of the weekend during summer, and that's the way it felt in South Haven. Restaurants were busy and lots of people around.

We enjoy visiting with our K-zoo family and our visits here give Dar a chance to visit all the stuff she has in storage in Cher's basement. Part of the plan this year was for Dar to go through some of it with the goal of reducing the volume a little. After three years surely there's some that has lost it's importance to us and can be donated or sold or tossed into the landfill. I'm hopeful, but so far visiting and looking through old photos is taking precedence over culling through old stuff.

In the morning, often, while I sip coffee and get the brain engaged for the day, I'll read through online blogs of others who are living unconventionally. One of these, Our Odyssey, is done by a couple that lives fulltime in a converted Neoplan Spaceliner tour bus -- it's really quite a rig. I admire these guys because they're often pushing the envelope of what a big ol' bus like this can do and where it can go. This post [Change of Plans] describes their difficulty in trying to get on the Dorena - Hickman Ferry across the Mississippi River. If you're short on time skip down to the paragraph that starts with "We have a love-hate relationship with ferries..." and read the next few paragraphs. These folks seem to thrive on getting into, and then out of, trouble. Nice job Sean and Louise... and a really interesting couple paragraphs.

I've added a couple new things to our photos and videos pages. Check them out if you have a chance. Dar's way behind with our online photo albums and will be working hard at getting caught up once we're away from family and traveling again.