Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Raindrops on the roof woke us before the alarm went off. Cautious of getting stuck in the woods with the ticks and mosquitoes, we pack up and head back to the roadside park where we rode our bikes yesterday. There we had coffee and breakfast and decided to motorcycle over to Norway, MI to visit an alpaca farm.

  
We leave the park and head into Eagle River, crossing the Wisconsin border. There we find a public boat ramp with a bit of parking space and leave the RV. We unload the motorcycle and head out to visit alpacas!

So glad I kept those motorcycle chaps! It didn’t feel that cold outside but the weather said 56 and it quickly got cold on the bike. We headed straight through the Nicolet National Forest and eventually crossed back into Michigan.

  
Now we’ve been to the end of the rainbow, but didn’t find a pot of gold. We found alpacas! Rainbows End Alpacas farm was neat – got to check out alpacas, tour the store (full of yarn, wool clothing, and books) and the owner suggested a nearby state park to check out.

   
   We followed their directions and circled through the park before heading back to a roadside park with a waterfall just up the road. We’re loving these roadside parks. They’re super convenient and so far have had great little features – on top of being well maintained.

   
 During lunch we discussed our future homestead. Ashley wants to raise Alpacas, lavendar and chickens while I want ducks, rasp/blackberries and something like daffodils. We both want fruits and veggies as well.

We finish our picnic of summer sausage, cheese, cucumber, tomatoes and grapes, and head on back. Deciding not to stop at the coffee shop is apparently a good idea, as we make it back and load the bike just a few minutes before the rain hits.

On down the road with no final destination in mind. There don’t appear to be any good overnight spots so we pull into the Chequamegon National Forest to try out a campground. Unfortunately, the first one we come to has been closed due to budget cuts.

Dear Forest Service – why the heck do you close things! Don’t – just leave them open but unattended. Remove the trash recipticals, lock up the pit toilets and let the public continue to use them at no cost. Viola! No more maintenance costs yet still happy campers!

We head on down the road, looking for the next campground and happen upon an old pull-off that looks promising. After an initial inspection we back on in. Definitely visible from the road, but we are at least the required 50′ back per the dispersed camping rules. Lovely view of green from all of our windows.

  
I grab a quick nap to help my headache while Ashley makes sauce and spaghtti squash. Plus a delicious salad! We eat and Ash grabs a shower before we head to bed.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Full day, though we didn’t “do” a lot. Woke up in Walmart parking lot (didn’t sleep well) and started coffee and journaled. After breakfast we headed out, looking for gas (and updating GasBuddy – maybe we can win some $100 gas cards!) and Wisconsin’s state line.

 
We stopped to stretch at a road side park, which had a foot path to a little waterfall. Delightful diversion and wonderfully named. So glad we stopped at the TIOGA creek roadside park!

  
Soon we headed into the Ottawa National Forest. I had looked up a stop at the Sturgeon River Gorge Wilderness, but due to road construction we did a 40-point turn (with the trailer on) and looked elsewhere to fulfill our visit.

  
We ran across a side road and decided to stop and get in our 20 miles on the gravel forest roads. It was less than fun and Ashley didn’t like leaving the RV unattended on the roadside, so we looped back via the main road.

  
Another roadside park, also with a waterfall, found us stopped for some time. Ashley made salad and grilled chicken and asparagus for lunch while I put a new tube in her road bike. Also found the second hole in the old tube and patched it so we have two spares.

   
 After eating we hiked down the trail (which went under the highway) and checked out the waterfall. Pretty nice one! Definitely worth a visit.

   
   Heading on, aiming for a Walmart in Wisconsin for the night, as it apeared to be the closest free option for the night and would help us get one of Wisconsin’s forests visited tomorrow.

Along the way we saw a sign for a roadside park with a bicycle trail. Stopped to check it out and hopped on our road bikes for a ride along a packed gravel path to complete our mileage for the day. Nice ride, if hard in the gravel. We like the road bikes better but they’re definitely made for roads.

  
Along the way we passed a few forest roads and a quick look at the GPS indicated that they might result in a spot we could pull the RV for a night’s snooze in the woods. A couple of false starts and a consult with Google’s satellite view and we found a spot to back into, nestling our beloved TIOGA into the woods for a night’s slumber. Beautiful views out all of the windows!

   
 So many ticks, mosquitos and some no-see-ums! Glad we’re here before the season starts or it would be unbearable outside!
Planned our route through Northern Wisconsin for tomorrow’s journey.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

It’s time for us to mosey along. 4 nights in one place was nice but we’ve done all we care to do here. After breakfast we finish packing up, empty our tanks, and hit the road.

No, we didn’t see any cheeseburger joints here.

  
First stop, Tahquamenon Falls. (It rhymes with phenomenon). The lower falls didn’t impress us, pretty though they were. However, the upper falls were much better, more what we expected from the pictures. (I’m pretty sure I’ve gone over ledges like the Lower Falls in a canoe.) Made us think of the Cumberland Falls in Kentucky.

   
           
On west to the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore! Imagine our surprise at the first stop, the Log Slide Overlook, to find sand dunes. A few hundred feet down to Lake Superior, it was part of the old logging operations where they slid logs down into the water to be formed into rafts for transport.

   
 A couple of miles down the road we stop at a beach so we can dip our hands in the (cold) water. Now we’ve been in or on 3 of the Great Lakes.

  
We mosey along to Miners’ Castle so that we can see the “Pictured Rocks”. The colored rocks are pretty, but I find the blue/turquoise water at their base beautiful!

   
 
It’s past our supper time and we’re both getting hungry. Chicken is thawed out but we’ve been waiting to try a real, UP pasty. Jim has raved about them for years and we have enjoyed the ones that Norma makes. We missed one place that looked good as we passed it.

   
 Ashley looked up pasties in Munising and found some mention of Muldoon’s, who makes the best pasties in the UP. She spotted them and we turned on in. We each got one, a chicken and a beef, and sat outside to eat. Jim didn’t over-sell them. They were delicious and filling! Ashley ate all of hers, even though she later regretted having eaten so much.

  
On down the road we head, aiming for the Walmart in Marquette for the night. Upon arrival we snag some groceries, spare bike tubes, and then it’s bed time.

   
 

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Woke up to rain on the roof and a chill in the air. I made coffee and settled in for some journaling while Ashley slept. When she woke we ate breakfast and then watched a couple episodes of “Friends”, waiting for the sunnier weather predicted for the afternoon.

Once the sun emerged we hit the road on our bicycles for a 25-mile day. Headed out to the National Forest ranger welcome station where we could hopefully hike a bit. It was closed, so we looked at the maps and then headed on.

Coming back into St. Ignace Ashley’s tire went flat. We stopped and aired it up. It seemed to hold so we went on – there was no obvious blow-out location like mine had. Stopped on the other side of town for a snack – tire was flat again.

Hoping to rush and make it home we aired up and hit the road. Made it a couple of miles. Tried again and perhaps made it half a mile. Ashley walked the last stretch while I rode on ahead.

Once she arrived we patched her tube and aired it back up, only to have it blow again. Enough of that, we can replace it tomorrow.

Beans and rice have been in the crockpot all day, so after showers it’s time to eat!

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Today’s a big day. Both bike riding and going to visit Mackinac Island. We’re going to do our 55 miles mostly on the island, plus some to and from the ferry.

Ate breakfast, put away ribs from overnight cooking, packed lunch and spare clothes and hopped on our bicycles to catch the ferry.

  
Pretty ride over to the island, got a good view of the bridge.

  
Since we are going for mileage, we start by doing a loop around the whole island – which gives us a quick overview of where the highlights are located. With an 8 mile circumference we’ll be around a few more times throughout the day. The map we picked up includes a self-guided bicycle tour so we follow that route as well, checking out the natural stone arch, lookout tower and stone column, cemeteries, and historic buildings. We are definitely neither architecture nor history buffs. The natural features catch and hold our attention far more than anything else. Knowing that it cost, we didn’t even slow down any of the times that we passed the ever-so-amazing Grand Hotel.

   
   After short hike and a few more miles on the bikes we stop for a picnic lunch at one of the picnic tables in the state park, along Shoreline Drive. We are definitely enjoying our picnic lunches. So glad we are getting to have them!

   
       Stopped and added some rocks to the cairns along the shore. Mom would have loved these! And I think it’s genius – a free, self-sustaining tourist feature that is also cool and visually interesting.

   
   Time for some “touristy” stuff. We head in to town  and parked our bikes. It’s amazing how much space is available and how many bikes you can fit in the small area when there are no vehicles allowed. Only bicycles and horses allowed definitely has merit to it!

   
Walked through downtown and sampled some fudge. Bought an ice cream, half a block of fudge and then went to a local coffee house (who roast their own beans) for a coffee and “London Fog” tea. Both good but not Pipers good. We’ve definitely become spoiled! Walked down past the Boardwalk and sat on the shore to enjoy our goodies, overlooking the “Mighty Mac” bridge. Finished and back to riding.

 
Time to wrap up our miles, after finding a geocache on the island. Gave us a chance to go on a different route anyway. Found the cache and hit some trails and then the road.

With practice and our own bikes we were able to zip past all of the other visitors on their rented beach cruisers and tandem bikes. Ashley pointed out that all of the tandems have the larger person on the front, so that the back seat couldn’t see without comically leaning over.

In total, I believe we circled the island at least 5 times, plus multiple routes along the interior. We did get to see a lot!

  

Finished up and had time to kill before the ferry. Locked our bikes on the dock and schecked out some shops we skipped the first time. Found some post cards. Ashley pondered why fudge and popcorn are always “the thing” in touristy places.

As we approached the ferry we spotted the staff puzzling over our locked bikes. “In all my years here on the island, I’ve had my bike stolen once, and it reappeared the next day with a box of cookies and a thank-you note in the basket.”

The ride home was much more subdued than the way out.

Got home and started a load of laundry (to wash the towels from the fridge’s attack the other night) and hopped in a hot shower to warm up. Then we heated the ribs and made some mashed taters. Delicious supper!

Rounded out the evening watching Friends with popcorn and tea before bed.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

I wake up early, before the alarm went off – made coffee and got some journaling and website updating done. It was cold and spitting rain so I let Ashley sleep in.

  

After she woke up we had breakfast and eventually hopped on the bicycles, going in to check out the town of St. Ignace. Cuteish little town, right on the water. Ashley summed it up by saying “if it weren’t for the ferry to the island this place wouldn’t exist.”

   
 While circling around on the bikes we found a geocache so that’s another state we’ve cached in. Our geomojo is definitely weak with a lack of practice.

   
 Rounding out our mileage we headed out of town past an indian casino until we could turn around. (Maybe this is a good place to keep in mind for some overnight stays.)

   Back home for supper and some movie watching. The late sunset throws off our schedule – makes us think it’s earlier than it is so we stay up too late.

  
 Researched prices and times for tomorrow’s visit to Mackinac Island. Put short ribs in the crockpot for tomorrow.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Got up early (for us) and grabbed showers after breakfast. Then it was time to start packing up. Finished all but the motorcycle and off we rode to Traverse City to meet Genevieve and Grandpa Joe for lunch. 

Between road construction and a missed turn we were almost an hour late! But we had a great visit (and lunch!) with them.

Ate at Poppycock’s on Front Street. After eating we walked down to a nearby bookstore. Nice place, I could have spent much more time there, as is usual.

As we were saying our goodbyes it began spitting rain. I suggested we grab a coffee and wait it out, hoping it would pass over. After our drinks it was only raining harder, so we set off through the sprinkles. Not too bad, mostly I got wet from the road splash.

  
Hit the road later than we intended, but we headed out in the RV about 4:30. Took the scenic route up along the coast. Cute towns, but dreary day in the rain. Stopped for gas and lucked into getting Premium for the price of regular!

Crossed over the Mackinac Bridge – beautiful sights! Traffic was light and slow so were really able to enjoy the view. The closest campground accepts the Passport America, so we can stay within bicycle distance of everything. Staying at the Tiki RV Park.

Picked up some guides at the welcome center. Looks like there’s plenty to do and a good bit is free – and most of it is within biking distance! (Which is significantly wider with a 10-mile radius available to us.)

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Whew, slept in late! Still tired, plus all that TV watching must have worn us out! But it was nice to have a slower, lazy morning.

  
   
   Got going, packed lunch & hopped on the motorcycle to go and visit the Huron National Forest. Pleasant motorbike ride there and we found a campground and kayak put-in spot to stop and eat. Smoked Gouda, summer sausage, tomatoes, and an apple. Quick, easy, and tasty!

   
 Tons of gnats following us, though. It was a pretty spot and we could have stayed longer, otherwise. The place was called RainBow Bend on the Au Sault river.

   
      Stopped on the way back and got a picture of concrete yard statues (a pink elephant, specifically) for Mom.

  
Once back home we jumped on the bikes and headed out for a training ride. Hilly and windy! I blew out an inner tube, so we got to stop and fix that. Our first flat.

  
Back home I cut my hair and got a shower in the bath house – so lots and lots of hot water!

Grilled chicken and veggies for supper, delicious!

While Ashley showered I stated laundry. Managed to fit it all in two loads. Not too bad for about a week and a half worth.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

Went to sleep to the sound of a fog horn last night. We assume it was the nearby Shoals light house. Woke up to the alarm – 6ish. After washing up we grabbed our bikes and headed to Glen Arbor to check out the coffee shop and soak up some wifi. Matthew tried a “Bulletproof Coffee” which is coffee, high-quality grass-fed butter, and coconut oil. He’s been curious and tried unsuccessfully making his own a few years ago, but still doesn’t like it after trying the real thing.

  
After coffee we headed back to camp and packed up to hit the road. Before hooking up the trailer we emptied the holding tanks and refilled the fresh water, which had run out the night before. We made it roughly a week, augmented by public bathrooms, water fountains, and a five gallon bucket filled from campground spigots.

Off we go! A quick stop at the office nets us a free sticker for the motorcycle to represent our National Interagency Pass. “Be sure to display it on the driver’s side” the ranger told me. So…. the front. 🙂

A bit later we stop at a grocery store to stock up and eat lunch before heading out. It’s awfully nice to go directly from cart to cabinet and only have to move everything around a single time.

We check in to our first RV park for a couple of nights and hook up to the water and electric. Ashley is excited to have her hair dryer and straightener without needing the generator. I enjoy the wifi.

Coming through Traverse City was a little nerve-wracking. So much traffic compared to the last few weeks, compounded by construction. We wanted to bike ride down the Mission Peninsula but missed our turns and didn’t want to fight to turn around. So on to camp we went. After setting up camp we unloaded the motorcycle for the first time and headed back into the fray.

  
Taking the scenic route we saw many orchards and farms. Next month is cherry season so no U-picking yet, but everyone seems to have asparagus available. Lots of rhubarb available, too. I know GDad loved rhubarb but I don’t recall what it tastes like, only that as a child I wasn’t a fan. Curious to try it again, though.

We hit traffic again, creeping along in the single digits; challenging on the motorcycle. But we made it to the peninsula and out to the end. We stretched and checked out the Old Mission Light House, then headed on back home.

  
Debated going out to eat, since it was already supper time, but that seems to be almost a disappointment any more – not to mention wanting to save the money. Instead we compromised by grabbing ingredients to make home-made pizza along the way.

  
Once home we cooked, strolled along the park, and then I tried my hand, literally, at laundry in a 5-gallon bucket. It seemed to work well, though drying it may take forever without a line of some sort. It takes about 5 gallons per load, thus far, so definitely something that has to be done when we have access to a water hook-up. But an excellent stop-gap to help us save from needing a laundromat so frequently.

Finally, with both electricity and wifi available, we were able to watch TV, a couple of episodes from our Netflix account, before bed.

Journal entries are just that – the digital copy of my hand-written entries in my journal. If you aren’t interested in the daily details of our adventure, feel free to skip on to the next “regular” post.

It was hard to wake up this morning. We hit snooze for roughly two hours. Finally we roused ourselves and after breakfast we hit the trail. On up to Glen Arbor first, where we spotted a library branch, coffe roasting house and tea maker! Will definitely have to hit those up later. Then on down the trail to Empire and back to the Dunes.

  
We parked the bikes and headed up the Dune. Ashley remembers being here as a wee kiddo. We hiked up to the tallest dune and then followed a trail that we thought headed to Lake Michigan. It didn’t seem to and after awhile seemed to peter out. So we went back to the starting point and followed the official trail. 27 hillls later (they were numbered) and roughly 2.5 sandy miles later we made it to the lake. Right down level with the water, which surprised us.

   
            It was a long hike through the sand, lengthened by it being well past lunch tinme. Fog and clouds had moved in by then, pushed by a chill wind, and we hurried back. Moments after turning around at the lake it began to rain and spat upon us for most of the trek back.

   
 Nearing the parking and main area it was a completely different scene than before – only a dozen people where before were hundreds, a few cars in what had been a filled parking lot, and cloudy fog in what had been a sunny area. Areas of the hike back looked remniscient of scenes from alients planets as seen in movies. Beautiful still, only of a different kind.

Our bikes and shoes were where we left them, so we gathered our belongings and headed to the restrooms to wash the sand from our feet and try to warm up in front of the hand driers.

Off to home we go – speeding down the trail, looking forward to reheated chili, dry clothes, and a hot shower! Fortunately, it’s only a few miles away, down the very nice paved Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail.

Taking care to shake off as much sand as possible, we try to confine our mess to the foyer in the RV. Ashley grabs a shower while I heat chili. After scarfing mine down I jump in the shower and revel in the hot water. We did turn on the heater for a few minutes to help warm up.

I think we’re getting pretty good at this boondocking thing. We’ve run the generator maybe a total of 30 minutes in 4 days, discovered that the heater works without the generator being on, and can shower in only a couple gallons of water. It’s a different style of life, but good!
   
Relaxing with popcorn, coffee and tea and I believe we’re pretty much settled for the evening.