HOME!! Dolores, CO

Saturday, August 11.  Needless to say, we were both up early and ready to hit the road by 8:00 AM this morning.  I think this was record time for us.  Even Jenny was ready!

I was concerned about the motor home overheating going over the Dallas Divide, climbing into and out of Telluride and also Lizard Head Pass.  I was worried for nothing!  The motor home did great, none of those passes are as steep or as high as Monarch Pass.

Here are pictures I took of Lizard Head Pass when we reached the top.  Aww, home...

We pulled into our driveway about lunch time on Saturday.  We'll be here until I leave on Monday the 20th to head to Tucson, Mike will stay with friends until after labor day and then join me in Tucson.

That's it for now.  I hope you have enjoyed our travels as much as we have.  Until next trip...

Salida, CO/Ridgway, CO

Tuesday, August 7.  We left Chatfield State Park and headed towards Salida.  Hwy 285 is a beautiful drive from the Denver area over the mountains and through some very pretty valleys.  The weather was perfect so we didn't have to run the a/c in the coach.  Mike had made us reservations at a Passport America park in the town of Howard about 10 miles east of Salida on Hwy 50.  It is on the Arkansas river but because we waited so late to make our reservation we had to take a site that didn't have a river view.  That's ok, $14 a night is not bad for full hookups and wifi!  Besides, it was an easy walk to the river.  Here are pictures of our site and the river deck where we enjoyed our wine.

Wednesday, August 8.  We both wanted to explore Salida so we drove into town and stopped at the Visitor Center and got some information about local hiking trails.  The town is cute, about the size of Cortez but is on the Arkansas river.  The woman at the V.C. suggested a hike that was on the way back to the campground so we drove to the trail head and had a nice walk with Jenny.

Thursday, August 9.  Today we drove from Salida to Ridgway via Hwy 50 over the Monarch Pass.  I don't know how many of you are familiar with the Monarch Pass but it is one of the longest and highest passes in Colorado at 11,200 +/- feet.  We've been over it before and knew what to expect but even so, it was still a pain.  The diesel engine really does a good job in the mountains but this pass is a real challenge.  About half way up the engine started overheating and then the transmission light started flickering which means the trans. is struggling.  I had to pull over to the side of the road twice to let the engine and transmission cool off.  We finally made it to the top and I thought, whew, the worst is over.  Wrong!  Going down is rough on the brakes and the transmission because of the steep grade and how far you have to go.  This time my brakes started to over heat even though I was using the exhaust brake and also had downshifted as low as I could go without stressing the transmission.  Again, I had to pull over a couple of times to let the brakes and the transmission cool off.  I hope that's the last time we have to go over Monarch Pass for a while!!

We made it to Ridgway State Park, Dutch Charlie Campground and got set up in time for cocktail hour.  Now that we're back in pinon/juniper country I don't have to worry too much about trees blocking the satellite dish.  This campground is on a ridge overlooking a reservoir that is very low because of the drought. It's pretty sad, same thing with the Blue Mesa, we couldn't believe how low it was when we drove by.  Here are a couple pics of our campsite at Dutch Charlie.

We had some pretty good storms while we were here, thankfully we have the drugs for Jenny now so we can keep her calm.

Friday, August 10.  There are some awesome hot springs in Ridgway that we have been to before so that's where we went today.  We had a nice long soak at Orvis and then came back to the RV and chilled out.  We took Jenny for a walk and had a nap.  Such a rough day...  We're both excited about returning home tomorrow, we've been on the road 3 months and 1 week.  That's a long time!  8,500 miles!!  Whew!

Littleton, CO

Saturday, August 4.  Our friend Fred came down from Lone Tree to visit us while we were in the Walmart parking lot at Castle Rock.  We had a great visit and made plans to go to his house on Sunday after we checked in at Chatfield State Park.  Mike took this picture of the sunset we had this evening. 

(Castle Rock sunset)

Sunday, August 5.  We awoke to a beautiful morning in the Walmart parking lot and watched the coming and going of Walmart employees.  Our reservation confirmation said we could check in at noon so we had breakfast and prepared the coach for take-off!  Hmm, how do we get out of the parking lot?  The route out I was going to use was now blocked by a big pickup truck.  The only other option was to try and squeeze through the curb openings and circle around another parking area and then head out.  Whew!  We did it!  That’s one of the issues when you stay in a parking lot, you can’t always depend on having the same empty parking spaces when you are ready to leave. 

We drove over to Chatfield State Park and parked at the High Line Canal trailhead where we had lunch on Saturday.  Since it was only 8:45 in the morning and we can’t check in until noon we took Jenny for a walk.  Mike calculated we walked about 3.5 miles round trip.  Jenny was tired when we got back to the trailhead and took a nap in the shade at the gazebo.  The gazebo is to the left of the port-a-potty. 

(Chatfield, waiting to enter)

We had an early lunch and by 11:45 were ready to go into the park.  A lot of RV’s had already come out and a few had started going in so we figured it would be ok.  We checked in and were set up by 1 PM.  Here is our site, no trees to block the dish!

(Chatfield, site #182)

After showers and drugging the dog we headed to Fred’s house.  It looked like it might rain so we gave Jenny her meds to keep her calm in the coach.  Fred had purchased tickets for the show, “Jersey Boys” for this evening as an anniversary/wedding gift for us.  We treated him to dinner at Pasta Jay’s, one of our favorite places to eat, and then went to the theater.  The show was absolutely incredible!  It is the story of how the Four Seasons came together and how Frankie Valli started with them when he was just 16 years old.  Here is a picture of Fred and Mike in the theater lobby. 

(Fred & Mike at Jersey Boys, I took the picture)

The actors did a great job of singing almost all of the Four Seasons hits.  I can’t think of any songs they missed.  Here is a list of the songs from the show. 

(Jersey Boys music)

During the show it was explained how some of the songs developed from events that took place in one or more of their lives.  It was quite moving and funny, too.  I won’t give away too much, but the song “Oh What A Night!” does have significant meaning to Bob Gaudio, the songwriting member of the group. 

Monday, August 6.  There were threats of storms this afternoon and we wanted to be at the RV with Jenny if they happened so we went to Fred’s house late morning.   He took us downtown again to have lunch at Steuben’s Restaurant which was featured on “Diner’s, Drive-in’s & Dive’s.”   Steuben’s building was once a gas station and garage I believe.  It was busy when we got there at 11:55 so we had to sit outside in the patio area.  Thankfully, they had fans but it was still hot.  The food was delicious, I had an iceberg lettuce wedge with blue cheese dressing and bacon bits, Mike had a Greek salad and we shared an order of chicken wings and Fred had a green chili burger.  It was a wonderful dining experience! 

(Steuben’s restaurant)

On the way into the Denver area on Saturday the interstate passed under a road by the name of “Downing” which made me think of our friend Carol in St. Petersburg.  On the way to Steuben’s on Monday we drove on Downing Street for a while.  I miss you, Carol!!

(Downing Street)

A new museum recently opened in Denver called the History Colorado Museum and is just what it says, a museum of the history of Colorado.  We walked over to it after having lunch at Steuben's.  The museum is very interactive, a great place for kids and adults, too!  It is two floors and takes a while to see all of the exhibits.  You can step into a mine elevator and get the "feel" of being lowered into the ground or you can stand in a pair of ski's and "experience" a ski jump.  These are just a couple of the interactive exhibits.  

After the museum Fred treated us to ice cream at a place near his home and then we had to say our goodbyes.  Thank you, Fred, for making our anniversary one of the best ever!!  

Castle Rock, CO

Saturday, August 4.  The saga continues...   When we got to Chatfield State Park the lady at the front gate said they were full so we turned around and drove out to a trail head about 6 blocks from their main entrance.  Mike made sandwiches and we had lunch under a gazebo at the picnic tables.  Even though it was 80 degrees outside because of the breeze and the lack of humidity it was quite comfortable.  We did leave the generator running with the a/c on for the animals.  After lunch we drove south on Hwy 85 to I-25 south and took the Larkspur exit.  I stopped at a little store to ask about any RV parks in the area and the girl behind the counter (with a pierced nose) said there was nothing but that we could stay at the Walmart in Castle Rock.  Hmm.  Mike had called all the Walmart's in Denver and all said the same thing, no overnight parking.  So we headed back north on I-25, I needed fuel and I remembered seeing a station advertising diesel for $3.46 a gallon.  I pulled into the station and while Mike was pumping fuel I asked the girl behind the counter if there was anywhere we could "park" our rig for the night.  She said the same thing, the Walmart in Castle Rock.  She even gave me directions.  OK, it was meant to be so off we went.  The directions she gave me were perfect and the parking lot had one RV in it already.  We parked and went into to the store to "register."  Easy as could be, all you have to do is go to the customer service desk and fill out a line in a book.  So here we are, in our second Walmart parking lot of this trip.  It's way more comfortable than the one in ND, not near as hot and we have a lot of other stores around us to satisfy all of our needs.  In a short walk we bought wine (necessities for us) and cat food at a Petsmart.  Who could ask for more?   We are truly happy campers.  Only down side is no satellite dish tonight.  Don't want to run the generator all night, it's too pretty an evening.  So we'll entertain ourselves by watching the people who frequent Walmart.  Our friend Fred did stop by for a visit and we made plans for tomorrow and Monday.  Here are pics of us at Walmart...

We were even put the awnings out and the jacks down.  There was even shade for the little car and grass for Jenny.  And all this for FREE!!  Gotta love a bargain...

Cheyenne, WY

Friday, August 3.  We left Custer, SD just after Dick & Barbara did and as they headed east we headed west.  Our next stop is Cheyenne, WY to stay overnight then drive into Denver on Saturday.  On this trip we have tried to stay off the interstate as much as possible, preferring the back roads and seeing small towns.  We took Hwy 85 south most of the way to Cheyenne then got on I-25 for about 10 miles.  The RV Park is on the south side of Cheyenne about 4 miles from the Colorado line.  It was windy as all get out when we arrived but I still put the satellite dish up.  The park itself is not much to speak of, it's located right on the interstate so it's very noisy, there are no trees (great for the satellite dish!!) and lots of dirt.  Since we got here so early in the day and it was so windy outside we opted to stay inside and catch up on the Olympics.  It was an uneventful night... until about 11 PM.  I was awakened by Jenny pacing around the motor home, her nails on the linoleum always wake me up.  The wind was really howling now almost as bad as when we were in Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada last month.  The more the motor home rocked the more Jenny paced. Mike had given her half a Xanax and 1/4 of the Acepromazine in the afternoon because it looked like a storm was brewing.  When Jenny climbed up on the toilet and tried to get into the medicine cabinet I woke Mike up and said he better give Jenny another pill.  He gave  her another 1/4 of the Acepromazine and within 15 minutes she had calmed down.  Better living through chemistry...

Saturday, August 4.  It was a calm and beautiful morning, no wind and lots of blue sky.  Mike gave me a much needed haircut and we caught up on chores around the motor home.  The drive to Denver is only about 2.5 hours and since we don't have a reservation anywhere for tonight there is no hurry.  We're going to try Chatfield State Park first because we have a reservation there starting tomorrow.  They sometimes have sites available on a first come first served basis.  If they don't have anything we'll find a Walmart and "camp" there for the night.

Taken Saturday morning about 8:30 AM.  Lots of dirt, no trees and right next to the interstate.  But hey, it is a Passport America park so what do you want for $19 a night for full hookups and great wifi!?!  Notice the dish is down, I had to bring it down last night when Jenny was freaking out.  I was afraid the wind would rip it off the top of the motor home.  We did not get to record the Olympics last night, dang!!

Custer, SD

Wednesday, August 1.  We left De Smet, SD and drove to Custer, SD today.  Along the way we went through Pierre, SD (the capitol) and encountered our first "over-height warning."  The overpass for the railroad tracks through town is only 11'3" high, our coach is 11'4" tall.  Hmm.  As we approached the overpass a sign began flashing saying we were too tall and to use the detour.  It routed us around the overpass and back onto the highway on the other side.  Cool!  There must've been some kind of sensor for the sign to recognize we were not gonna fit.

After we left Pierre the temperature began rising.  When it reached 94 outside and 85 inside we needed to do something to keep us and the animals cool.  I pulled over and turned on the generator and then turned on the front a/c in the coach.  Ahhh, within a few minutes we were cooling off.  The cats and Jenny were most appreciative.  I've only had to run the coach a/c one other time and that was when I was driving to Tucson last year in August.  I called Sam at the park in Tucson and told him I was hot and he suggested I turn on the generator and run the coach a/c.  Thank you, Sam!!  When we stopped for fuel I noticed the coach in the lane next to us was running their generator as well.

We arrived at Big Pine Campground in Custer about 4:15, just a few minutes after our friends Dick & Barbara from Denver arrived.  Our site was one site over from theirs.  When I checked us in I asked about satellite reception and the husband and wife who own the park said we were lucky because the only site in the park with the chance an opening facing south was the site they were putting us in.  They don't call this campground "Big Pine" for nothing, it is full of huge pine trees!  As we neared our site we came into a slight clearing and lo and behold there was a south-facing break in the trees!  Mike connected the electric and I immediately turned on the dish and within a matter of minutes it had locked in on all of the satellites!  Yay, we would be able to see the Olympics!!

I had already put the dish back down this since we are leaving today but you can see the break in the trees in front of the coach.  Whew!!

Look at all of those huge pine trees!  It's really a beautiful campground.

We would not have gotten satellite reception at Dick & Barbara's site.

It was great to see Dick & Barbara again.  They live outside of Denver and winter in Tucson, that's how we met them.  They are just starting a two month trip to visit friends in WI, MI, Canada and other points to the east.  Coincidence allowed us to meet up with them in Custer, SD.

Thursday, August 2.  D&B wanted to go to Wind Cave Nat'l Park today for cave tour.  We had never been so we went along.  Wind Cave was discovered around 1890 when  cowboy heard a whistling noise and saw the bushes moving.  As he investigated the wind coming out of the small cave opening blew his hat off, hence the name Wind Cave.  The tour was about an hour and a half beginning with an elevator ride 200' down to a starting point.  It is a beautiful cave with miles and miles of tunnels.  Scientists claim that only about 5-10% of the cave has been discovered!

Mike, Dick & Barbara just before heading into the cave.

Quite a bit of the ceiling in the cave is made of Boxworks formations.  Something about the limestone forming the box like formations.  I've slept since the ranger told us the story.  Sorry.

Here we are below ground!

Friday, August 3.  We are leaving today for Denver and Dick & Barbara are heading east.  We'll probably overnight near Cheyenne, WY this evening then drive into Denver tomorrow.  Wish us luck finding a place to stay, we waited to late to make reservations and may have to stay in a Walmart parking lot.  Se la vie!  

De Smet, SD

Monday, July 30.  We were supposed to go to Fargo, ND today to visit Shelene (a woman I work with in Tucson) but she called to let us know they had a family thing and had to leave.  Hmm.  From Fargo we were going to go to Sioux Falls, SD to visit Marilyn & Miller Glanzer (they winter in Tucson at FHTV) and have dinner with them.  We were actually going to zig-zag from Coon Rapids, MN north to Fargo then straight south to Sioux Falls, then west to Custer, SD staying one night in each place.  Mike and I have already learned on this trip we do not like to set up and tear down for just a one night stand.  So we decided to skip Sioux Falls (sorry Marilyn!!) and head due west and find a place to stay for two nights before heading over to Custer, SD.  Mike found us a nice RV park on a pond in De Smet, SD, home of Laura Ingalls Wilder of "Little House on the Praire" fame.  It was also a Passport America park so we got two nights for $30 and it was full hookups!!  We set up and had our evening wine out by the pond, watching the turtle heads pop up and the cormorant feeding on fish.  It was a delightful evening followed by watching the Olympics.  Oh yes, I got my dish up and pointing in the right direction with no trees blocking the signal!!

This is where we had our wine, nice spot don't you agree?  Mike is busy with his new iPhone, I think he likes it, hey Mikey??

This is the view out the front window of the motor  home.  It's really a lovely spot.  Hmm, could that be why they call this RV Park, "Spot?"  Because it's the spot??

Coon Rapids, MN

Sunday, July 29 and Monday, July 30.  We left Oconto Sunday morning and headed for Coon Rapids, MN to see Lou Nash.  She had recommended a county park for us to stay in that was near her home.  The park was huge and very nice!  It also had a water park in it!  Lou's brother had passed away last week so she was busy with family today and invited us to breakfast on Monday morning.  We took the evening to just relax and walk around the park with Jenny who appreciated the exercise.  Monday morning Lou came by and picked us up to take us to her house for breakfast, and what a breakfast it was!!  She had prepared brat patty sausage, scrambled eggs, an assortment of bagels and rolls, a fruit bowl and sliced tomatoes.  Yummy! No wonder we are at our heaviest weight ever!  We had a great visit with Lou and then she took us back to our RV so we could prepare to leave.

Sorry about the blurry picture, still getting used to holding the iPhone steady.

It was such a pretty morning we had breakfast on her deck.

Oconto, WI

Wednesday, July 25.  We left Manistique, MI and drove to Oconto, WI today.  It was a good day for a drive since it was rainy and cloudy in Michigan but by the time we got to Joyce's house in Oconto the weather had cleared.  Oconto is a small town (Pop. 4,500ish) about 30 minutes north of Green Bay.  Joyces' place is on the Oconto river in the middle of town, a beautiful location!  Since she has two large lots there was room for us to park the motor home with a great view of the river.

This is our view out the front window of the motor home.  Not bad, eh?

Joyce's sister Janice flew in today from Deming, NM so we rode with Joyce and her mom, LaVonne, to pick Janice up at the airport in Green Bay.  On the way back to Oconto we stopped at Sam's Club where Mike and I bought iPhones, yep, we're hooked on iPhones now.  We also stopped at one of the many  cheese stores in Wisconsin.  Mike is now an official cheesehead, I have proof!

Thursday, July 26 & Friday, July 27.  We just hung out and relaxed and played several games of dominoes and prepared for the cookout on Saturday at Joyce's house.  We went to the store to pickup a few things and left Jenny in Joyce's house.  Jenny had become quite comfortable in Joyce's house by this time so we thought it would be fine.  When we got back Jenny was excited to see us and had only knocked over a plant in the front window, or so we thought.  I walked down the hall and noticed LaVonne's bed was messed up and I knew she had made it that morning.  I looked at Joyce's bed and Janice's bed and both of them were messed up as well.  We figured out that because of a storm that came through while we were gone Jenny had gone from bed to bed to try and find a "safe zone."  She started with Joyce's and didn't like it then moved to Janice's and liked it a little better then settled on LaVonne's bed which she liked a lot.  Notice the gradual increase of disarray from bed to bed from left to right:

Jenny's new nickname is "Goldilock's."

Another storm came through Thursday night after we had gone to bed.  It wasn't a bad storm but there was plenty of lightening which upset Jenny our dog.  She paced, whined and tried to get under anything she could in the motor home.  It was a rough night.  I finally had to put her collar and leash on and wrap the leash around my arm to keep her by the bed.  Needless to say, none of us got a lot of sleep that night.  On Friday we contacted our vet in Dolores and she called in a Rx to a pharmacy in Oconto for Jenny.  The Rx was for Xanax and a sedative (Acepromazine) for animals.  It was supposed to rain that evening so around 6:00 we gave Jenny the Xanax (2 @ 1mg each) and then when we went to bed we gave her the sedative (25mg), both were full doses.  Everyone slept well that night!  The next morning Jenny was slow to wake up and when she did she couldn't stand up very well, her legs kept sliding out from under her.  She was stoned out of her poor mind!  Mike had to help her down the steps of the motor home.  It was late afternoon before she recovered.  Now we know the meds work and to give her only half the dosage.

Saturday, July 28.  The weather could not have been any better today!  We woke to a cool morning with bright blue sky and a slight breeze, a perfect day for a cookout!  Janice prepared her famous brats on the grill then put them in a crock pot with onions.  She also grilled "natural cased" hot dogs which I had never heard of but they were yummy!  Joyce's other sister Nancy and their brother Frank came over for the cookout along with other family and friends.  That's me playing with my iPhone.

That's also me taking care of pests in the yard.  Ha!  That's Jacob, Joyce's great nephew.  He was having a great time playing in the yard and with Jenny.

That evening we had a fire so Joyce could get rid of a lot of brush that had been gathered on her property.  Joyce was happy to get rid of the brush as you can see...

We had a great day with lots of fun and food.  By the time we went to bed Jenny was back to her old self which made us feel much better.  We leave for Minnesota on Sunday, July 29.

Manistique, MI (Upper Peninsula)

Monday, July 23.  We left the Big Rapids area today and headed back to the U.P. to Manistique on Hwy 2.  Mike found us a campground on the lake about half way between Big Rapids, MI and Oconto, WI our next stop on our trip.  The campground is called Driftwood Shores and is about 10 miles west of Manistique.  It was another beautiful day in Michigan although the temperature had started to climb as well as the humidity.  It was supposed to be in the low 90's in Big Rapids and in the low 80's in the U.P.  This is the only time on this trip where we backtrack and travel on the same roads.  It also means we are heading home!  After driving north in I-75 we crossed the Mackinaw Bridge (another $14.00!) again and headed west on Hwy 2.

It was very windy and the waves were high.  There were a lot of people enjoying the beach today.

Both cats have gotten used to traveling in the motor home and have even been getting up on the dash on Jenny's bed when she is not there.  Here is Shadow checking things out, "yep, we're still moving..."

Tuesday, July 24.  Driftwood Shores RV Park is really right on the lake!  This was one of the best views we've had since Crescent City, CA when we stayed at Shoreline RV Park.  The only drawback is there is no beach access unless you bushwack through the bushes.

Our site is about 50 yards from the lake.  There is no one next to us and the only other rigs are several sites away, no crowding that's for sure.

We drove into Manistique today to go to the supermarket to buy pasties.  (pronounced like past-eze)  They are a flour and lard encased meat pie.  The owners of the RV Park suggested we go to the deli at the market because they make them fresh daily.  Today's choices included ham and cheese and beef and potatoes.  We  purchased on of each and shared them.  They are quite delicious, the crust reminded me of pie crusts my grandmother made.  The rest of the day was restful and quiet.  Even got a nap!

Big Rapids, MI

Wednesday, July 18.  The drive down from the Mackinac Bridge to Big Rapids was short and sweet.  The directions Harold gave us didn't agree with the GPS but we followed his anyway and ignored the GPS.  We found out later that the GPS route would've taken us down a gravel road even though we have it set to not go on gravel roads.  As we neared Harold's house the paved road disappeared around a curve and all I could see straight ahead of me was a dirt two-track.  Panic almost hit then we got to the curve and I could see that the paved road did end and became a wide gravel road that was nicely packed and not dusty.  Whew, that was a close one!

Unfortunately, we both forgot to take pictures of our set up at Harold's so you'll have to use your imagination.  We parked in his front yard and connected to water and electric from his garage.  The spot where we parked had an almost perfect shot of the southwestern sky which is what we needed to get our DirecTV signal.  This was VERY important because Big Brother was on for the summer and it is one of the reality shows we like.  The antenna dish whirled around and around and up and down and finally found a "happy" spot.  It wasn't happy with all of the trees but it did pick up the necessary signals.  Everyone was happy, especially me!

Thursday, July 19.  It's the Michigan Party!!  This was the 16th annual Michiganders party where folks from all over get together for food, fun and fellowship.  We were really surprised how many of them live in the  community of Big Rapids and surrounding areas.  The party started about 1ish but because of the rain it was moved to Pete & Janet Jordan's pole barn just down the road.  Harold prepared a large pork loin and everyone else brought a side dish.  Mike and I made our curried deviled eggs.  There was a LOT of food!  It was a good turnout in spite of the weather.  I would guess there were about 30-35 people in attendance.  Denny & Karen McConnell from Yakima, Wa, Marv Willy from MN, Gene & Marcene Smith from Iowa, Nancy Jebson from Iowa, and Mike and I made up some of the out of towners.  Needless to say, we had leftovers for dinner that evening and they were yummy!  Janet Jordan also made a spinach and meat sauce lasagna and it was delicious!

Friday, July 20.  This was our "free" day so we helped Harold clean out his gutters.  On Wednesday, the day we arrived, a storm came through that night that dumped a lot of rain.  His gutters were backed up with tree leaves and stuff so the water ran over the gutters and onto his window air conditioner and then poured into the house.  Poor Harold took the window a/c out of the window at 3:30 in the morning so he could shut the window then had to set up fans to dry the carpet.  We got his gutters cleaned and the a/c put back in the window which was a good thing because it was starting to get  hot and humid!

Tonight, several of us went to a newly opened restaurant in Hersey about 5 miles away.  It is the River Junction and they have all you can eat fish on Friday's for $9.95.  The fish was excellent, the french fries were tasty and cole slaw was just like I like it, sweet and creamy!  Here is a picture of the group.

Harold & Kathy, Gene & Marcene, Pete & Janet, Mike, and another Janet and her husband George.

Saturday, July 21.  Today started off with a kayak or canoe float down the Muskogen River.  This was the first time Mike and I have kayaked and I have to admit it was more fun than canoeing.  The river was perfect for first timers and the weather cooperated as well.  We put it at a bridge about 5 miles from Harold's house and floated for a couple of hours back down to his house.  The great thing about this trip is we get to do it again on Sunday, yay!

Today was also the day of the 16th annual Pig Roast hosted by Pete & Janet.  This is a fundraiser Janet puts on each year for the American Cancer Society.  She raised $1,000 this year with the expert help of her friend Janet ( referred to as the other Janet) and the generous donations from her friends.  The dinner was followed up by music and entertainment from Harold, Pete, Rob Kotecki, Gene Smith and several other local musicians who came by to jam.

This is the same pole barn we used for the Michigan Party.  There is another room at the back that is Pete's "man cave."  He has his exercise equipment and more animal trophies on the wall.  As you can see it was a good turnout for this event, too.  Lots of the neighbors stopped by to enjoy the music.

Sunday, July 22.  This is the day when Pete and Janet get to relax after their big shindig on Saturday.  The seven of us put in at Harold's place, the seventh person being Pete & Janet's neighbors' niece.  We floated down the river to the county park, about a 3 hour float.  Along the way we passed by Janee and Jack's place and happen to catch them outside.  We stopped for a chat then continued on our way.  Ahh, what a way to relax especially on a beautiful day like today!

Mackinaw Bridge, MI

Monday, July 16.  There was a lot of road construction on Hwy 2 before we got to the bridge.  Only delayed us about 30 minutes and we still arrived at the park by 4:30.  We are at the TeePee RV Park and Campground on the waters of Lake Huron.  (I think it's Lake Huron, will double check)  The weather is overcast, hot and humid... just like being in Florida!  We were drenched by the time we got the rig set up and tired sitting outside to have our evening glass of wine but gave up and went inside to the a/c!  It's a nice park, busy with lots of kids but at least it's on the water.

(insert picture of park here.  We later realized we didn't have any pics of the park!)

Tuesday, July 17.  We took the ferry over to Mackinaw Island today.  The ride took us under the Mackinac Bridge that we had driven over the day before.  It's a huge bridge, rivaling the size of the Sunshine Skyway bridge across the mouth of Tampa Bay.

There are no motor vehicles on the island, only bicycles and horse drawn rigs like carts and carriages.  The weather was perfect today, not too hot and not too humid.  After walking around the island for awhile we stopped at a bistro for lunch and a cool pitcher of beer.  Hey, we aren't driving today!  A shuttle picked us up at the campground and took us to the ferry launch and it will take us back to the campground when we return.  I had scallops and Mike had fish, both were delicious.  The beer was from a local brewery in Cheboygan.  

Of course you can't go to Mackinaw Island without purchasing fudge, that's how you become a "fudgie."  Our fudge purchase was made at Murdick's, they had a great selection and a great crew working in the shop.  The hardest part was picking which ones to buy, they all looked good!

By mid-afternoon we were ready to head back to the campground.  Another fun day of adventure under our belts.

Ontonagon, MI (Upper Peninsula)

Saturday, July 15.  We got an early start today since we knew it was going to be a long drive.  At first we thought about driving south along the coast to get to Duluth but decided against it because it would make the day even longer.  Our schedule is a little less flexible right now so we can get to the Michigan party by the 18th.  We don't want to miss any of the fun and festivities!!

There was road construction on the bridges in Duluth but we managed to get through without any problems.  It was nice to drive along the shore of Lake Superior, it really is a "great lake."  Mike had found us an RV park on the water in Ontonagon, MI about halfway between Int'l. Falls, MN and the Mackinaw Bridge where we wanted to stay before going to Big Rapids.  The park was in the Ontonagon River and we could see it from where we parked the rig.  The guy who checked us in gave us our option of any of the empty sites and there were a lot!  We picked one we thought would be the best for satellite strength and have some evening shade.  Usually, if we have a clear shot of the SE sky then we can get the satellites.  Now that we are so far east we need the SW sky.  Dang.  Didn't figure that out until the dish finally stopped spinning.  We had parked on the east side of a tree so we could have evening shade on the coach.  However, the dish pointed right through some of the outer branches but was able to pick up the satellites.  Whew!  Sunday is a big DVR night with shows like Weeds, True Blood, Episodes and Big Brother.  Got 'em all!!

Sunday, July 16.  I started doing laundry yesterday because our dirty sheets were piling up.  We bought  a new set of sheets when we were in Bottineau, ND at the Walmart.  The flannel sheets on the bed were beginning to be a little too warm at night so we bought some percale sheets and they needed to be washed before being put on the bed.  The dryer at the park took $1.25 to start and after about 35 minutes the sheets were dry and I took the sheets out.  The morning I changed the sheets on the bed and  decided to wash the other two sets of flannel sheets.  I can wash a set of sheets in the washer in the coach.  When the first set finished I took them out and started the second set with the idea of drying the two sets together in the dryer at the park.  It is a big dryer and should be able to handle the two sets of sheets easily enough.  I took both sets over to the laundry room, put them in the dryer I used yesterday and then pressed start.  Wow, the dryer started right up!  Cool beans!  I guess that means the dryer remembered I didn't use all the time up yesterday.  As I was leaving the laundry room I ran into the guy who checked us in yesterday.  I asked how much time we got for the $1.25 and he said about 45 minutes but the machines had a mind of their own sometimes and just keep running.  :)  I went back to the coach and started washing all of our dirty clothes plus towels!!  I had that dryer running for about 3 hours on my original investment of $1.25, yep, I was a happy guy!

After showers and lunch we drove into "town" to see what it was like.  Not much here, it is kind of off the beaten path.  There was a pretty large shoreline campground which we walked around and gave Jenny some exercise.  The sand on the "beach" is kind of brownish but not bad.

These were two separate pictures I had Mike put them together to give you an idea of the beach.

International Falls, MN

Thursday, July 12.  We drove from Bottineau, ND to International Falls, MN today mostly on Hwy. 11 which was being repaved in several sections.  Three detours, one time change and several hours later we pulled into Int'l. Falls.  Originally we were going to park at Edna Doris' house and plug into her electric but with the weather being so hot we needed enough amperage to run the AC's so we opted to stay at an RV park.  Mike found one online (we LOVE the iPhone!!) and made reservations for two nights.  We had the same issue with the satellite dish here as we had in Moose Jaw, lovely sites but too many trees!  After we set up in the first site and realized the dish was not happy we moved to another site which did make the dish (and me!) happy.  Tonight was the premier of Big Brother and I didn't want to miss it.

This park was in town not too far from Edna's so I called her after we were set up and she invited us over for dinner.  Her home is right on the Rainy River and is BEAUTIFUL!!  What a setting!  We had wine on the deck in the shade while Jenny romped in the yard on the REAL GRASS.  Edna had made a couple of soups (split pea and a taco soup) which were both delicious and she also had a lunch meat and cheese platter for sandwiches.  She wasn't sure what time we were going to get in so she prepared something she knew would keep.  After our meal one of her sons and his wife dropped by and had dessert with us.  Edna had made a blueberry pie (from scratch!!) with berry's her late husband Joe had picked last year.  It was definitely one of the best blueberry pies we have ever had!!  It was great to meet her son David and his wife Diane, they are a lovely couple and live only a few miles from Edna.  She has another son across the street and one of her daughters lives only a few blocks away.

Friday, July 13.  Lucky Friday the 13th!!  This morning we picked Edna up and took a drive up into Voyageur National Park and to visit Ranier, the town next Int'l. Falls.  Lots of history here with fur trappers and trading.

There is also a lot of water, hence the nickname: Land of 10,000 Lakes.  We had lunch at the Sha-Sha Resort on the water and waited out the rainstorm before heading back to town.  Edna invited us for a Walleye fish dinner at her house that evening.  It was another great meal!  She also made cole slaw and roasted vegetables, one of the veggies was rutabaga!  We had never had roasted rutabaga or Walleye and found that both were scrumptious!!  Here is a picture of us with our full bellies at Edna's table:

I can see why her kids love her so and take such good care of her!  Even Jenny was happy to be at her place!  See how relaxed she is in the living room or is that sleeping room...

Alas, the evening came to a close.  We woke Jenny up, hugged Edna good bye and thanked her for a lovely visit.  We'll see her back in Tucson the end of October or first of November.