Exploring the UP

 Being flexible, that’s what we have learned since going full-time.  Because, if you are not, you are setting yourself up for disappointment…not that you won’t be disappointed but it helps to always have a plan A, B, C or able to make alternate plans. We traveled to Alpena (all of 80 miles), stayed at the Thunder Bay RV resort to go on the Glass Bottom Boat to see the ship wrecks in Lake Huron. We were there 2 nights and the weather was beautiful…warm and nice breeze. It seems the “breeze” was a little more than a breeze on the water. We arrived at the departure site only to be told that the rest of the days tours were cancelled. It seems when the first tour went out, the so called breeze we were enjoying created 4’ waves and tourists onboard were getting sea-sick! As disappointed as we were, getting sea-sick would not be fun. So, without much hesitation at all, Rob decides to take us on a road trip that took us to the New Presque Isle Lighthouse and on to Rogers City to the 40 Mile Point Light house. After dinner headed home having made a very large circle trip.

                                                   Sunset at the end of the day after big rains.

                                                   Great site right on the golf course.

                                                Lake Huron offering us a view of its beauty.

                                                                 Old Presque Isle lighthouse

                                                         New Presque Isle Lighthouse 

                                                                   40 Mile Point Lighthouse 

                                         Remains of the hull of the Fay that washed up 

Next stop is East Jordan to spend a few days in “Gods country” at my sisters place. She is having a lot of remodeling done so we tried to get her out of the house as much as possible….which didn’t work too well. There is something to be said about being “down on the farm”. We did our share of helping out but had so much fun working around the farm and taking in all the beauty and fresh air that we came back relaxed and fulfilled even though we were busy and got dirty. Rob was in another world while there. He mowed grass, cut trees, hauled the byproduct away, drove the tractor, and looked for more things to cut down. He got to kibitz with the boys (men) while I was indoors helping declutter and organize. It’s such a good feeling to be helpful and having fun at the same time, especially with those you love. We reminisced, talked, laughed, ate and ate some more. We said our farewell but not goodbye.

Our official UP will start when we cross the Mighty Mack tomorrow.  Stay tuned for our travel updates. Stay safe and healthy, go outdoors and don’t forget to look up, it’s amazing out there.

Our official UP will start when we cross the Mighty Mack tomorrow.  Stay tuned for our travel updates. Stay safe and healthy, go outdoors and don’t forget to look up, it’s amazing out there.

                                        

Summer Update

Not much has happened this summer here in Michigan. We accomplished what we mainly came for. Rob worked a bit, we connected with the family, got to attend the birthday celebrations of our grandkids…and great grandkids. Those little ones sure are growing way fast!

We managed to get some local exploring in; thanks to son and family, we got some boating time in; got to exercise these old bones doing some cleanup work in the woods, thanks to my daughter and family. And thanks to Mother Nature, seems we were always doing a little cleanup around the campsite because of all the rain that came more frequently than we liked but, it definitely helped the Michigan drought conditions.

We met up with some of our friends, which is always a fun time, to say the least. Fulfilled our annual obligations of making sure we are healthy by visiting our doctors. Happy to say, we are good for another year.

 

Speaking of good to go, we will be heading out early this year. In fact, in just about 2 weeks.  Our plans include traveling the northern states before we reach our destination of Arizona. In order to do that though, we need to travel while the weather is good because the northern states have a shorter “window of opportunity” due to possible weather conditions. Travel highlights to follow.

 

The past 18 months has been trying on all of us, some worse than others. Covid has changed our lives and the world as we knew it. Traveling cross country during that time proved to be challenging at times but also interesting as each state handled things differently. We didn’t always know what to expect. 

 

We were hoping this year would give us all a new bright outlook on life….Certainly Covid would be behind us! Not. Traveling as we do makes us very happy and independent. We choose where we want to be and for how long. We choose who we want to be with and why. We choose to live a healthy lifestyle, or not.  The choices are ours to make…and yours. 

 

Unfortunately, the big hype today is whether someone has been “jabbed” or not. Really? It’s never been a concern before and it shouldn’t be now. It’s really no one else’s business.  It never even enters ours minds as we travel and I hope it never does. It would take away our freedom. If everyone makes good choices, for the good of themselves, then we are doing the best we can. The media is trying to divide us! Don’t let it happen. Be with those you love and enjoy. Celebrate life. Be kind. Be good to yourself, and others.  Let’s all make the best of what we are given. Get outdoors and enjoy this big, beautiful world. And don’t forget to look up, it’s amazing out there.

 

 

 

 

Our Extended Texas Stay

 We are scheduled to have our motorhome looked at to find out if AC in front can be serviced or needs to be replaced (really hoping for serviced). We decided to park in their parking lot overnight so we would be there first thing in the morning. I even called to see if they had space for us and I was told “yes, we even have poles with electric and water”. Sweet, that would be awesome. 

Well, in the real world that didn’t happen. It seems whomever I talked to was not at this location (they have 4 locations) because when we got there they not only didn’t have poles with electric and water, the parking lot had locked gates. But wait, It gets better. The service drive was on a side street and the motorhome had no place to back up or turn around. I’m already to crash for the night but that’s not going to happen, at least not for awhile. We need to find someplace to park this behemoth. It turns out that at the bend in the road we were on was the location of one of the cities Water stations with a hard packed driveway long enough for Rob to back the motorhome on, after he maneuvered it between the two ditches on each side (with water in them). Having complete faith in Robs ability to get it where it needs to be, I assist in being eyes to make sure we stay on course.

We are now settled in for the night, sort of. Not too long after we got set up we heard a train coming….right next to us. And it was loud! Why didn’t we notice the train tracks when we were backing in. Want to know how often they come through?  Almost every hour, all night! Needless to say, sleep was not in abundance that night.

We were there when they opened, car packed for the days adventure since “our house” was going to be worked on. I called and got a campground reserved for the night. We took a ride and found this very nice city park just down the road from us. As we were leaving the park we got a call to come get the motorhome. Turns our the AC had to be replaced along with control modules on both units. But....yep, always a but, the AC and modules had to be ordered but they would not be there until Wednesday, possibly Thursday. Not much we could do except go back to the campground and see if we could stay for 2 more days.

With a few extra days on our hands we did some exploring and shopping. Come Thursday we got a phone call that the parts wouldn’t be in until Friday morn. Repeat of Friday....get an extension at the campground. Luckily they had room.

We get a call on Friday all parts are in and they are ready for us. We are packed up and ready for another day of exploring while they fix the MH. We arrive, Rob drives it into the bay and talks with the mechanics for a few minutes. He calls me from the car to come inside. Oh oh, this isn’t good. It seems when they opened up the AC box, it is broken in several places!! They are not comfortable using it not knowing the extent of damage. Best they can do is to have one shipped to them Monday morning. There are no options since the AC units have been disconnected and so far, weather has been cool. Guess you know what came next....call the campground to see if we can stay for 3 more nights. So here we are a week later waiting (almost) patiently for Monday morning.

We took a ride to Waco (Magnolia)one day, really big rainstorm yesterday, and went antiquing today. Two more days and we should be headed to MI. We just never know what is in store for us. No reason to get upset. We just figured there must be some reason why we were meant to still be here. That’s what retirement is all about.....no schedule and flexible.

Be sure to stay tuned for the final outcome. Details to follow. In the meantime, get outdoors, breath some fresh air and find something to make you smile. And while out there, look up, it’s amazing out there.

Time On Our Hands

 We all occasionally want a day where we have no plans and no time frame, right? That is until you have it and don’t know what to do.  Last Tuesday we had our RV in for some maintenance work (remember, this is our house) and had no idea how long it would take. The day was ours to do whatever we wanted. Hmmm, let’s go for a ride and see where it takes us.

We have explored so much of the area and we had Baxter with us so we were limited as to what and where we could go. After stopping in one of our favorite eateries we headed back down the road and happened upon the Empire Ranch. 

We have tried for sometime to visit this historic place but didn’t want to travel a long distance on dirt roads. To our surprise the road was paved….all the way.

 

It was quite an interesting place and is in remarkable condition considering it was built in the 1870’s. The reservation has been meticulously done and left for us all to admire and learn about.

Here is a little history on it and a few pictures.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_Ranch

 

We hope you are finding exciting things around you to explore. Sometimes they are right in front of us and don’t even know it. Stay healthy, happy and remember to be kind to one another. And while outdoors, don’t forget to look up. It’s amazing out there.

              

  

 

     

                          

   

                           

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One Last Adventure (for now)

Spring has sprung and our time here is running short. If we are are going to do any more exploring, now is the time. One more place that peaks our interest is Fort Bowie so we grab our hiking supplies and make our way to see just what this is all about…..and Baxter decides to go too.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Bowie

 

We are getting pretty familiar with the route. It seems most of our exploring this winter has been in this area. So with that said, you probably already know what I am going to tell you….yep, we had to travel another dirt road. At the end of the dust cloud is a large parking lot with a lot of cars. The 3 mile (1 ½  miles each way) trails lies ahead. It says it is a relatively easy hike. We’ll see!  Thank goodness they were right because the cool, breezy forecasted day is quickly turning into a warm one instead.  Baxter has turned into quite an avid hiker and is leading the way.

 

Along the trail there are self explanatory placards explaining the historic facts and time frame.  We take several water breaks, give our old bodies a few minutes to “refuel” and then continue on to the final destination. Or so we thought! As we are enjoying the view and trying to imagine just what actually took place here many years ago,  we happen to see off in the distance more ruins. But we don’t think these tired bodies have what it will take to venture over there. I’m sure it is further than it looks. Besides, Baxter is ready to head back. We decide this will be the end of our excitement for the day. There is always another day, another time.  The path ahead of us looks long but, as usual, it doesn’t take us as long to get back as we had planned. Luckily, it was mostly downhill.

Back at the parking lot, bodies tired and thirsty, we talk with some fellow hikers and learn that there is a turn back down the road that will continue on around to the Visitors center and the rest of the ruins. Hmmm, how did we miss that important bit of information? So at least, if and when when we return, we can drive most of the way there.

 

Our country is filled with more history than we could ever imagine. Times were tough, brutal, heartbreaking and deadly.  I am so thankful for the life we are able to live and hope I never take our lifestyle for granted.

 

We travel home exhausted, refreshed and enjoy the beautiful sights as we travel back to our rig. I hope you are able to find that place of interest that calls you into the history of where you are. It’s out there, you just have to look for it sometimes. So put on your shoes or boots, grab a map, a bottle of water and snack, and go find an adventure! You won’t regret it. And while you are out there don’t forget to look up, it’s an amazing world out there.