Surprise; the world is small!

After leaving the U.P., I set out for Hayward Wisconsin via one of Michigan’s scenic routes, Highway 28. Not only was it scenic, it was slow…a cavalcade of old cars enjoyed the day too.

A stop at the Sidnaw Post Office gave way to a delightful conversation with the postal lady and a perfect reminder of the heartwarming people along my journey.  A pleasant, cheerful, sincere, conservative lady who reminded me that life is full of wonderful people.  Her statement, “you are so brave” caught me off-guard; bravery was not a thought in my travels.  Therefore I took a moment to explore bravery on the web, I came across this quote by C. JoyBell C., “What does it mean if I'm afraid? Does it mean something bad is going to happen? No, it doesn't mean something bad is going to happen. It just means that you have the chance to be brave.” Well then, my fear was that I would never be able to travel across the country; so, it’s confirmed, I have the chance to be brave. Brave it is!

Further down the road, caught by surprise at Ewin Pines, one of Michigan’s 80+ scenic roadside parks, by the welcoming crew, I met up with my newfound friend from yesterday, Ben and his Boy Scout troop from Duluth. Traveling along Highway 28, hunger pains occurred and I decided to stop at a roadside park for lunch so I pulled into Ewin Pines and there stood Ben and his friends, waving a friendly hello. What were the odds of that happening! The world is small. After an exchange of contact information and safe travel wishes, they were homeward bound to Duluth and I ate lunch and headed on down the road to Wisconsin.

...home of cheese-heads and badgers, where life is filled with north woods charm thanks to my friends Carl & Charlotte. 

Walk in the woods!

Captain Carl!

Captain Carl dockside to pick up the fisherman!

Nice fish!

Thanks Charlotte!

A Wisconsin north woods visit isn’t complete without a stop at the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame to see the landmark "Shrine to Anglers", a giant leaping muskellunge (one-half city block long and four and one-half stories tall). Yes, I stood in that gaping, open jaw and enjoyed the teething panoramic view of the City and Lake Hayward.

Musky mania!

After a few days rest and it’s time to journey on!

The Blue Highway...Lake Superior

“The lake connects place to place, people to places and people to people.”

Quote by local Anishinabeg woman interviewed by National Park Service in 1999

According to University of Minnesota, about 10,000 years ago retreating glacial ice sheet created Lake Superior; the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area and third largest by volume. This inland sea contains 3 quadrillion gallons of water (that would be 3,000,000,000,000,000 gallons, yikes) and if the shoreline were unraveled into a road, it would extend from Duluth to Miami (1,826 miles). As Billy Fuccillo would say,  “It’s huge Caroline, it’s huge!

Here I sit near West Lakeshore Drive on the shoreline of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the warm air rolling across the cold water of Lake Superior and engines roaring in the distance. As I watch the fog rolling out, the roar gives way to ships entering the narrow channel of the St. Mary’s River on their way to the St. Mary’s Canal, the most heavily used commercial shipping canal in the world, and the gateway to the lower Great Lakes. 

A walk along this same shoreline gives vision to some of Lake Superior’s finest treasures

Continuing on to the Point Iroquois Light Station, a wood structure built in 1855, replaced with a brick building in 1870, and then retired in 1962 to an automatic light in the channel off Gros Cap, Ontario.

Point Iroquois Light Station added to Historic Register in 1975

16' diametet at the base, 51' to the lantern deck, and 72 steps to the top of the tower

View of Venzaliner atop Point Iroquois Light Station

Replica of Point Iroquois Light Station lense

One of several rock flower beds

Back in the Venzaliner, a little farther down the shore to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. First stop, Grand Marias Ranger Station to get the lay of the land and stamp the National Park Passport book. Then, off for a short drive along the Grand Sable Dunes to the Log Slide Overlook.  Devil’s Slide was originally used to transport logs to Lake Superior and now is a sand dune slide 300’ above sea level; my view from the top of Devil’s Slide…

The walk down is about 500’ and takes about 5 minutes (so the sign says)… Yes, I had to do it; left the shoes at the top and ventured down the sand dune slide; tried to stay on my feet but…okay, maybe butt!

View northeast halfway down Devil's Slide

Looking downhill half-way down

This is why you leave your shoes at the top!

At the bottom, a walk along the seashore in the crisp cool water was a delight to the feet; and the rocks, sand and driftwood were pleasing to the eyes!

And then the thought occurred, what goes up must come down; or in this case what goes down must go up!

What took 5 minutes to go down takes about 45 to go up! Part way up I had the pleasure of meeting Ben, a Boy Scout from Duluth, who was struggling to get past the sandstone cliff so we worked together and chatted our way to the top…45 minutes later,  “Yo Adrian, we did it!” as Rocky Balboa would say! 

Next stop, Au Sable Point to view the Au Sable Light Station; however, this stop was thwarted by the attack of the black flies. After getting out of the Venza and walking 30 feet down the Au Sable Point trail, I realized the sequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s movie The Birds was in the making and I decided not to play Melanie Daniels; I retreated and settled for a drive along Twelve Mile Beach!

Original plan was to stay at the Twelve Mile Beach Campground and hike in to see the pictured rocks the next day; however, the black flies won and I headed inland…stock photo will have to do!

http://www.wallpaperweb.org/wallpaper/nature/afternoon-light-on-the-cliffs-above-lake-superior-pictured-rocks-national-lakeshore-michigan_33573.htm

Youse guys, I was in da Soo!

I ventured from Cincinnati to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; a 600 mile trek with a short detour near Saginaw to check out a friend’s farmstead.  For those who know the farmboy from Michigan, here is where the stories began…

A weather delay in Cincinnati left me wanting to make tracks to the U.P. so I opted for my first roadside stop at a rest area near Cheboygan for shuteye.  No, I didn’t pop up the Aliner, just opted for the back of the Venza…memory foam is awesome!

Then, up early for a drive across the Mackinac Bridge and a refresher stop at the Bridge View Park to watch the sun rise and the fog lift.

It was time to see the sights of Sault Sainte Marie and holy man, I was run-een amuck wit da yoopers after go-een tru da Mitten and ya know I was affected by da time zone disorder. What da heck; youse guys would have enjoyed yooperland, eh? Got my bike spoke fixed in da Soo and  den I gave’er tarpaper and got pre’ner da Seney Stretch but went da udder way to Pictured Rocks National Forest. Didn’t meet up wit any skeeters, but holyowah, dere dey were, towsands of black flies side by each udder on da VenzAliner. Ya didn’t want to be caught wearing yer sparklers cause dose buggers, dey like white! Der were no tip up towns eader cuzda weader was a beeuwt and der was no ice. Didn’t get to see Motor City Madman, Big Bad John or da canucks in da great white nort, but got to sit on da porch and read da mining urinal and enjoy a pasty and jumbo.  I hope ya know Finglish, if not I tink you must be a flatlander; you betcha, eh?

I leave you with a conversation I had with a yooper who spent a year in Jacksonville; said he moved back to da Soo where ders nuttin that will kill ya (referring to alligators, gangsters and hurricanes in FL); heck da worst ting dae have in da U.P. is da drunk drivers on Saturday night, eh? All I can say is holyowah to that one!

I'm a little too yoopy to continue, so stay tuned for more on the lakeshore drive across the U.P.

Bittersweet Cincinnati

A backtrack on my journey included a bittersweet stop in Cincinnati Ohio; home of the Cincinnati Reds, Cincinnati Bengals and now Jake Rohde and Amy Blasingim (my second son and his fiancé).  

Bitter as the visit was short, but sweet as I enjoyed seeing Jake and Amy (Nala too) and their new digs! Beautiful rental home in Mount Washington area of Cincinnati, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths complete with basement and a long yard for Nala to run and play. 

Watching your children grow is bittersweet; you no longer see them on a daily basis, but it is so rewarding when you do see them.

Enjoyed a day of play -- Kings Island with Jake and Amy and Amy’s parents Keith and Dorothy and her sister, Lauren. 

Enjoyed a day of work—Weeded the yard and installed a fence to keep Nala from chasing the deer.

A day for learning and exploring—enjoyed a visit to the Great American Ball Park, home of the Cincinnati Reds, and to Paul Brown Stadium, home of the Cincinnati Bengals and learned all about turf and grass for ball fields.  Did you know that the Bengals just installed a new UBU Sport Speed S5-m synthetic turf system that includes 2.5” harmony fiber with 70% rubber and 30% sand infill. Gives a new meaning to the wonderful thing about Tiggers…they’re bouncy, flouncy, trouncy, pouncy, fun, fun, fun, fun FUN!

Grass and turf talk!

Great American Ball Park--Cincinnati Reds

Paul Brown Stadium--Cincinnati Bengals

John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge completed December 1866

The National Steamboat Monument is a 30-foot replica of the paddle wheel of the steamboat American Queen.

Thanks for the bittersweet moments Jake & Amy!

“Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person’s character lies in their own hands.” Anne Frank

Wildlife, Farm Life, Lake Life and Friends

The journey was recently filled with wildlife, farm life, Amish country, lake shores and friends. It made me think, what would life be without friends?  This is what I would be missing...

The VenzAliner survived the path to Ted & Joann Kiser’s home in Kennerdell, Pennsylvania. Ted called up the wildlife show with deer in the front yard. Enjoyed Joann’s freshly planted flowers direct from Joann Fabrics and had some awesome ribs from Hirsch Meats of Kossuth. Thanks Ted, Joann, Denise and Korey.

Stahlman Lane, Kennerdell, PA

Off to Uniontown, Ohio for a visit with my boys’ babysitter from years ago, Jackie Melton. Enjoyed a visit to her brother’s antique store followed by an afternoon of wine and girl talk with Jackie and her sister-in-law Deborah—we covered it all (note, we didn’t drink it all)!

Jackie & Judy at Bro's Antique Store

Jackie & Deborah

Several stops in Indiana gave way to catching up with Caribbean Beach Club extended family!

Thanks to Phil & Kim, the Venzaliner rested on their spare drive in Greentown while I gallivanted around the upper half of Indiana. I would share some picks of P&K’s beautiful home but I experienced technical difficulties due to full SD card and dead camera battery. However, I was able to catch this shot of Kim and her handsome grandson Parker at the Beebe Farm…not sure who had more fun!

Loretta gave me the Simpson family farm tour followed by a day of work at her parent’s new trailer; unfortunately her parent’s lost their home to a fire recently. Fortunately, as you can see from the picture below, they are doing well at 90+ years young!

Enjoyed a day in Amish Country in Shipshewana with Gene and Loretta; visited the Guggisberg Deutsch Käse Haus Cheese Factory (tasted just a little) then carbed up at the Blue Gate Restaurant with a tasty Amish meal of homemade noodles, mashed potatoes, bread and old fashioned peanut butter (needed our protein too!), and ended with a traditional buggy ride.

Amish dad and son working the field

A visit to Indiana would not have been complete without a visit to the Simpson’s lake house. Relaxed and enjoyed the sunrise and sunsets; not to mention the pontoon and speed boat rides and a refreshing swim in Sechrist lake. Thanks Gene & Loretta!

Sunrise at Sechrist Lake...the calm before the storm!

One last stop, the Beebe farm; thanks Jodi for letting me tag along in the life and times of the Beebe family. In two days we covered soccer (good choice Colin), gymnastics (keep tumbling, jumping and swinging Jenna), lacrosse (awesome game Luke & Spencer); not to mention feeding the chickens and goats, collecting eggs, and watching Luke build a fence. Oh yes, and a visit to Cool Ponds…awesome. Now I know why Matt travels for work! 

Petting the fish

Colin & Parker

One will be food

Thanks friends for the hospitality and for adding wildlife, farm life, lake life and Amish Country to my journey; I certainly enjoyed!

STOP and listen...A special thanks today to all my friends for being a part of my life!