Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Sand Dunes and the Muskegon River
In the beginning of the summer of 2008, we decided that our “weekend” trips would start on Monday and end on a Thursday or Friday because the campgrounds would not be so busy. Here it is - July and we left for the Silver Lake Sand Dunes State Park on Lake Michigan, near Hart on SATURDAY July 12th! Go figure! The theory is that there is ALWAYS more hill climbing fun when there are more trucks, dune buggies, ATV’s, dirt bikes and funny cars to watch and to be watched! Even at $4 a gallon for gas there were plenty of folks who thought the same - even though a storm had just passed thru!
Silver Lake Dunes is a state park that allows off road licensed vehicles to drive on the acres and acres of beautiful shifting sand dunes that sit on the shores of Lake Michigan. Harry’s toy of choice is his 1988 Suzuki Samurai, which when the tires are aired down to between 5 and 7 lbs, has been known to climb even the highest hill! On Saturday afternoon tho, he did not even air the tires down at all and the Zuki had no problem at all, crawling over the dunes between the entrance of the dunes and mile long beach that was being pounded by the angry looking surf. (Were we in Michigan or Texas?)
We camped Saturday night in a cozy little city campground in Hart and put up the tent on the prettiest spot in the place! But it was also the one that caught all the wind that was hurling itself across the lake. Cooking supper was a real feat and sitting out to watch the coral sunset didn’t happen either. Sunday after we “played” on the dunes, we drove up thru tourist busy Pentwater to make sure nothing had changed since our last visit. From Hart we moved the tent down to the Newaygo county campground park that sits right on the rocky shoreline of the Muskegon River.
By 9:30am Monday morning, our little orange kayaks were floating downstream, just below the Croton dam on the river. The water was still high enough that the rapids and shallows were covered up with fast moving tea colored water so our sturdy little crafts did not scrape bottom as often! The sky was deep blue and the trees hung over the river to provide refreshing shade when the sun got high and hot. And the sights we were shown: a kazillion sun bathing turtles, almost as many fish, Kingfishers darting from one side of the river to the other, a mother duck protecting her sleeping ducklings on a log, Blue Herons with raucous screams when we interrupted their silent fishing, cliff swallows darting in and out of their nesting holes in the side of the sandy cliffs high above the water, a mother deer and her 2 twin fawns that scrambled up that sandy cliff when we surprised her as we came around the rivers curve, and a magnificent Bald Eagle that cruised above us following the river up stream! Too bad it is not wise to take a camera with you in a kayak on a fast moving river or this blog entry would be full of wildlife photos instead of the sand dune shots!
We showered our pink sun burned bodies and piled all our gear into the van and Zuki and headed for home with a stop at Wampler’s Lake to visit with Ron and Nancy to share vacation stories.
Keep watching! Our next trip will be soon and will begin on a Sunday or Monday!! Wish you could join us!
Silver Lake Dunes is a state park that allows off road licensed vehicles to drive on the acres and acres of beautiful shifting sand dunes that sit on the shores of Lake Michigan. Harry’s toy of choice is his 1988 Suzuki Samurai, which when the tires are aired down to between 5 and 7 lbs, has been known to climb even the highest hill! On Saturday afternoon tho, he did not even air the tires down at all and the Zuki had no problem at all, crawling over the dunes between the entrance of the dunes and mile long beach that was being pounded by the angry looking surf. (Were we in Michigan or Texas?)
We camped Saturday night in a cozy little city campground in Hart and put up the tent on the prettiest spot in the place! But it was also the one that caught all the wind that was hurling itself across the lake. Cooking supper was a real feat and sitting out to watch the coral sunset didn’t happen either. Sunday after we “played” on the dunes, we drove up thru tourist busy Pentwater to make sure nothing had changed since our last visit. From Hart we moved the tent down to the Newaygo county campground park that sits right on the rocky shoreline of the Muskegon River.
By 9:30am Monday morning, our little orange kayaks were floating downstream, just below the Croton dam on the river. The water was still high enough that the rapids and shallows were covered up with fast moving tea colored water so our sturdy little crafts did not scrape bottom as often! The sky was deep blue and the trees hung over the river to provide refreshing shade when the sun got high and hot. And the sights we were shown: a kazillion sun bathing turtles, almost as many fish, Kingfishers darting from one side of the river to the other, a mother duck protecting her sleeping ducklings on a log, Blue Herons with raucous screams when we interrupted their silent fishing, cliff swallows darting in and out of their nesting holes in the side of the sandy cliffs high above the water, a mother deer and her 2 twin fawns that scrambled up that sandy cliff when we surprised her as we came around the rivers curve, and a magnificent Bald Eagle that cruised above us following the river up stream! Too bad it is not wise to take a camera with you in a kayak on a fast moving river or this blog entry would be full of wildlife photos instead of the sand dune shots!
We showered our pink sun burned bodies and piled all our gear into the van and Zuki and headed for home with a stop at Wampler’s Lake to visit with Ron and Nancy to share vacation stories.
Keep watching! Our next trip will be soon and will begin on a Sunday or Monday!! Wish you could join us!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Hot muggy Florida
It’s always more fun to write a blog AS YOU TRAVEL, but the trip to Florida was not all fun and games. As stated in our previous blog for our West Virginia motorcycle trip, we came home on Saturday and then turned around and left for Del Ray Beach, Florida on Tuesday to tend to the estate of Harry’s Aunt Ruth who had passed away.
We arrived in Del Ray on Thursday and spent the next week, cleaning up, clearing out and conducting an Estate Sale, which we ran from Monday thru Friday. What did not sell was donated to the Battered Woman’s Shelter Thrift Shop and the local Food Kitchen. There are lots of stories that could be told about the experience but we will NOT get into that here!!
Sunday, June 23rd we took the day off and headed down to the Keys in hopes of getting in some sight seeing and snorkeling. We made it as far south as Bahia Honda State Park and snorkeled in both the Gulf and the Atlantic but much to our surprise- the water was as warm as bathwater! Of course the air temperature was in the high 90’s! The thermometer on the van read 98 degrees at one point! We stopped at Long Key State Park on our way back north for a picnic lunch in the shade. The GPS, Lula, advised us to get off the turnpike and take route 95, which took us right next to Miami and Fort Lauderdale. And as it had happened all week – there was another heavy downpour of rain!
That Monday the 24th we finished up the legal business with the attorney and the funeral home and delivered the last of the food items to the local Food Kitchen and loaded the van.
Tuesday we pulled out of the driveway for the last time and then headed northwest to pay our respects at the cemetery where Harry’s Uncle Irv and Aunt Ruth are now both buried. Harry cannot drive thru south Florida without checking on Lake Okeechobee, so around it we went and checked on the campgrounds that had been damaged by storms 3 years ago. One looks just like it did 2 years ago! Exhausted, we parked the overburdened van in Ocala and had a wonderful, but way too short visit with my sister Sharon and her husband Dick. We even got to eat at my favorite restaurant - - Stumpknockers!
Wednesday we were up early again but our fist stop was at Ichetucknee Springs State Park and snorkeled in 2 small but beautiful fresh water springs. The one spring (called the Blue Hole) was said to be 50 ft deep. We could not see the bottom of the craggy deep blue hole in the floor of the spring! From there it was pedal to the metal heading north. The pedal was not always down tho – especially thru Atlanta Georgia at 5pm and then the heavy traffic and road construction just north of Lexington Kentucky.
We are home safely. The van is unloaded and we are getting our strength back. Please keep checking this blog, as we WILL be on the road again. Just not in the next 2 weeks!
We arrived in Del Ray on Thursday and spent the next week, cleaning up, clearing out and conducting an Estate Sale, which we ran from Monday thru Friday. What did not sell was donated to the Battered Woman’s Shelter Thrift Shop and the local Food Kitchen. There are lots of stories that could be told about the experience but we will NOT get into that here!!
Sunday, June 23rd we took the day off and headed down to the Keys in hopes of getting in some sight seeing and snorkeling. We made it as far south as Bahia Honda State Park and snorkeled in both the Gulf and the Atlantic but much to our surprise- the water was as warm as bathwater! Of course the air temperature was in the high 90’s! The thermometer on the van read 98 degrees at one point! We stopped at Long Key State Park on our way back north for a picnic lunch in the shade. The GPS, Lula, advised us to get off the turnpike and take route 95, which took us right next to Miami and Fort Lauderdale. And as it had happened all week – there was another heavy downpour of rain!
That Monday the 24th we finished up the legal business with the attorney and the funeral home and delivered the last of the food items to the local Food Kitchen and loaded the van.
Tuesday we pulled out of the driveway for the last time and then headed northwest to pay our respects at the cemetery where Harry’s Uncle Irv and Aunt Ruth are now both buried. Harry cannot drive thru south Florida without checking on Lake Okeechobee, so around it we went and checked on the campgrounds that had been damaged by storms 3 years ago. One looks just like it did 2 years ago! Exhausted, we parked the overburdened van in Ocala and had a wonderful, but way too short visit with my sister Sharon and her husband Dick. We even got to eat at my favorite restaurant - - Stumpknockers!
Wednesday we were up early again but our fist stop was at Ichetucknee Springs State Park and snorkeled in 2 small but beautiful fresh water springs. The one spring (called the Blue Hole) was said to be 50 ft deep. We could not see the bottom of the craggy deep blue hole in the floor of the spring! From there it was pedal to the metal heading north. The pedal was not always down tho – especially thru Atlanta Georgia at 5pm and then the heavy traffic and road construction just north of Lexington Kentucky.
We are home safely. The van is unloaded and we are getting our strength back. Please keep checking this blog, as we WILL be on the road again. Just not in the next 2 weeks!
Saturday, June 21, 2008
HAVE BIKE WILL TRAVEL, TOO
Bikes or Trailers-they both travel well! Now, the date on this blog entry says June 21st but the actual date of our last trip was the end of May. Now let me explain-
The week after Memorial Day, we climbed on the bike for it’s turn at running the roads and the trailer stayed home for a while. We were going to retrace our tire tracks from a trip we made years ago on Harry’s 750 Yamaha when we used to carry everything needed in a rolled up orange bundle on the back of the bike. Times have changed. The big red bike that we ride now is a 1984 Yamaha Venture and has carried us across the United States from Maine to California and from Florida to the states of Washington and Oregon. On a normal bike trip we usually pull a trailer with all our camping equipment in it but the plans for this short weekend trip was to motel it.
We headed southeast across Ohio on a pretty spring morning but as we crossed into West Virginia the temperatures began to climb, just as we climbed the rolling green lush hills of coal country. We revisited the areas of Gauley Bridge and took many new pretty pictures of the rapids, the mill and lake nestled below the historic old town. We took refuge in the quaint old lodge at Hawks Nest State Park and enjoyed the view looking down into the gorge as we ate our dinner in the restaurant there. Friday morning we explored the New River Gorge area that now has a one way, one lane, narrow, blacktopped, road that winds back and forth like an extremely wide piece of rick rack, down to the bottom of the gorge, across the new low level bridge at the bottom and zig zagged back to the top again before crossing over “THE BRIDGE”. The New River Bridge was built in 1977, is 3030 ft long and is 876 ft above the New River. It is the largest steel span and the second largest bridge in the United States. In October there is a festival and we are told there are those folks who are brave enough or dumb enough to bungee or parachute from the bridge.
We continued south to Beckley in hopes of finding a route to Matawan, the site of the coal miner’s massacre back in 1920. Harry and the guys had been down in the area a few years back, riding their 3 wheelers and quads and found the town. This day it was my turn for a history lesson. We found a bench by the railroad tracks and a plaque with a recorded message that told of the terrible fight that day and of all the people that were killed. There on the wall were also 3 bullet holes from that attack.
By now the temperatures were steaming in the high 90’s and we crossed into Kentucky looking for a cool place to park the bike for the night. The young lady at the motel where we stayed said that she saw 101 on a meter. Way too hot for 2 old people on a motorcycle. The weather forecast that night projected more of the same for the entire next week. We headed for home the next day, cutting our trip short a day or two.
Unfortunately, when we arrived home there was a message on our answering machine that Harry’s Aunt down in Del Ray Beach Florida had passed away. Two days later we were on our way south again, but this trip will not be so much fun.
The week after Memorial Day, we climbed on the bike for it’s turn at running the roads and the trailer stayed home for a while. We were going to retrace our tire tracks from a trip we made years ago on Harry’s 750 Yamaha when we used to carry everything needed in a rolled up orange bundle on the back of the bike. Times have changed. The big red bike that we ride now is a 1984 Yamaha Venture and has carried us across the United States from Maine to California and from Florida to the states of Washington and Oregon. On a normal bike trip we usually pull a trailer with all our camping equipment in it but the plans for this short weekend trip was to motel it.
We headed southeast across Ohio on a pretty spring morning but as we crossed into West Virginia the temperatures began to climb, just as we climbed the rolling green lush hills of coal country. We revisited the areas of Gauley Bridge and took many new pretty pictures of the rapids, the mill and lake nestled below the historic old town. We took refuge in the quaint old lodge at Hawks Nest State Park and enjoyed the view looking down into the gorge as we ate our dinner in the restaurant there. Friday morning we explored the New River Gorge area that now has a one way, one lane, narrow, blacktopped, road that winds back and forth like an extremely wide piece of rick rack, down to the bottom of the gorge, across the new low level bridge at the bottom and zig zagged back to the top again before crossing over “THE BRIDGE”. The New River Bridge was built in 1977, is 3030 ft long and is 876 ft above the New River. It is the largest steel span and the second largest bridge in the United States. In October there is a festival and we are told there are those folks who are brave enough or dumb enough to bungee or parachute from the bridge.
We continued south to Beckley in hopes of finding a route to Matawan, the site of the coal miner’s massacre back in 1920. Harry and the guys had been down in the area a few years back, riding their 3 wheelers and quads and found the town. This day it was my turn for a history lesson. We found a bench by the railroad tracks and a plaque with a recorded message that told of the terrible fight that day and of all the people that were killed. There on the wall were also 3 bullet holes from that attack.
By now the temperatures were steaming in the high 90’s and we crossed into Kentucky looking for a cool place to park the bike for the night. The young lady at the motel where we stayed said that she saw 101 on a meter. Way too hot for 2 old people on a motorcycle. The weather forecast that night projected more of the same for the entire next week. We headed for home the next day, cutting our trip short a day or two.
Unfortunately, when we arrived home there was a message on our answering machine that Harry’s Aunt down in Del Ray Beach Florida had passed away. Two days later we were on our way south again, but this trip will not be so much fun.
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