Friend Time in Michigan

Hi all, Dianne here.  Not much time to write, but I'll try to update about our fun week so far with our Indiana camping buddies.


We met up with Chuck, Cindy, Pat, Audrey, and of course Sophie, the luckiest dog in Fishers, Indiana, at Wild Cherry RV Resort near Suttons Bay, Michigan.  Cindy and Audrey researched and found this RV Resort last summer when we spent a week together in Holland, Michigan.  

Roger and I arrived first, but were still setting up when the other two RVs pulled in.  We hadn't seen Pat and Audrey since last summer, so it was really good to see them arrive.  Chuck and Cindy visited us in Mission, Texas this March, but it is always good to meet up again.

Cindy and Pat have taken advantage of the free golf holes right next to our sites.  We've all enjoyed the view of the tranquil lake, surrounded by cat tails, right behind our RVs.

Despite the heat wave gripping the U.S., we've found comfortable seating in the shade for happy hour each evening.  

Bandido and Sophie started up their never-ending wrestling match that they began this March in Texas.

Day One included an afternoon at a dog-friendly beach.  It was so hot that Roger dipped Chaplin into the water to cool him off. After toughing it out for a while, we all concluded it was just too hot and went back to the RV park.  

Even our Sportbrellas (Audrey and Pat have one, too) didn't protect us from the heat this time.


On the way back we stopped for ice cream and visited the 1852 Grand Traverse lighthouse inside Leelanau State Park.  

Pat and Audrey climbed the lighthouse tower and toured the inside, while the rest of us wandered around the grounds with the dogs.

Day Two found the six of us (without the dogs) touring some of the local wineries.  Not too many dry reds here (short growing season), but some very nice whites and, of course, we had to try the local specialty, cherry wine.

One of the wineries, Black Star Farms, also makes a special raclette cheese, both aged and mild, right there at the winery.
Roger especially liked their Arcturos pinot noir rose, and we brought a bottle home.

They have an interesting "bunker" where they age their cheese and wine.

One of the very fun wineries was in Glen Arbor.  The Cherry Republic was a wonderland of all things cherry!  Cherry salsa, cherry barbecue sauce, TONS of free samples, candy, wine, etc. etc.  Pat and Audrey purchased some local cherry soda.  

Roger enjoyed the cherry hard cider, and I bought some barbecue sauce and salsa (after tasting the delicious samples). 

Another winery, Chateau Fontaine, had a very interesting wall inside the bathroom in addition to a  very nice 2009 Pinot Gris.  The wine pourer explained to us that it was the owner's "wine education":
(A whole wall of used corks!)


Day Three was a road trip to Traverse City, lunch (including cherry pie, of course), and shopping.


Day Four was a trip to a different nearby beach, this time without the dogs.  Another hot, hot day, but this time there was more of a breeze.  

We spent a lot of the time in the water, which was so clear and surprisingly cool (or cold, depending on who you ask) despite being so shallow we could wade waist deep 150 yards out.

The different shades of blue indicate the water depth, showing just how far out the shallow water goes.

Roger took a photo of his feet through the water, showing just how clear the water is here at Suttons Bay Beach.


We have two days left.  Not sure the agenda yet -- we're letting the other two couples decide on the activities, since we've already had a month in Michigan.  Tonight is my last night to cook (we each took two nights).  Tomorrow night we plan to eat out, on a quest for some local whitefish.

The pet photo of the day shows Chaplin during happy hour.  He's very content to hang out with the adults and stay out of the constant frenzy of activity surrounding Bandido and Sophie!

Straits State Park

Roger here....  The opening picture is obviously of the Mackinac Bridge -- The Mighty Mac.  It was taken from one of the scenic viewing areas at Straits State Park in St. Ignace, MI, where we have spent the last four days.  Since we are driving over that bridge tomorrow on our way to the Traverse City area, posting about our current home is long overdue.  

Where do I start?  There are several trails through the very dense woods where we can walk the dogs.    Dianne took this picture of a new pine tree growing out of the stump of an old one.  Many of the trees and shrubs near the lakefront have some very nice labels.  I smiled when I spotted the placard below in front of a very healthy stand of poison ivy:

Our 50 amp (no water or sewer) campsite is nestled in the trees, but there is plenty of sun to enjoy.  A minor miracle -- we found a hole in the trees large enough for our satellite to work.  The site is large and comfortable.  We can see Lake Huron through the trees from the sitting area outside.  Very pleasant.  

Dianne here:  Bandido especially likes the cedar trees here at our camp site.  His breath is now Piney-fresh!

The sign to the right is directly across the road from our site and visible through the windshield.  Cool.


Fifteen yards past the sign is a bench with a view.

Very nice.
















And then.... 15 more yards and you are on the beach!

The muddy and overgrown beach -- not quite like the pristine beaches we left on Lake Superior.  No long beach walks here.  Oh well, you can't have everything.  Still, a really nice setting in a great location.


Dianne here:  An added perk of staying right next to the bridge, with a view within a few steps of our motorhome, was being able to look at the bridge at night.  Wow, covered with multicolored lights, it looked like Christmas!  


A word of warning to anyone contemplating a stay in a Michigan State Park.  It is not cheap.  $28 per night is a little high, since there are no water or sewer hookups, but considering the location and setting, that doesn't seem too bad.  However, there is a kicker:  There is an additional fee of $8 to drive your motor home into the park (not unusual), but in Michigan, you pay the $8 for every night of your stay.  For us (five nights) that would have been $40.  We opted to buy a $29 annual pass to save $11.  In addition, there is an added charge of $6 for our towed vehicle.  So, in reality, our site (without water or sewer) cost us $35 per night.   Again, the setting is very nice, the park is well run, and we enjoyed our stay -- just a little salty.

Now for the fun stuff...  Our friends and new neighbors at Retama Village, Bob and Linda, were touring the lower peninsula of Michigan while we were in the upper peninsula.  Through our blogs, we realized that we would be passing each other as we headed south and they headed north.  They were able to get a site here so we could visit for a few evenings.  We had a delicious dinner and good conversation at their place the first night (forgot to take the camera).  The next get-together was at our place.  Dianne fixed dinner.  I grilled some pork.  The food was good (Dianne is a great cook).  We enjoyed a campfire after dinner.


 The pre-dinner entertainment was unique and memorable:  Bob arranged for us to have our own private wine tasting.  Let me rephrase that -- our own private boxed wine tasting.  Bob brought four different boxed merlots. We added a fifth box and some crackers to cleanse the palate.  

We managed to attract some attention from our fellow campers.  Lots of grinning.

After the tasting we rated the wines.  The results are posted at the side.  We did learn a few things:  The more expensive boxes did tend to be better.   Pouring the wine through an aerator improved the taste of all of them.  It was fun doing something that was a little silly.

Last evening, Bob and Linda stopped by and joined us around our campfire.  They left for Sault Ste. Marie this morning.  They brought a small sample of Four Roses bourbon for us to taste.  They had gone on a bourbon tasting tour in Kentucky recently.  We had never really had bourbon before, so it was another new experience.  


The pet picture of the day shows Bandido posing  on his way to the top of the picnic table.  Mr. Fiesty likes to climb.

Mackinac Island

Roger here....  The opening picture is along the bike, pedestrian and horse-only road on Mackinac Island.  Pretty, huh?


Yesterday, we traveled from Sault Ste. Marie to St. Ignace, a short, hour-long drive.  We are still in the Upper Peninsula, but just a bridge away from the "mitten" of Michigan.  We are staying at Straits State Park and will write about our campsite in a future post.


The main purpose of our stop here was a visit to Mackinac Island.  Since the weather forecast was mid-seventies and sunny, after taking the boys for a long walk, we did that today.

The drive to the ferry dock was a short one.  It took more time to unload our bikes (which we took with us) from the car rack, than it did to drive to Shepler's Ferry Service.  Dianne snapped a quick photo of the St. Ignace Lighthouse as we left the harbor.

Shepler's Ferry Service was extremely well-organized and customer-friendly.  An agent met us in the parking lot to make sure that our bicycles made it to the ferry -- an amazing absence of hassles.  The boat left on time and took us on a quick side trip underneath the Mackinac Bridge.  The fifth largest suspension bridge in the world is pretty impressive from this angle.

We encountered a parasailer along the way.

On the way into the harbor at Mackinac Island we were able to take a pic of the Grand Hotel ($10, just to walk on the grounds -- not for us), really nice houses on the hill, and yet another light house.

Our main activity was to be an 8.2 mile bike ride around the perimeter of the island.  Since no motor vehicles are allowed on the island and the ride was billed as flat, the trip fit Dianne's criteria for the perfect ride.  But first, lunch.

We searched the main street for quite a while to find an open space to park the bikes.  As you can see, the hundreds of bikes allowed for very few open spaces.  It reminded me of trying to find a space to park our car when we visited our daughter in Chicago.

When we finally snagged a space, we were in front of the Chippewa Hotel and the Pink Pony Bar & Grill -- love the mural behind the bar.  The menu looked good, so in we went.  

We picked well.  Our whitefish sandwiches were delicious.  Our table was right by the street so we had a view of the street traffic --  The Grand Hotel Carriage, and an actual beer wagon pulled by horses, heaped with boxes of various brands of beer.

The main street experience on Mackinac Island was reminiscent of the Main Street area of Disney World (including the crowds).  The difference...  these buildings were more than facades.  


Okey Dokey... on to the bike ride.  I already laid out Dianne's bike riding criteria: flat, no cars, etc.  The ride had other attributes -- perfect weather, no wind, beautiful landscaping and amazing seascapes (as seen in the opening photo).  Dianne was happy.  I was happy.

I REALLY enjoyed all the cairns that hundreds of people have erected along the rocky coast over the years.  This is usually Dianne's domain, but after a few miles I decided that we must leave our mark.

As we neared the end of our ride and re-entered the town area we passed some amazing Victorian houses.  (Our last house was a 1902 Victorian house, so these magnificent houses had an impact on us.)  Here are a few shots:

Before I leave this part of the blog we did, indeed, buy some fudge :-).  We also bought some American Spoon Mango-Habanero salsa and some Sour Cherry Preserves that we sampled in one of the shops (thanks, Steve).


Back at the campsite.  Bob and Linda, our friends and neighbors at Retama Village, are also staying at Straits State Park.  We had a delicious dinner at their place last night.  More about that in the next post.  


We took the pet picture of the day at the Aune-Osborne Campground in Sault Ste. Marie.  Dianne ran into a couple walking FOUR whippets.  (It is hard to have just one.)  Dianne took Chaplin to meet the four female whippets the next day.  He was very excited to meet the pretty girls!