Petoskey area is still stunningly beautiful! Rolling hills and artistic touristy towns
dot the cliffs and shorelines of the sparkling blue Lake Michigan! We “did” them all – Charlevoix with it’s
long
protecting breakwall with the red lighthouse prominently guarding the
entrance to the harbor; Petoskey with it’s awesome views and historic old homes
and downtown buildings. And don’t
forget Harbor Springs with its ever-changing roster of grand yachts and antique
boats moored almost side by side! We
were told the sleek silver creature belongs
to the Vicari family who own the
Andiamo Italian Restaurants up in the Detroit area! And the antique boat is a restored 1934 craft that is now used
for tours for the restaurant there in the harbor. Our Up North Trip would not be complete without a visit to Soo
Ste Marie in the Upper Peninsula where we spent time with our former
neighbors! That was the rainy day and
the passing freighters were enveloped in a shroud of mist and fog as they
churned on towards the mammoth locks ahead.
We now have fish in the freezer! What an exciting morning – H
hooked a good-sized bass but it
straightened out the hook! Then the
scrappy fish spit it back at him when it finally reached the side of the
boat. Next was a pike – it tore a hole
in H’s antique fish net. It was
followed by a beautifully designed orange and blue Sunfish that was bigger than
most. I followed with a just slightly
smaller Bluegill! We finished up with a
few assorted rock bass! The rest of the
excitement for the day was when B&C finally showed up in their new small
motorhome! They were going to be with
us for 4 nights and we were going to make the most of each day!
First it was up the Lake Michigan coast, along Sturgeon Bay
to
Mackinaw City to play tourist! Bud
needed more stickers of the great lakes and Carol and I just wanted to
shop. Lunch at Scalawags is always a
must and the perfectly done fish and chips hit the hungry spots in our tummies! Down the road to Cheboygan - the Sunrise
Side of the Mitten of Michigan and out to the harbor to refresh our memories
and to see if we could still see Bois Blanc Island out in the distance. A reminiscing stop at the eternal JUNK store
confirmed our guess that the mess had piled up higher than on our last visit a
year ago! Our 2nd day was
back to Petoskey to check out the enormous hardware store in downtown and to
stroll out on the breakwall with the rest of the tourists who were in town that
day. The Polish Kitchen finished up
that trip! This time H and I split a
Pork Cutlet Sandwich and a
plate of 6 Pierogis – perfect! Carol had to have help but her plate of the
Polish Sampler was cleaned up by the time we left. Our last day was the best – we slid the Tracker back into the
clear water of Pickerel Lake and we headed to Crooked Lake to show B&C the
beautifully crafted two masted sailboat we had seen on our previous rides. Thru the locks and on we cruised along the
winding river called CROOKED! Out on
Burt Lake the water was still calm and we headed north to Maple Bay so H could
show them the State Forest Launch and Campground where we had put the boat in
the week before. On our way back, Carol
even spotted an eagle, soaring majestically overhead!
We waved B&C Goodbye and wished them safe travels and
after sitting for a while, H couldn’t sit any longer so off we went! It was a windy day and he wanted to see if
any tiny sailors were bouncing around the harbor in Harbor Springs.
SPMB!!! Instead, we found the
198-foot, MEGA YACHT – “ROCK IT” owned by
the man known as JIMMY JOHN! This $85 MILLION yacht had been in harbor
for almost a week and as we walked out on the pier to join the other gawkers –
she was unhooked from her moorings and she powerfully backed out into the bay. Her mammoth size made the 5 other mega
yachts still in harbor look like run abouts!
Now it’s our turn to move on – on down the state to North
Higgins Lake State Park - just south of Grayling. Michigan State Parks are notorious for being very popular and
thus – crowded. While the sites in this
park were ample, most were filled to the brim with
assorted RV’s AND pop up
shelters AND tents AND boats on trailers.
Of course there was also the assortment of bikes ranging from full size
down to tiny ones, still with training wheels!
PLUS -cars AND trucks either parked very near or actually ON the narrow
road’s edge – which can make it difficult to maneuver a big tan train back into
the assigned site - - IN THE RAIN. As
we backed in, there was just a mild drizzle but it quickly turned to a deluge as
soon as we got the cover on the boat!
Our last days out were a mix of rain and clouds so the deep
blue of the 100 ft depths of this big lake were not on display very often. On our boat rides we did cross over the 90
and 100 ft areas and when the sun was peeking thru – the waters were the deep
magnificent turquoise that we remembered, and the shallows were the still the
opaque light blue shimmering reflections on the sandy bottom – but that was a
rare sighting on this visit!
We added one more fish to the freezer and then
packed to head home. Time to tend to
the gardens and get the grass mowed.
Tomatoes should be coming on and who knows how big the zucchini are!!
