Pure Michigan #14

I cannot believe it has taken me so long to get back to my blog. Life just gets so busy sometime. Maybe it is the fact that the camping season is over and winter in fast approaching. I feel if I write about my last camping trip, it is officially done! I really can't be sad that it is over as we have had one heck of a spring/summer/fall camping season. We hit a ton of places for long weekends, short weekends and even took a couple of week long trips. We explored new areas and visited some of our favorites along the way. I ventured out of my box and took up kayaking and most importantly we spent time with our family and friends and sometimes just each other. All in all this season rocked! We took a total of 14 trips starting the last weekend in April. I'm already looking at 2014 and starting to plan. Hopefully, it will be here before we know it.

So, our last weekend trip (the weekend of October 11, 12, and 13) of the season was to Walter J. Hayes State Park in the Irish Hills. Yes, it is only 30 minutes from our house, but it was still a nice get-a-way on the perfect fall weekend. The colors were just starting to change and it was perfect bonfire weather in the evening. Even though the state park was only a half an hour away, we had never been there. It was such a nice state park! Their online reservation system was a little different. We could reserve a campsite for the weekend, but not a particular site number. When we arrived we were able to drive around the park and pick the site that we wanted. We ended up on site 137 which was situated down in a little valley with only one other site next door. It was perfect!

Saturday was such a beautiful, sunny, fall day that we ventured down to Wampler's Lake with a radio and sat on the beach listening to WLEN radio and The Saints Football game. As we sat there, we watched a float plane land on the lake and beach on the shoreline. It was such a site to see considering I thought the plane was just going to land right next to where we were sitting...LOL!

We couldn't have asked for better weather and it was so nice to be so close to home, but still able to feel like we got away. This could very well become our "go-to" campground. 

Now, the R-Pod is unpacked and tucked into the barn awaiting the winter season. We just received a notice last week about a winter camping trip in January to Pennsylvania with a group of other R-Pod owner. Is it crazy to think about camping in January? I guess we will wait and see!

Site 137 at Hayes State Park

Two of my favorite things...a good fire and pumpkin beer!

The beautiful fall colors just starting to shine.

Jimmy checking out Wampler's Lake.

The float plane landing on the lake right by us.

A beautiful, sunny, fall day at Wampler's Lake

Pure Michigan

It is hard to believe that today is the first day of fall! As much as I do love this season, I hate to see our camping come to an end. We were able to head out for another week long trip to Silver Lake State Park in Mears, MI and Ludington State Park in Ludington, MI. We have spent a lot of time on the west side of our beautiful state and still cannot seem to get enough. It is simply amazing from the pure white sandy beaches to the amazing Lake Michigan sunsets.

Our first stop was Mears, MI and we stayed at Silver Lake State Park. We arrived on a Saturday to find that we had the last spot in the park. This is the place to go if you have a dune buggy and want to ride the dunes. We definitely felt a little out of place with our bikes and kayaks. The park was nice. Our site (#33) was roomy but it backed up to a very busy road, so we had traffic noise to contend with at night. On Sunday, we woke up early and headed out for my maiden voyage with my new kayak across the lake to the sand dunes. Jim has had a kayak for years that I won at a charity auction. This summer I decided to try it out and discovered that I really enjoyed it. So, we purchased another one for me. I'm still working on my exit strategy and my paddling, but I'll get there. I don't have any photos from our adventure as I'm still not comfortable in the boat and wouldn't want to tip and lose my camera.

Half away across the lake, it started to rain. We decided to keep paddling. Once we got to the sand dunes, it really started coming down. I just wanted to turn around and paddle back, but Jim got out and did a little exploring. Thankfully, we headed back across the lake in the pouring rain and made it safe and sound. It ended up raining the rest of the day.

On Monday, we packed up and headed 30 minutes up the coast to Ludington. My parents said I was there when I was two years old. Needlesstosay, I don't remember a thing from that trip. This park was truly amazing! We were on site 264. This parks has so many things to do that we felt like we didn't have enough time to do everything. We hiked, biked and kayaked. Every morning Jim would make our coffee and then we would head out for a morning walk. We would end up on the broadwalk to watch the wildlife and enjoy the scenery of Lost Lake.

On our kayak adventure on Tuesday, I was able to witness my first ever bald eagle. It was so awesome to just sit, be still on the lake, and watch him soar. It is truly a moment that I'll never forget. We kayaked for over 2 hours that day. It was such a nice day and I really wanted to get a little more comfortable with my new ride.

On Wednesday, we connected with one of our former students that worked in our office last semester. She lives in Ludington and suggested we come to the restaurant that she works at for breakfast. Chef Johns Bakery and Cafe was the cutest little place I've been to in a while. I had "Eggs in a Nest" which was a "local favorite" according to their menu. It was probably one of the best breakfast I've had in a long time. It was a mixture of potatoes, sun dried tomatoes, prosciutto and parmesan cheese all "nested" together and baked. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. They also make their own breads and I had apple cinnamon harvest. Yumm-O!!! We also purchased some homemade cinnamon rolls to go for our Thursday morning breakfast. If you are ever in Ludington you should check this place out!

We had another awesome Pure Michigan vacation! As always, on the way home, we were talking about our next trip. Looks like we only have 2 more weekends open to squeeze in some camping. I'm hoping this beautiful fall weather holds for us to do just that!

Of course, I took well over 150 photos on this trip. Some good, some not so good. Below are some of my favorites...

Our campsite at Silver Lake State Park 

Sunset at Sliver Lake State Park

The Lighthouse at Silver Lake State Park

Our campsite at Ludington State Park

The boardwalk where we enjoyed our morning coffee

Me and my kayak on Hamlin Lake at Ludington State Park

The Lake Michigan Sunset

The first sign of Fall!

Lake Hudson Recreation Area - August 16-18

Jim and I have had a super busy two weeks and decided it was time to "unplug" for the weekend and sneak away. Obviously, we didn't sneak too well as most everyone knew we were heading out. We wanted to go someplace close to home so we didn't have a long drive there and back.

Our travels took us to the Lake Hudson Recreation Area in the big town of Hudson, MI, which is located about 30 miles from our house. We didn't make reservation, but were told that the park very rarely is full on the weekends. They do not have water and only vault toilets, so I think that keeps a lot of people away. We selected campsite #5 which was really big and roomy. It was probably overkill for our small camper, but it was nice to spread out a little bit.

Campsite #5 at Lake Hudson Recreation Area

We didn't have cell phone service here and totally unplugged for the weekend. I actually turned my phone completely off and left it in the camper. I find that I'm far too dependent on my phone (and really electronics in general) these days and need to have more times like this to just be with Jim, enjoy our surroundings and the world around us. 

We had a true camping weekend. Jim cooked over the fire both nights. On Friday night we had pizza pies over the fire and on Saturday he cooked a steak dinner with all the fixing. He topped that off with one of my all time favorite campfire desserts. No, not smores! He took apples, cored them out, stuffed them with the Red Hot candy, wrapped them in foil, and threw them in the campfire for about an hour. They were delicious!!!!! 

On Saturday, we ventured into the big town of Hudson with our bikes and enjoyed a 10 mile bike ride on their  bike path. For such a small town, they really have invested in their bike paths. It was a beautiful day for a bike ride. We also have a spectacular sunset to watch on Saturday evening along with some of the most awesome stars I've seen in a while. According to park ranger, Lake Hudson has been designated a dark sky preserve for learning more about the night time sky. It has one of the best combinations of dark skies and clear horizons available in southern Michigan. Let me tell you....its dark and I mean really dark!

Sunset at Lake Hudson Recreation Area

The best thing about Sunday morning was being able to sleep in (until 9 am which seems late these days) and enjoy a cup of coffee and breakfast before we headed out. We usually are in such a rush to get home on Sundays. Since we were only a half an hour away, we were able to relax and take our time. We were still home by 1 pm and had most of the day at home.

We are already talking about a return trip to Lake Hudson and the possibility of this becoming our "go to" place when we want to be spontaneous.

The summer is winding down and so are our camping trips. We have 2 more on the books, but I sure hope we can squeeze a few more out of this season. 

Traverse City State Park - August 2-4, 2013

After taking a month off from camping, we finally hit the road once again. It seemed WAY overdue. It was just a quick weekend trip to Traverse City State Park but we packed a lot into a three day weekend. The state park itself was ok. A friend of ours told us what to expect, so my expectations weren't very high. This park has over 400 sites and they really pack you in. The staff was great and the people around us were very nice. We really just slept there as we had a lot of exploring to do. I was really surprised how quiet it got at night. I had figured with all those people it would be pretty loud, but it was a pretty mellow crowd. The whole weekend was perfect. At night it got chilly and we actually had to use a fleece blanket on our bed, but it was nice not to have to run the air conditioning.

On Saturday, we visited the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. We took a scenic drive through the park that had 12 or 13 different stops. The most impressive was the sand dune area. It was a beautiful day and I took well over 100 photos in our very short time there. We also watched the sun set along Lake Michigan both Friday and Saturday night, so I took several photos of that as well.

I'm still amazed at the beauty of our State of Michigan. I've been to Traverse City several times, but never to the national lakeshore. It was one of the most beautiful places I've been, yet. I still cannot comprehend where all that sand came from, though (LOL)! I think if I ever get around to writing my book, this is going to be the place to write it. There's nothing like sitting on a white sandy beach listening to the waves of Lake Michigan lap on the shoreline to provide me with the inspiration that I need to start writing.

We came home with 10 pounds of blueberries, 3 pounds of cherries, 2 bottles of cherry sangria and a bundle of home grown lavender. Love this time of year in Michigan!

Below are some of my photos.  Until next time....

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sunset on the shores of Lake Michigan

Sunset on the shores of Lake Michigan

Sunset on the shores of Lake Michigan

Onaway State Park - June 27-30

After an absolutely outstanding few days in the upper peninsula, it was time to move down to the "tip of the mitt." We had reservations for the rest of our week at Onaway State Park in Onaway, Michigan. Our original reservation was for campsite #2 on the shores of Black Lake. We had high hopes that this was going to be as nice as our spot in the upper peninsula. Sadly, it didn't even compare. We couldn't even fit our 20 foot trailer into the spot. After Jim did some careful surveying of the site, we decided to go back to the office to see if they had any other spots available. We were lucky enough to have our pick of about a dozen available locations. We ended up in the upper campground, off the lake in site 69. It was a nice corner lot with lots of room (and lots of mosquitos too)!

There really wasn't much to do in Onaway. We did take a road trip over to Cheboygan on Thursday evening. That was a really nice lake town with a pretty cute downtown area. On Friday, we drove over to Rogers City which is on the shores of Lake Huron. It rained for most of the day so we didn't get to experience the lake, but we did stumble across the 40 Mile Point Lighthouse. The lighthouse was open for tours and has been very well kept by the society. The entire site has been preserved and restored and is open year round. On the drive back from Rogers City we stopped at the Ocqueoc Falls. It was a very remote area down a small, county road, but once we got there there were several families playing in the river. My cousins from Kalkaska came over on Saturday and visited with us and had dinner. It was really nice to catch up with them. My cousin kept referring to Onaway as "its on-the-way to someplace else." And boy, he was right!

We are spending the month of July at home but will hit the road again in August. I need to start planning our fall camping trips too. Here's a few photos from the "tip of the mitt."

Onaway State Park

Black Lake at Onaway State Park

40 Mile Point Lighthouse

Ocqueoc Fall in Onaway, MI

Muskallonge Lake State Park - June 23-27, 2013

With the month of June coming to a close, we had one final week of camping planned. We left on Sunday, June 23 and had a very nice travel day. We took our time and really didn't push it. According to Google maps we had a good 8 hour trip ahead of us, but in reality it took 9.5. It was well worth the drive to Muskallonge Lake State Park in Newberry, MI.

Crossing the Mighty Mac with my eyes open!

My first goal was to cross the Mighty Mac with my eyes open. I have a terrible fear of bridges and this one especially. I've crossed it at least a half dozen times in my life and just cannot bare to look. This time I was determined and it had to the first time we were towing a camper behind us (LOL!) Mission accomplished!!!!!! I did it. The view was amazing, even though it was a little hazy. I really didn't appreciate the construction and slow down at the very top of the bridge but I was able to deal.

The minute we got across the bridge, we lost all cell phone service. It was like we stepped into another world. For four complete days, my cell phone was turned off and put away. It was so nice to just disconnect from everything and be in the moment enjoying whatever we were doing.

Here's a quick rundown of the highlights...

• Pictured Rock National Lakeshore Boat Tour
• Tahquamenon Fall State Park 
• Crisp Point Lighthouse
  
  
  

  

  Pictured Rock National Lakeshore

  
  

  

  Pictured Rock National Lakeshore

  
  

  

  Pictured Rock National Lakeshore

The Upper Falls - Tahquamenon State Park

The Lower Falls - Tahquamenon State Park

Crisp Point Light House in Paradise, Michigan

Campsite #23 - by far the best spot in the whole place

We had just the best weather ever even though I heard it was raining buckets at home. I actually could have used a light jacket at night, but really we had perfect bonfire weather. My husband says he really doesn't care to travel back to places once we have visited, but we both agreed that this was one of the best trips yet and we would definitely go back to this same spot again.

And the rambling continues...next stop....Onaway State Park in Onaway, Michigan.

Totem Pole Park - June 15

Last weekend we camped for one night at Totem Pole Park in Petersburg, MI with my brother and his family. We had a short 20-minute drive to get to the park. The campground is very family friendly. They had a lot of activities for kids, a nice man-made lake to swim in and the cutest little park to play in. I didn't think that the lake would be warm enough to swim in already, but it was. Of course, the kids are fearless and don't really care about water temperature, but Aunt Liesel does.

Saturday night my brother made a real nice bonfire and my niece purchased a packet of "Mystic Fire" from the campground store. She sprinkled it on the fire and we had an amazing light show. I tried really hard to capture it in a few of the photos below.

It's hard to believe that we have already went on five camping trips this year. We have many more planned and lots more memories to make.

Allison and Conner on the dragon at the playground.

It was a mystic fire kind of night.

Mystic Fire really made for such a great light show.

Cousins Camping Weekend at Muskegon State Park

This past weekend we ventured to Muskegon State Park for a "Cousins Camping Reunion" weekend. A few years ago, we (all of my first cousins on my dad's side of the family, minus 1) all got together at Soaring Eagle Casino and had a great time. This year we decided to give camping a whirl. We selected Muskegon based on the proximity for most of us. Cousins traveled from Kalkaska, Monroe, Livonia, and Maryland (you both get the prize for traveling the farthest...lol).

Muskegon State Park

The park itself was beautiful. The campsites were very roomy and everything was so well kept. In my book, this park is on my top five  best State Parks in Michigan that I've visited. We never left the park. We were able to walk right down to Lake Michigan and enjoy the water and the sand dunes. The weather could have been a little warmer, but for those that know me well, know that I don't mind a little cooler temperatures, plus it was perfect bonfire weather. We all had campsites together and used my brother's campsite as the meeting place. We shared meals, new card games, stories (old and new), lots of laughs and made more great memories along the way.


I'm very fortunate to be part of a great family who truly enjoys their time together. The only thing missing is a group photo of all of us. Oh well, I guess that means we have to do this again real soon! 

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On a walk with Jim we ran across this really awesome root system of a tree. It seems appropriate after a great weekend with family to end with this quote by Maria Sharapova...

I know my roots and I cannot forget the journey I made.

Below are some more photos from our outstanding weekend in Muskegon.

The stairway down to Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan - I could have walked for miles.

Brown County State Park - May 16-19

After three beautiful days in Kentucky, we packed up and headed for Brown County State Park in Nashville, Indiana. It was only a two and a half hour drive, but most of it was along a two-lane road which was very scenic  that followed the mighty Ohio River.

Brown County State Park

Brown County State Park is huge! It sits on 15,776 acres and 1.3 million people visit each year. It is the largest state park in Indiana. The campground had 422 sites. We were on site 164 which was the first site within the third campground. It is so hard to pick out campsites online. We mainly want the sites to be level and somewhat shady (I hate to be hot!) We were right at the entrance, so everyone was coming and going. There were a lot more people around this campground than in Kentucky. The sites were nice and roomy, but I felt pretty wide open.

Nashville, Indiana

On Friday, we spent the day in the town of Nashville. It was the cutest town I'd ever visited. The town itself has a population of 803 people but hosts over 300 shops throughout the downtown area. We leisurely
walked the entire downtown area. It rained on and off, so it was perfect to take shelter in one of the many shops along the way. We stumbled across the Big Woods Brewing Company for lunch. It was located down a back alley way but we were bound and determined to find it. I had the Busted Knuckle Ale. This was their signature ale. It is a hybrid ale, most similar to a "smooth" porter. It had the color of a porter but was very easy to drink. Jim tried one of their IPAs. I'm not a fan of any IPSs so I didn't even want to try it. The waitress recommended their pulled pork nachos. They were outstanding. I even ate a few hot peppers with them as it really added to the flavor. (I'm not a fan of hot and spicy food, but I'm trying to be a little more adventurous).

Saturday, we just ventured out and took a drive over to Bloomington, Indiana to check out the Indiana University campus. It was beautiful and so very historic. We ventured back to the park and took the 20 miles nature drive.  There was so much to see and this was our last day to see it all. Below are some of my favorite photos. We hope to visit this park again in the fall. Everyone we talked to said we have to come back to take in the fall colors. I bet it's outstanding.

Brown County State Park

Brown County State Park

Brown County State Park

Brown County State Park