We left on Monday August the 12th, and our first stop was about an hour and a half away in Holland, MI. The first stops were along the west coast which is the Lake Michigan side. We stayed two nights at Holland State Park, the park is directly across the street from Lake Macatawa, which is also a beautiful lake.
I made a big boo boo and didn't realize that we only had electric and no water. We did not figure this out until we were already set up in our site, oopsie!! It was fine though we had just enough water in our tank to get us through the two nights.
The park was decent, sites were wooded but right next to a busy road which always sucks due to the road noise, it takes away from the "camping" feel of it. The bathrooms were nice, the showers were in individual rooms so you got a very private shower room all to yourself.
This was a very nice hike through the woods, and then down a boardwalk to the top. After our hike we took a drive to see some of the other near by light houses. our first stop was to Grand Haven where the light house was a slight disappointment because it was under construction but still a nice beach and pier.
Our next lighthouse was in Muskegon where they have the lighthouse and the breakwater lights
Then we headed back to the campground to relax for awhile before dinner, fire and bed.
The next day we headed out to our next stop in Mears, Silver Lake State Park where the dunes are that we had been to before. This has always been on of my favorite places, the dunes are awesome!!
Our campsite here was very roomy, we liked it, fairly quiet campground
They allow you to go in and up to the top for $2.00 per person, but of course they don't allow dogs!!!! So we didn't go, we just admired from here.
After this one we took a drive to Ludington to see the lighthouse there, you could access the 1.5 mile trail that leads you to the lighthouse from Ludington State Park. This was an awesome park!! Huge!! It had 3 campgrounds in it, although the sites were small and the park was crowded, it was still one of my favs. Not only was it right on Lake Michigan, but it had Hamlin Lake on the other side, so it was surrounded by water. They had many trails and paths, including a boardwalk on the lake. It was nice but not sure if our big rig would fit in the campgrounds.
So we headed off on the trail to see the lighthouse, nice trail but not much shade
We took a side trip through some dunes to get down to the water, even though they are Extremely strict about "NO DOGS ON BEACH", Jemma needed a pool break bad!! So I just carried her down to the water. They also stated that there was remains of an old shipwreck on the beach at this spot, but we didn't see anything, just nice views of Lake Michigan.
After the detour we headed back onto the trail and finally made it to the lighthouse.
This one they do not let you up in but they have a little store/museum here, with restrooms, and a story about a really tree. Jemma was happy to take a little break.
The entire hike was 4.8 miles, so we were pretty tuckered after that. We then headed to one more light house that was on our way back to the campground in Pentwater. Unfortunately we couldn't get close to this one because of course, no dogs on beach, and you had to cross the beach to get to the pier. We were fine with due to all the walking we had just done, so we parked as close as we could get and just enjoyed the views from the truck.
The next day we headed to our next stop in Traverse City, at Traverse City State Park. We made it there no problems, and got set up. I guess I forgot to take a picture of this site, oops, sorry.
The next day we headed out to drive around the Sleeping Bear Dunes area to see what we could see! I was of course navigating, and got us on a dirt road that turned into a seasonal logging road, YIKES!! Thank goodness we had 4 wheel drive, because we needed it. It was very sandy with some muddy spots, but we made it out ok, and it was actually pretty cool. There were many trailheads that crossed this road for the ATV's and the snowmobiles.
Once we got out of here the first town we came to was Frankfort
Along the way we passed by many of Michigan's beautiful lakes, They are breathtaking!! So big, and sooo blue!!
And then e were entering the Dunes area, we took a side road off to what looked to be a very popular tubing area on Platte river. We accidentally forgot our kayak on this trip, which was a bummer because this would have been a perfect spot!! They have a few different put in spots, and then rivers down and into Lake Michigan, where the take spot is, it was really nice
I saw a little salamander here on the river bank, he was cute
And then back on journey. We did not stop at the Dune walk simply because.... well.... we had already walked plenty of dunes, and decided it wasn't a must do.
Then we came to the Point Betsie lighthouse, and this was nice area too, it is down a road that dead ends into Lake Michigan.
We decided to hang out here and eat sandwiches we had packed for lunch, and Jemma could play in the water
Very nice views here also!
Then we headed back to camp, there were a few other places I really wanted to see but they were a good distance away still and we just couldn't bare being in the vehicle much longer. Oh well we will see them next time!
The area that this campground was in must have been like a soup bowl, because it was super smokey all around from every ones fires, we decided we would just head in and watch a movie rather than adding to the smoke bomb!!
The next day we headed out to Mackinaw City, to Mill Creek Campground just a couple miles from the Mackinaw Bridge. Our campsite here was directly across the road from Lake Huron, and if you walk out to the water you can see the bridge from there.
So here is our campsite, and the view from the rear window of our rig
And here is the view of the bridge
This campground was HUGE!! And we got here fairly early so we had time to leisurely walk around and check things out. Along the shore of Lake Huron they had fire pits here and there so if you wanted to enjoy an evening fire while watching the sun set you could
Lake Huron has a rocky bottom as opposed to Lake Michigan which is mostly sandy, so you have weave your way through the rocks to get to the water. It didn't stop Jemma from taking a dip
We decided to grab some chairs and a glass of wine and sit down by the water to wait for the sunset. As we got a few glasses of wine in us we decided to walk back to the water where Shane proceeded to entertain himself by writing my name in rocks, we got a good laugh over it, and I thought it was sweet, he can be very funny, especially after a few glasses of wine!
Then we watched the sun set and headed back to our site for a fire
This was also the evening of the blue moon
The next day we bought our tickets for the ferry that takes you over to Mackinac Island, and I was ecstatic to find out that they allow pets on the ferry, and the island is very pet friendly, so Jemma could go with us!! So we boarded the ferry around 1:30pm, we figured it might be a little less crowded if we didn't go first thing in the am, and it was!
This boat was a Hydro jet boat, so as it moves it shoots a giant rooster tail of water back behind it, it was pretty cool
Jemma was a little nervous at first but she managed to keep her cool as long as she could be on daddy's lap!
After about a 25 minute ride we arrived at the island
For those that do not know, Mackinac Island has full restriction of anything motorized, so the means of transportation is horse and buggy, bikes, or walking. The island is 8 miles around so there is allot to see. We started walking, and passed a beautiful hotel
Then we decided to take the 1 hour and 45 minute horse and buggy tour, we figured it was the best way to see all that we could see. Jemma was scared of the big horses of course but she warmed up to them later.
In the summer time there are more than 300 horses on this Island, used for transportation. Most of them are Percheron's, and seem to enjoy there jobs for the most part. They also seem to be very well taken care of.
Along the tour they explained many things about the horses and how they live on the islandfor the summer, then they boat them back to the Upper Peninsula, mostly because it is cheaper to do that than to continue to boat the food over to the island for them. But there are about 100 horses that stay on the Island year round, and about 500 people that live there year round, brrrrrrrrrrrrrr, is all i got to say about that!!
We passed by the Fort, where they told us the stories of how it was taken over by the French (which is why it is spelled with a C instead of a W) then taken back by us, then the French, and so on, and so on!
Pretty interesting stuff, then we passed by a church that they said holds 100 weddings a year
And a hotel that was built by hand back in the 1800's, and I don't know if you can see it, but they painted the ceilings of the balconies blue to keep the birds from nesting there, I thought that was also interesting, and it looked like it was working.
Then we had to change buggy's!! From a 2 horse one to a 3 horse one, they get many breaks throughout the day and only work one day then get 3 days off
That's when we learned that the shoes that they put on their front feet are made of a polymer plastic, helps better with grip and is easier on the feet. The one tour guide called this one "her spare tire" and let us all see it, lol!
Then we stopped off at a scenic area where they believe this to be the mouth of a cave that eroded away after time. They also told us that there is only 2 foot of dirt on the island, and under that is slate rock, so when they get a storm and the wind blows really hard, they say you can see the ground moving like a wave from the tree roots. Crazy huh?
Then the tour was over and we were walking back through he main drag, we decided to stop and grab some dinner before we got back on the ferry, so we stopped at the Mustang Lounge and ate on the patio. Then we had to hit a fudge shop, because I couldn't leave the Island without it!! So I got some Michigan cherry moose tracks fudge
It was delicious!! But not as good as it used due to the fact they can no longer use the syrup from the trees because they abused it and almost wiped them off the island.
Back at the ferry we found out that the 6:30 boat drives under the bridge, so we got on it, and were headed back.
We just relaxed when we got back to camp.
The next day we decided to take a drive over the bridge into the U.P.
I don't know why, but this bridge scares me!! I guess its a combination of the sides are not very tall, it is extremely windy due to lake effect, and the center lanes are grated, so if you are driving on it and stick your head out the window (like I did) you can see straight down to the water!!!
We decided to stop at a little park and walk out on the pier to the light house
Along the walk we learned about Mooring Dolphins, pretty interesting!!
And we learned that this park was used way back in the day as a docking station for the boats that brought over railroad cars, they had to pull the boats right up to the shore where the tracks started and push them off, also interesting stuff!!
Then we passed by a spot we could get down to the water, I decided to check the water temperature; as we traveled along Lake Michigan, I found the water to be tolerable, but when I stuck my foot in Lake Huron in the U.P........ IT HURT!!! It was so stinking cold, I couldn't believe it!! It was shockingly cold!!
After that we decided to go do some hiking at Straights State Park, here they had a nice little trail that started at the top of an overlook for the bridge
And then descended back down towards the water
When we got to the water, we were not surprised that it was beautiful, and the water a little more tolerable. We spent quite a bit of time here, letting Jemma run around, she had a blast
After awhile we got back on the trail and followed it around a small boardwalk
Then back to the stairs that w had come down. After all.... What goes down, must come up???
LOL
After that we called it a day and headed back to camp for dinner, fire, and some drinks!!
The next day we headed out to our next stop in Alpena at Campers Cove. It is right on Thunder Bay Lake. We had a pretty nice spot here on the water.
We made a grocery run after we got set up, and then just chilled for the evening. Next day we decided to rent a pontoon and check out the lake. We rented it for 2 hours, the lake is not super huge so this was plenty of time.
We came across a little island so we decided to stop and let Jemma get out, and we could eat our lunch.
Then we went back to camp, I decided to lay in the sun, and read a book for awhile, while Shane just hung out and relaxed! It was a good day!
After this stop we headed to Essexville, at Finn Road Campground. This is near Saginaw Bay. Very nice campground, where we got an tire wheel borrow full of wood for $5.00!!! That was a great deal.
I guess I didn't get a picture of this spot either, bad me!!
We headed out the nature trail that winded through the woods, and back, and then another trail that led right down to the bay
It was another 5 mile day with both these walks but we had a good time doing it!!
This was our last stop, and we were headed back to my Mom's house.
Shane has contacted Howard (from the blog he reads) about joining their weighing team. This is a team of people that go to different rallies and set up a weigh station and weigh peoples rigs, and answers questions about it all. So they have asked us to meet them at a Rally in Atlanta, GA on October 16th to talk about it. We thought this would interesting, it will take us places we may not have gone otherwise, and give us an opportunity to meet others living this lifestyle.
So we have decided to leave Michigan in September 15th to start heading that way. There is a campground in North Carolina that is all about the dogs, that I want to go to, so we are leaving a little early so we can do that and make it GA in time.
So right now I am catching up with old friends, Shane is finishing up some projects for my Mom, and we will slowly be getting ready to leave on Sunday. Our first stop is going to be back to Elkhart, Indiana to get some final repairs done to the rig. I will post again after that and let you know where we are headed next.
No comments:
Post a Comment