MAY to JULY 2021 - GREAT LAKES TOUR

GREAT LAKES - MICHIGAN

Monday, June 14, 2021 – St Ignace, MI, to Wells State Park, MI

Woken this morning by a shaft of sunlight sneaking under the bottom edge of the blind on the small window beside the bed... or at least that’s how it seemed, though probably it was the gradually increasing light of dawn that woke me.

Did a little more head-scratching over potential routes and overnight campsites for the week ahead as I start on my anti-clockwise loop around Lake Michigan.

As I've complained previously, I dislike being committed days in advance to a series of overnight stops, preferring to play things more by ear depending on mood and, particularly, weather.

Now at least I do have a more specific structure and end-point to work with in my planning as I'm aiming to hook up with an old boat business colleague in Cadillac, MI, next Tuesday.

A direct route there from here to there would only be 150 miles, heading south over the Mackinac Bridge. Instead, my long route will be about 1,000 miles, circumnavigating Lake Michigan.

Despite the clarity of my ultimate destination, however, I didn't manage to get any further than booking campgrounds for the next two nights...

A little frustrated, but only so much banging of the head against the wall is possible in one session.

So I called it quits, stowed the laptop and headed out of the campground a little after 10:00am, dumping tanks on the way...

...and settled in for the day's 150-mile driving stint, much of it – when not trapped in the usual tree-lined avenues - along the sandy shoreline of northern Lake Michigan.

Pulled over for coffee after an hour, and then an hour later in Manistique for groceries and lunch – a Michigan “pasty”, a local delicacy of beef/pork mix, diced potatoes, onion, diced rutabaga (swede). Rather bland, I thought... could have done with some HP sauce.

Heard the latest news from the UK while eating lunch, mainly concerned with the confirmation that Covid restrictions due to be lifted on June 21 will now stay in place for another 4 weeks.

Back on the road for the second half of the day’s drive, the weather breezy but with clearing skies, the lake shoreline continuing to offer sandy beaches.

Got into the campground at 3:00pm (CDT, having crossed into the central time zone just a few miles before the campground) and unhooked the Jeep to set it at the back of the campsite, right on the shoreline, and then had to shuffle the RV back and forth on a tight grassy patch between intruding trees to find a level spot with room for the slideouts to open safely.

All of which got done just as a few drops of rain began to fall... and it turned out to be a truly lucky break getting set up early as the few drops became a seriously heavy downpour... watching it streaming down the windows and listening to it rattling on the roof as I type this.

Tuesday, June 15, 2021 – J W Wells State Park, MI, to Peninsula State Park, WI

Out for an early run (for the first time in a week) along quiet park roads before what seems to have become obligatory – and slightly tedious – route planning dictated by limited overnight camping options.

Free overnight parking spots, used extensively during earlier years of RV travel and which offer a good deal more freedom in route planning, are not being rejected as an option but hot weather means A/C needs to be run for an extended period to cool the RV down once I pull over for the day - and usually will run intermittently through the warm nights, too, which is only really possible with a shore power hookup in a campground.

Managed to get a booking in a state park for tomorrow and booked a couple of nights at a KOA campground to the northwest of Chicago for Thursday and Friday.

The weekend accommodation not working out so well anywhere I want to stay... all the inns are full.

With the morning drawing on, and a bit of a hunger pang from my run, I made coffee (and bagel with cream cheese, naturally) before heading out of the campground mid-morning.

Picked up a Subway sandwich on the way through Menominee and made a gas stop just before reaching Green Bay, rounding the corner there and heading northeast into “Door County” (a region in the "left thumb" of Wisconsin, the land mass projecting into the water from the east-central side of the state).

Stopped in Sturgeon Bay for a walk around, much locally-quarried gray limestone in evidence, its use prompted by a major fire in the town in 1880 (so easy to forget how relatively recent so much of US history is) before continuing on to the overnight stop at Peninsula State Park.

An expansive campground of multiple loops but also an older one, with very tight roads, overhanging trees and cramped campsites that were challenging to maneuver into.

More Jeep disconnecting and backing into the campsite ahead of the RV, then hooking back up ready for departure (and so that I legitimately became “one vehicle” again, thus covered by the single $13 vehicle pass I had bought - not that I think anyone was wandering around checking.

A little light refreshment taken to prepare for a bike ride, initially out of the park and back into nearby Fish Creek with its high-end restaurants, and then returning to the park to explore the bike trails through the woods and along Skyline Drive, a couple of overlooks and finally to Eagle Bluff lighthouse about 30 minutes before sunset.

So I think I got my exercise today... 4-mile run, couple of miles of walking and 13 miles of bike riding.

Wednesday, June 16, 2021 – Peninsula State Park, WI, to Kettle Moraine State Forest, Northern Unit, WI

Up a little after 6:00am to cycle a short distance on the bike trails to the one spot I missed yesterday, Nicolet Beach.

Sat there where for 20 minutes looking out over the bay, enjoying the peace of the morning, watching seagulls doing aerial laps around the bay.

Rode back via the amphitheater in the woods that I had seen people piling into last night, had breakfast, showered and out of the campground at 9:30am.

Drove north to Gills Rock, passing through Ephraim, Sister Bay and Ellison Bay. Everywhere busy already. Seems like the holidaymakers around here are up and making the most of their day.

Nothing to see at Gills Rock... which I maybe could have figured from closer reading of the scenic routes guide, so retraced my steps as far as Sister Bay, with it's uber-trendy turf-roofed cafes, before turning off to Baileys Harbor.

Found some parking for the rig on a back street, encouraged to do so after spotting a local coffee shop – from which the cappuccino was slow to be brewed and delivered (via a Covid-safe window), and way too dry, and the blueberry and coffee cake unremarkable.

A long slog then back the way I had come yesterday, through Sturgeon Bay and Green Bay before heading southwest on I-41 for a spell and then onto smaller roads, stopping for a bite of lunch in Kaukauna and then continuing on secondary roads (with letter designations rather than numbers), being forced into a detour by construction, and finally suffering a self-inflicted detour through making a turn too early.

I did eventually find the Kettle Moraine State Forest at around 4:00pm, paid $11 for a vehicle pass and then wound my way through more tight campground roads to my reserved site - as yesterday requiring an unhooking of the Jeep to back into the space.

Nothing special about the location that I can see – some hiking, some bike trails, a large lake (somewhat weed-clogged near the edges) with launching ramps and beaches - but the park is huge, with hundreds of campsites.

I think I’m getting a little fed up with these state campgrounds, though... mostly rather tight, a lot of overhanging foliage and small sites. I suspect really made for cars and tents, or small trailers. And I’m also not adjusting well to having a larger rig... since I still seem to want to poke around rather than drive to a spot, set up for 3 or 4 days and drive around the area in the Jeep.

And I certainly need to avoid these full 200-mile plus days on smaller roads... Higher mileage days on Interstates is one thing, but secondary roads, driving through towns, stop and start... not so much fun.

Thursday, June 17, 2021 – Kettle Moraine State Forest, WI, to Marengo, MI (Chicago Northwest KOA)

Early breakfast at 6:30am, digested back in bed while catching up on world news on my iPhone and tuning in to BBC Radio 4 at 1:00pm (local UK time).

Then out for a ride on the bike trail from Long Lake (this set of campgrounds) to Mauthe Lake (the next set of campgrounds to the south).

A pleasant ride in the early morning, though the day warming fairly quickly, through wooded sections, open prairie and some low-lying river flood areas. Rabbits, chipmunks, dark brown colored cranes...

14 miles covered, average speed 11.3mph, average heart rate 132, max heart rate 152 – so not quite the workout of a mountain bike ride, or a run, but a robust start to a day which will otherwise be spent sitting in the driver's seat.

Early coffee in the RV a little after 10:00am, and out of the campground at 11:00am...

...when actually I should have stayed and waited for the thunderstorm showing up on weather radar to pass by instead of trying to outrun it, which I failed to do, turning back from under the black clouds and soaking roads ahead and retracing my route about 5 miles to the Ice Age Visitor Center.

At least I got one thing done while there, booking a campground spot for Saturday night at an Indiana State Park.

An early half-lunch and then back on the road about 12:30pm but only for 30 minutes before stopping for a grocery top-up. Second half of lunch eaten before getting back on the highway, battling construction, poor road surfaces and a tortuous route over the last 5 miles, required to avoid all the closed roads around the KOA campground (which they had thoughtfully notified me of via text).

Filled up with gas just before crossing the state line into Illinois, where prices are 50 cents a gallon higher.

Finally got into a slightly crummy KOA a little after 5:00pm... office and store closed – so no ice-cream (the prospect of which I had been salivating over for the last hour of the drive) no cable TV and over-the-air reception limited and poor. Will have to see how the WiFi works out.

I need a calming beer...

Friday, June 18, 2021 – Marengo, MI (Chicago Northwest KOA)

A rest day... which feels welcome after what seems like many days of long drives.

The campground WiFi turned out to be very good, so plenty of desk work accomplished, including researching itinerary options and booking campsites for the week ahead – always a chore, and even more distasteful as I hate being so pinned down on an itinerary.

Some small but nagging RV projects also checked off – rear view camera rooftop antenna removed, repositioned and remounted, shower door alignment fixed, roller blind anti-rattle pads on cab windows...

Saturday, June 19, 2021 – Marengo, MI, to Potato Creek State Park, IN

Up early to get a run in before the heat of the day... though already 72 degrees when I stepped out at 6:45am.

With an hour to be “lost” during the day as I cross back into the Eastern Time Zone, had a reasonably early coffee, dumped tanks and headed out of the campground at 10:30am.

Fairly miserable four and a half hour drive. Road surfaces rough, as usual, but the icing on today’s driving cake was the traffic going around Chicago.

I had assumed that a Saturday morning wouldn’t be too bad for traffic, but I was wrong.

Although truck traffic was clearly lighter, car traffic seemed heavy and was particularly bad in several places where major highways intersected... backing up for miles and exacerbated by drivers insisting on diving into exit queues of cars at the very last minute.

In fact, the aggressive driving would have put a New Yorker to shame.

The slow traffic did offer some prolonged views of downtown Chicago, however...

Crossed into the Eastern Time Zone literally 5 miles before turning into the campground and with the time taken to check in (at two different ranger stations) and then unhook the Jeep to set up in the back-in campsite, it was close to 5:00pm before I was all set.

It does mean I’ll be grabbing my soothing early evening beer a little sooner, though…

Sunday, June 20, 2021 – Potato Creek State Park, IN, to P J Hoffmaster State Park, MI

A bowl of cereal at 6:15am to set me up for a ride around a 7½-mile easy mountain bike trail in the park.

First time back on the bike (and not on asphalt) since my spill... and first time riding with non-prescription glasses which seemed to be fine, though when I started mountain bike riding 4 years ago I strongly felt the need for an old pair of prescription glasses (the ones that got trashed in my spill).

A little damp in the woods after yesterday evening’s rain, especially where the trail overgrowth hadn’t been recently trimmed. Nothing too demanding, no serious climbs or features, a couple of short rock gardens, managed to get the wheels off the ground twice (in a good way, and intentionally).

12 miles ridden in total, including the campground roads to and from the trailhead.

Coffee and a muffin after getting cleaned up from the ride and then hooked up the Jeep and made the 4-mile drive out of the campground to head north, diverting into the southern outskirts of South Bend, IN, to stop at a Kroger grocery store and then treat myself to a second coffee at Starbucks – in lieu of a lunch stop, as I planned to only pull over to look around Saugatuck and Holland right at the end of the day’s drive.

Saugatuck very cute, very crowded, narrow roads that I shouldn’t really have been on and, predictably, no parking... so I drove on to Holland and stopped at the Windmill Gardens, whose central feature is an old windmill brought over from Holland.

Quite a large windmill, and somewhat different in some construction details to UK windmills with which I'm more familiar.

30 minutes more driving to P J Hoffmaster State Park, getting set up ahead of a few drops of rain, with more serious weather forecast for later in the evening.

Monday, June 21, 2021 – P J Hoffmaster State Park, MI, to William Mitchell State Park, Cadillac, MI

Rain overnight and still overcast this morning which, combined with the effect of being under the tree canopy in the campground, meant that it was still semi-dark when I eventually roused myself from my slumbers at 7:30am.

Decided to break out the bike and ride down to the Gillette Visitor Center and climb up to the dune overlook platform in the southern part of the park, which was rather a disappointment, having views only through a narrow valley between the tree-covered dunes and over to wind-blown Lake Michigan.

But a longer trail down to the beach was more enjoyable and offered a much better view of dunes and the waves being churned up by the stiff onshore wind.

A stop at the small visitor center on the way back, where I was surprised to find I was the only visitor, was interesting and very informative with regard to dune formation and development.

Coffee back at the RV before heading out, on the road a little after midday.

Decided to take the scenic route rather than major highways, especially as that would offer a better chance of finding somewhere to pull over and wash down the RV - long overdue.

Filled up with gas once I’d found a branded station with reasonable pricing (to help marginally subsidize the 50 gallons I took on) and not long after that I came upon a rest stop and set about washing down the RV... one bucket of wash water, one bucket of rinse water, long-handled brush, long-handled squeegee and old micro-fiber towel to wrap over the squeegee head to minimize water spots where I couldn’t reach by hand.

Hard to imagine it could take so long, but it’s about a 90-minute routine.

A late lunch once finished and then onto the rest of the day’s drive – good roads, but gusty beam- and head-winds.

In the campground on the outskirts of Cadillac, set up and heater on (temperatures dropping throughout the mostly cloudy day to 50 degrees) by 5:00pm.

Tuesday, June 22, 2021 – William Mitchell State Park, Cadillac, MI

Chilly first thing this morning (34 degrees, for the official first day of summer!) and rain arrived around 10:00am while I was busy with a stem to stern interior cleaning of the RV – following on from the washdown I gave it yesterday while en route here.

A little desk work also, closing down the Sound Yachting business website and putting “out-of-office” notices on Sound Yachting e-mail addresses. Not a bad run for a business I started 21 years ago in an office half the size of the RV I’m sitting in now...!

A coffee break earned mid-morning, followed by a final burst of cleaning, a phone call with Ted midday and some desk work following that.

Nick Harvey – a colleague from the boating business days, now running Four Winns (and other brands) – arrived at 6:30pm and an evening of catching up started, running on through dinner at a restaurant conveniently opposite the campground, Lakeside Charlie’s.

Wednesday, June 23, 2021 – William Mitchell State Park, MI, to Traverse City State Park, MI

Slightly less chilly first thing but still cool enough for a long-sleeved top for my run, partly on pavement, partly through woods north of the campground.

Too hungry to delay coffee until the first stop of the day, so brewed up a little after 9:00am while still in the campground, finally hitting the road about 10:15am after filling the freshwater tank on the way out.

The day's drive started with a straight shot west to the Lake Michigan shoreline at Manistee and a stroll to the lighthouse at the head of the north pier of the entrance channel.

A stop half-way from there to Traverse Bay for a Subway sandwich, arriving at Traverse City State Park campground a little after 2:00pm.

After setting up, I headed out in the Jeep, retracing some of the route into Traverse City, to head back to the lake shoreline and the dead end road to Point Betsie lighthouse...

...which I had contemplated stopping at on the morning’s drive but turning around there with the full rig would have been impossible, so I sensibly took the conservative option of heading back there in the Jeep.

On from there up the coast road, stopping next at Leland (also known as Fishtown) where I found a long-anticipated ice-cream to accompany my walk around the small harbor...

...which still operates as a commercial fishing base and looks suitably cutesy.

A brief stop at Northport before driving on the the very tip of the peninsula and the Grand Traverse lighthouse – cloudy skies continuing to haunt my photo-taking as it had done all day.

Then an hour’s drive back to Traverse City and the campground, arriving at 9:00pm, feeling very tired after the day's early start, morning run and so much driving... and rather desperately in need of a beer...

Thursday, June 24, 2021 – Traverse City State Park, MI

Slept rather later than planned as I had intended to head out early to make use of the dry, though overcast, weather but in the end I wasn’t on the road with the Jeep until 7:45am, heading up into the narrow Old Mission Peninsular that divides Grand Traverse Bay.

A very scenic drive, winding up and down modest hills, views of the bay on both sides, looking across hundreds of acres of vineyards and even more hundreds of acres of cherry trees – apparently the Traverse City area produces nearly three quarters of the tart cherries in America.

At the very northern tip of the peninsular was Old Mission Lighthouse (and a sign that pointed out that I was standing within a few hundred feet of the 45th parallel of latitude – half-way between the equator and the north pole).

Drove back down the peninsula via the small town of Old Mission, tucked behind a natural harbor and with some very nice properties along the shoreline, over to Bowers Harbor and back into Traverse City along the Peninsular Drive.

With wet weather looming in the east, I doubled back and drove through historic Front Street and took a brief stroll around the historic Central Neighborhood of large homes built by lumber barons in the late 19th Century when Traverse City was the center of the regional lumber boom.

After giving the roads time to dry off following the rain, and getting a bite of lunch, I headed out again, up Route 31 to Charlevoix and Petoskey.

Arrived in Petoskey to find a well manicured waterfront park area and walked to downtown, where the number of shops and restaurants, and the high-end nature of them, made it clear that there was a lot of money around – hence the well presented waterfront park (and the yacht club... equestrian club... and $120 a night RV resort just outside town).

No coffee ice-cream in one store, and the second “authentic hand-made gelato” store was so purist they only serve in plastic cups... so I passed on both. Interesting flat-iron building in the center of town (housing the "no coffee ice-cream" store).

Charlevoix not quite as upscale as Petoskey, and only a single stretch of downtown stores, but at least I was able to get my coffee ice-cream here.

An hour’s drive back to the campground, rain starting to fall again as I was getting in towards Traverse City.

Friday, June 25, 2021 – Traverse City State Park, MI, to Aloha State Park, MI

Weather forecast seems to have changed from rain in the morning and dry in the afternoon to the opposite... so travel plans changed to reflect this, heading out of the campground mid-morning (after giving the roads time to dry from overnight rain).

Grocery top-up and lunch sandwich in Gaylord, then up I-75 for 30 miles before turning off onto smaller roads, arriving at Aloha State Park just after 2:30pm.

Got set up in the campsite (a clean and level paved site for once) and then took off in the Jeep back west across to the Lake Michigan shoreline at Harbor Springs, only a few miles north of where I was yesterday in Petoskey.

Harbor Springs seems to be even more upscale than Petoskey... a substantial marina and boat yard with multiple travel lifts (so that rich and important people don’t have to wait, I guess).

In town, Main Street featured a mix of stores – upscale women's clothing (with Range Rover-driving ladies group-shopping), galleries and cigar stores, but fudge, ice-cream and pizza shops mixed in.

Driving north out of Harbor Springs the coast road up to Cross Village (described fairly accurately as the “tunnel of trees”) was a fun sprint through woods, the road only one and a half lanes wide, no center stripe, and very twisty – a bit like a car version of a flowing single-track mountain bike trail.

Not much to Cross Village, site of an early Jesuit mission in the 1600s (the name coming from a landmark large cross installed on a high bluff), though a slightly out-of-place Italianate style restaurant greets you on the way in.

Very peaceful down by the small launching ramp into Lake Michigan.

A 45-minute drive back east got me to the campground and a somewhat late start to my Friday evening.

Saturday, June 26, 2021 – Aloha State Park, MI, to PJ Hoeft State Park, MI

Out for a run early, looping around the multiple sections of the campground, out into Aloha and back for some more looping...

Weather forecast a little indeterminate, but it looked as if maybe I could sneak up to Mackinaw City and Cheboygan in the Jeep and get back in time to head out ahead of rain arriving and decided to treat myself to a Starbucks breakfast sandwich in Mackinaw City rather than brew up before I left... which was a 20-minute mistake... never been in such a long line for a coffee.

Coffee in hand, I drove on up to the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse with its rather unusual “castle” design...

...and had hoped I might finally get a view of the "Mighty Mac" (the bridge that crosses the Straits of Mackinac to the Upper Peninsula, and the fifth longest suspension bridge in the world)...

...but as last Sunday on my ferry ride to Mackinac Island the early morning sea fog made it invisible.

On another day with more time I might have visited the reconstructed fort near the bridge, Colonial Michilimackinac, but felt it better to head on down to Cheboygan and the lighthouses there before scrambling back to the campground to try to beat the rain.

Stopped for a stroll down the jetties at the mouth of the river to the Cheboygan Crib Light, essentially a beacon at the lake end of the jetty (a small and not very special lighthouse at the land end).

A drop or two of rain on the windshield on the way back to the campground was a worrying sign, though the skies remained more patchy white rather than solid gray... but after hooking up the Jeep and heading out with the full rig I had only gone 5 miles before the rain became a little steadier and finally the damp roads became wet and the wheels of the RV were kicking up road spray all over the clean bodywork.

With no real alternative other than to press on, I continued east to Rogers City, pulling over for 10 minutes for a bite of lunch and to delay an early arrival at Hoeft State Park, where I checked in (in the continuing rain) at 1:45pm.

The campsite I had reserved was intentionally plenty long (80ft) and rather narrow but it hadn’t been clear from the reservation website that it was also on a tight bend with an almost impossible exit required to follow the one-way campground road. So the RV was parked “bow in” and will have to be backed out before the Jeep can be hooked back up when I leave.

Unable to bear the thought of the road grime on the RV, I quickly fished out a bucket and the long-handled brush and gave everything below the belt-line a rinse, and a double rinse for the back of the RV which always gets well coated with road spray and dirt due to the “station wagon effect” of air flow over the RV.

An afternoon of rain dripping from tree branches overhead and pattering on the roof, and very poor cell connection making on-line work something of a chore.

The morning's visit to Cheboygan marked the end of my loop around Lake Michigan started 12 days ago. The far western shore of Lake Huron next...

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