Not Fruitful But Rewarding

I camped at Hoeft State Park last fall and had such fun walking the dunes and picking berries, that I thought I'd do it again. Unfortunately, this year, probably because of the early spring, unexpected freezes and extended summer drought, I couldn't find a single berry.

I left the dunes and continued walking along the shore until I reached a little stream that borders the park. I worked my way up the stream to a shallow, marshy area where I met three unexpected friends. Now, those of you who know me are already guessing that I'm not talking about human friends. I tend to run into more "cool characters" as in the cold-blooded, amphibian type. (It must be the princess in me.) I met three little frogs that let me sit within two feet of them, giving me the perfect opportunity to show off more froggie photos to my long suffering warm-blooded friends.

Lake Huron Shore

My first night out I had planned on staying at Port Crescent State Park, but because of my late start and the busy end of summer weekend, it was full. I checked in at three other campgrounds, but the results were the same---No Vacancy! I didn't really mind; I had a backup plan. 

I stopped just down the road at a great little roadside park and enjoyed a picnic dinner. Sitting at my lakeside table, I watched the sunset while a young couple walked along the shore. After it was dark, I drove onto the expressway and spent a peaceful night at a quiet rest stop just up the road.

A New Adventure

There are some huge changes arriving in my life, most are wonderful and exciting, but some are quite sad. I won't tell you everything right now, because all of the changes won't be happening at the same time. Instead, I will tell you the first item on my agenda is also one of my favorite activities---a road trip! This won't be just any ordinary road trip, it will be as my sister, Kay, calls them, "a Julie Trip". Julie Trips are crazy, outrageous, illogical trips which make no sense to the average traveler. If you just want to get where you're going as quickly as you can you wouldn't want to travel with me. On my road trips I sit behind the steering wheel and let Van make all the decisions. If he notices an interesting road we haven't explored, that seems to be close to the direction we're traveling, I think, 'Why not!' and off we go. If we see a pretty little campsite hours away from where we had planned to stay for the night, we stop. Almost always, after I've set up camp and had time to explore, I've found that these unplanned stops contain unexpected treasures---treasures only found by those who are willing to take the time to explore.

***The picture above, showing me as I check Van's tire pressure, was taken by my sister, Kay, during one of our shared road trips.

Animal Quacker And Friends

It's not unusual to see a lot of animals while traveling the PALM. There are always dogs riding in bike baskets or following behind in trailers. Then there are the little town parks where you'll find ducks and squirrels. In the evenings you might see a raccoon wandering the neighborhoods looking for an easy meal. Seeing fish are always a possibility with all the lakes and rivers we have in Michigan. But never did it occur to me that I'd see sturgeon, or even more surprising, giraffes!

 When I drive the PALM, I like to do a little exploring so I don't arrive at the campsite before the bikes. After leaving Paw Paw, on the way to Battle creek, I stopped at the Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery. They have a great visitor center where you can hike on trails, feed the fish and tour the hatchery. It was on the hatchery tour that I saw the sturgeon. Sturgeon are an awesome fish, from the age of dinosaurs. They can live as long as 150 years and grow up to nine feet long. Once abundant in Michigan's waters, they were nearly wiped out in the early 1900's due to over-fishing, pollution and habitat loss. The Wolf Lake Hatchery is working to increase the sturgeon's population, possibly to their previous levels.

 
Now, how did I get to meet a giraffe on the back roads of Michigan? Last night we stayed at Harper Creek High School in Battle Creek. The high school's next door neighbor is the Binder Park Zoo! After leaving camp this morning, I decided to take a little safari to the zoo's African Exhibit. The exhibit is seen while walking on a mile long, mostly elevated wooden deck trail. There are no cages, so the animals move freely within large enclosures. Visitors are allowed to feed the giraffes special giraffe chow or greens from elevated decks. The giraffe I met was a young one, as interested in his visitors as we were in him.

Pedal Power

     My sister and I have hit the road again, along with over eight hundred other bicyclists and assorted drivers. We're on the PALM (Pedal Across Lower Michigan), an annual bike trip, from Lake Michigan to Lake Huron, across Michigan's lower peninsula. My sister, Kay, is the cyclist and I'm her "SAG" driver. I provide her transportation to and from the ride, a place to sleep inside Van at night, as well as a ready glass of iced tea at the end of her long ride each day. While she's pedaling up and down the hills, I'm exploring the countryside or lounging inside Van.
We camp at high schools and middle schools at night.

Kay starting her sixth PALM.

PALM neighbors Brittany, Dan and Charlotte.

     Today was the first segment of our trip--- from St. Joseph on Michigan's west coast to Paw Paw, about 43 miles. Even though this is just out first day, we've already met a lot of friendly people and enjoyed the comradery of our traveling troop .

Prisoners Of The Pirate King

I was part of a daring rescue mission at P.J.Hoffmaster State Park last week. I was wading in a shallow creek that ran parallel to the shore of Lake Michigan, when I discovered dozens of little babies imprisoned inside of the abandoned castle of an evil pirate king. The little tadpole babies searched frantically for a way to escape, but alas, they were trapped. Despite the extreme danger of becoming a prisoner, myself, I was able to breach the walls of the castle and return the captives to their home in the creek. As I was leaving I heard the familiar twanging call of a Green Frog, thanking me for my effort.

Along The Boardwalk

For the last few days, I've been in Spring Lake, Michigan celebrating my nephew's wedding. In between wedding related activities, I also had the chance to do a little exploring. My hotel was just steps away from the West End Community Boardwalk, along a channel which leads into Lake Michigan. (Yes, I said hotel. Van was rather disappointed with me, but I parked him near the marina, next to a rather large cruiser, so he'd have someone to keep him company.)

On the last morning  of my stay, I walked along the docks and the boardwalk, watching the sunrise as the boats headed out into the lake.