To the U.P.!
We decided to drive to the U.P. – Upper Michigan, the part above the “mitten” – and see Mackinac Island, then on to Glacier. We drove through quite a violent thunderstorm, but it cleared up after a while. Randy’s brother Dale recommended a campsite in Mackinaw City called Mill Creek Campground and it was beautiful. We were able to reserve a “lake view” site, which meant we were right across the small road from a grassy area right at the lake. We took a few walks to see the bridge and then the sunset.
We also drove to Fort Michilimackinac, which we knew was closed but it had a nice spot to walk right under the bridge and see some of the sunset, too. There were a lot of people there. It was quite late for late at night. Once the mosquitos started eating us up we headed back to our snug little home away from home.
The next morning came up sunny and clear with blue skies and bright white clouds. Great day to take the ferry to Mackinac Island. We took a carriage ride around the island – no cars allowed – and then went through the fort there. Had lunch at the Tea Room in the fort, with a beautiful view.
We walked around the shops a bit and by then it was time to get back and start our drive to Iron Mountain, where we had reserved another site. On the stairs getting off the ferry, my foot slipped on the edge and I fell! Somehow my hand must have twisted on the handrail and the knuckle on my pointer finger got quite skinned. It bled profusely. I stopped a worker to get it bandaged up. We had to walk a little bit to the building where their first aid was and while he was bandaging it up a kid came up the stairs by the door saying, “There’s blood everywhere!” I told him it was my finger and his mom told me he had been following my trail of blood. Kind of cute.
The fall didn’t hurt me badly but I was a bit shaken up. I had been feeling weak in my legs for part of the walk on the island, especially my right leg, and that’s the one that slipped. So, of course (for me), that brings up fears of ALS or Parkinson’s. With a brother and cousin who had ALS and a mom plus several other relatives with Parkinson’s any shaking or trembling or weakness brings up that fear. But I also was wearing sandals and my foot slipped on the edge rather than an actual stumble, so my fears may be completely unwarranted. In any event, I plan to wear my trusty Brooks running shoes now (that my friend Grace recommended to me), and I hope that will prevent further falls. Sheesh.
We got to our campsite in Iron Mountain (MI) around 9PM after stopping for dinner in Escanaba. The site owners said they had tried to call us because their office closed at 6 but they let us stay anyway and we had a good night. It was pleasantly cool, and easy to move on in the morning because we left the truck connected overnight.
Now we are back on Highway 2, headed for Bena, MN, hoping to get there around dinner time. Highway 2 is a small, 2-lane highway. No cell service and trees, trees, trees everywhere you look. Wildflowers, too.
We also drove to Fort Michilimackinac, which we knew was closed but it had a nice spot to walk right under the bridge and see some of the sunset, too. There were a lot of people there. It was quite late for late at night. Once the mosquitos started eating us up we headed back to our snug little home away from home.
The next morning came up sunny and clear with blue skies and bright white clouds. Great day to take the ferry to Mackinac Island. We took a carriage ride around the island – no cars allowed – and then went through the fort there. Had lunch at the Tea Room in the fort, with a beautiful view.
We walked around the shops a bit and by then it was time to get back and start our drive to Iron Mountain, where we had reserved another site. On the stairs getting off the ferry, my foot slipped on the edge and I fell! Somehow my hand must have twisted on the handrail and the knuckle on my pointer finger got quite skinned. It bled profusely. I stopped a worker to get it bandaged up. We had to walk a little bit to the building where their first aid was and while he was bandaging it up a kid came up the stairs by the door saying, “There’s blood everywhere!” I told him it was my finger and his mom told me he had been following my trail of blood. Kind of cute.
The fall didn’t hurt me badly but I was a bit shaken up. I had been feeling weak in my legs for part of the walk on the island, especially my right leg, and that’s the one that slipped. So, of course (for me), that brings up fears of ALS or Parkinson’s. With a brother and cousin who had ALS and a mom plus several other relatives with Parkinson’s any shaking or trembling or weakness brings up that fear. But I also was wearing sandals and my foot slipped on the edge rather than an actual stumble, so my fears may be completely unwarranted. In any event, I plan to wear my trusty Brooks running shoes now (that my friend Grace recommended to me), and I hope that will prevent further falls. Sheesh.
We got to our campsite in Iron Mountain (MI) around 9PM after stopping for dinner in Escanaba. The site owners said they had tried to call us because their office closed at 6 but they let us stay anyway and we had a good night. It was pleasantly cool, and easy to move on in the morning because we left the truck connected overnight.
Now we are back on Highway 2, headed for Bena, MN, hoping to get there around dinner time. Highway 2 is a small, 2-lane highway. No cell service and trees, trees, trees everywhere you look. Wildflowers, too.
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| Sun rays peeking through before the storm. |
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| I love old barns. Can't get too many photos, though, from the car window. |
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| Randy saw this beaver dam from the road! |
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| The sky got dark blue before the storm. |
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| There were lots of trees. |
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| Birches are my favorite. |
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| View of the bridge from our campsite. |
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| I thought these hammocks were cool looking. |
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| Multi-colored. |
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| There were a couple nice wooden swings by the beach. |
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| Randy. |
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| This looked like a big Petoskey stone. |
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| A kind of dorky display at the campground. Wish we could see eagles like that! |
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| The street where we lived. |
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| Our site. Nice lines of trees between each spot. |
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| Another selfie. Randy hates them but he tries -- for me. |
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| The wake of the ferry as we left for Mackinac Island. |
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| Helicopters circled the lake every so often. |
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| The water is so blue! |
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| We went under the bridge. It's Huron on one side, Michigan on the other. I did not know that. |
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| Approaching Mackinac Island. The Grand Hotel. |
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| A lighthouse buoy. |
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| From the ferry. |
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| more from the ferry. |
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| This is the ferry. |
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| We took a carriage ride. |
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| Cool little shop all made of windows. |
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| A carriage house had a bunch of historical carriages, including Studebakers. |
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| Employee parking. :) |
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| A cemetery on the island. |
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| An arch we stopped at. |
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| A cannon at the fort. |
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| Boy scouts stood guard, and helped with directions. |
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| Walking around the fort. |
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| View from the little guardhouse. |
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| Had lunch at the tea room. |
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| A demo of the soldiers. |
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| Including some shooting. |
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| Add caption |
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| I love churches. |
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| Also love taking pictures of views from windows. |
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| This was a painting of the view from a carriage ride. |
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| Another church. |
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| Noticed the baptismal font at the back. Remember your baptism as you enter. The mural... |
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| ...is of Saint Anne with the baby Jesus visiting the island. |
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| Beautiful buildings and gardens. |
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| Leaving the island. |
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| A funny sight from the road. Wienerlicious. |
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| A bit of the sunset. |
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| A church we saw on the road to Bena, MN, where we stayed for the night. |
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| Across from the church. Maybe a school. |
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| We saw lots of brick buildings. |
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| The road. Highway 2. |
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| Trompe l'oeil. I wonder if it's hiding construction. |
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| Big fluffy clouds all day. |
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| The cute bag I bought to carry all my stuff. |