Alright, week 2!
I want to apologize first for not doing
this page sooner, and subsequently having to list the last two weeks in a row
of days. But there's only two more posts like this one, because tomorrow marks the
end of week 3! From there I promise I’ll keep this updated. Can’t promise they
will be much quicker reads, but I will be able to go more in depth on each day
without feeling like I’m writing a book, or flying by too quickly like I am
now!
SO, July 21st we were still in Who Knows Where,
Ohio. I didn’t have much to do besides drive that day, so I didn’t set any
alarms. Well of course it was an overcast morning, so with no sun shining in I
didn’t get out of bed until around 11:30. But when I did go outside, I was met
with the darkest, most menacing sky. I packed up the site so fast, terrified
of the dirt road washing out, or a tree falling, or just anything
happening that would keep us in bumble**** Ohio! We made it to a paved road just
in time to sit and watch the storm pass. And then we drove, and drove, and
drove.
A few days earlier, ironically while I was figuring out
where the heck I was going to stay in Michigan, one of my old friends, Morgan, suggested we get together. I had gone to middle school with her and her fiancé, Kerry, and they had recently bought a house in Michigan, right on the Indiana border.
It wasn’t the original plan to park at their house, but when I told her I was
staying at a Walmart nearby, she offered to let me park there instead because
of the bad rep from the other town. (Thanks for keeping me alive guys 😊 ) When I finally
arrived at their house I showered to become somewhat decent again, and then we
headed out to a local bar. The place looked sort of like a rec hall, with
wooden walls and a handmade bar. Even the drinks were served in Solo cups, and
the server made up the price on the spot, “Let’s call it $5 a piece”. The
kitchen was closed so we ended up going to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner, which
I also had never been to. I’m glad we stopped in at the bar first though – it was
just the kind of local place I wanted to see!
On the 22nd we left pretty early to head to
Michigan’s National Forest and dune area. Adding in a stop to Cabela’s for a
new camper battery, as well as a ton of stops for the pets, a 2-3 hour drive
turned into a 6-7 hour day in the truck. I had read online about free sites on
Green Rd. and when we arrived, all of the free sites that I could’ve fit the
camper onto were taken by tents. And of course, all the smaller tent sites were
empty… So we drove to the paid camping area nearby, and after driving down every loop,
we finally found a site – 2nd to the last one, so we certainly got
lucky! We were a 5-10 minute walk from the shore of Lake Michigan, which Coop
Dog and I went to check out. Unfortunately he is scared of water, so after
taking in the view we walked back to the site.
The 23rd was my sisters (Amber/Bams) 20th birthday!
Besides walking back to the shore to get service to call her, I didn’t do much
else that day! I eventually found a good spot with service at a small lake
nearby, and sat at a picnic table with my laptop and planned out my trip up
until August 5th. (Today is the 2nd and I still haven’t planned
past then. Actually I don’t even know where I’m staying Friday night yet 😯 I need to get better
at that, but at least there’s always Walmart!)
July 24th we had another very long day of driving
to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, or the U.P. We stopped in Traverse City for
lunch, and at a few roadside overlooks along the way, but pretty much just
another day in the truck. We arrived at Andrus Lake Campground, in Paradise,
MI. I struggled hard with parking, but I finally got parked at this nice
site with a lakefront area. Until I noticed this teeny tiny piece of paper on a
similarly small lot number sign, saying that the site was reserved… So I had to
move again! Luckily I didn’t have any trouble with the next spot, and it also
had a little bit of lakefront to it, so it wasn’t a big deal. Just the little
things that get to you after a long day on the road! That night I saw a really
awesome sunset over the lake, I saw a shooting star, and I heard coyotes
howling nearby! I was a happy camper 😃
The next day I drove to Whitefish Point to see Lake
Superior, and was surprised to see all the cool rocks that made up the shore! I took a few at first, until later I found out that the locals collect them
to find agates. Then I went back and took a whole lot more! (Like 2 buckets
full…) Speaking of the locals, they are called Yoopers! I’m not sure where it
comes from, or why, but I read that in order to call yourself a true Yooper,
you have to have lived in the U.P. for at least 7 full years, and endure the
mass amounts of snow they get. THEN you can consider yourself a Yooper! If you
own a lake house, and only visit it in the summer, then you’re just a wannabe,
no matter how many summers you’ve spent there! And they get a lot of snow! The
woman at the grocery store had quickly gestured above her head to describe it
when I had asked about the no snowmobile signs posted at their school. There also was one house that had a mock mail box, probably 20 feet high, with “Winter
Delivery” written on the side - gave me a good laugh 😊 I think the best part about this area was the vibes that were given off by the locals. Everyone was extremely friendly, no one seemed to care that the groceries were 2x the normal price, and they even thought the water was warm (and it was not warm. I lost feeling in my feet searching for rocks) I wouldn't want to visit in the winter, but it sure was a great place to be in the summer, and once again, I wished I had more time!
On the 26th I woke up early in hopes to see the sunrise at Whitefish Point. It was very cloudy and we were expecting a thunderstorm at any time, but I still decided to drive the 10 minutes. Of course there wasn't even the slightest chance for a sunrise view, but still I sat on the beach until it started to rain. And when it started, the wind picked up fast and it poured! By the time I made it back to my truck I was completely soaked and my umbrella had flipped inside out, so I jammed it in the backseat and took off to the marina to get a view of the water from INSIDE my truck. Of course the rain stopped shortly after I made it there, so I drove through torrential downpours for nothing..
A few hours later we left Andrus Lake and drove to
Seney State Park. After setting up I drove to Log Slide Overlook, and it was AMAZING!
I am a huge sucker for mountaintop overlooks, and vista views, but I have never
seen a view like this one. From the parking lot you walked on a short trail
through the woods until it started to open up and become sandy. At this point I
had thought that I was going to walk out onto a beach, so when I climbed up the
short hill and the view opened up, I was in total shock. In front of me was
Lake Superior, the water as blue as the Bahamas. The drop down was incredibly
steep, 300 feet descent in 500 feet. The sign said that it only takes a few
minutes to reach the bottom, but up to an hour to come back up. There was a young
girls soccer team climbing up, up this sheer cliff of sand, carrying rocks with
them from the bottom by tossing them every few feet. It was the largest dune I
have ever seen. Looking out onto the lake felt like I was looking at the end of
the world – just endless water that blurred with the horizon. I finally
understood why it was first thought that the world was flat, and I could
picture the water falling off the edge. It was so surreal, like looking at a
picture, or falling into a dream. I have never seen such an amazing sight. If
you ever find yourself in the U.P., forget about the 12 mile beach, or the
lighthouses. Go here. (Or just do those first because once you’ve seen this you’ll
be unimpressed by the rest like I was)
That night I finally had electricity for the first time
since Pennsylvania, so I cranked the AC, caught up on Netflix, and avoided the
mosquitoes. I probably will forget to mention those horrible guys going forward,
so just know that I have been bitten more times, and in more places, than I
thought was possible. I’ve learned that bug spray only has a hope of working if
you spray literally every centimeter of your body, and if you miss a spot, or
your clothing moves to reveal a missed spot, they will find it. And they will
eat you alive.
Also citronella candles are a joke, but they are a great
light source, sometimes giving off more light than my usual dying fire!
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