Niagara Falls

From Jose

From Bowling Green we continued eastward in the direction of Cleveland. I did not want to go though the big city so we bypassed it to the south. Even then we encountered lots of traffic and red lights. Aaaahhhhh! After a few forgettable days we ended in the city of Erie, Pennsylvania, in a campground called Sara's Campground. I liked this one a lot, not only because it is named after my awesome friend Sarah. There were bike trails galore, including one that goes out on a peninsula on Lake Erie. The place was peaceful and quiet with lots of historical markers explaining the history of the area.  We stayed two nights there.

Another night we stayed in Fredonia, NY. This Fredonia is a bit bigger and more modern than Fredonia, AZ.

Our next stop was East Aurora, NY. The town is very welcoming, clean, happy. We met Diane's family, Betsy Ohler, and husband Rick. Within seconds of meeting them I felt like I had known them for a long time and it did not matter whose family they technically were. They are my friends. They have a daughter named Mariah, a granddaughter named Peyton and a Golden Retriever named Pearl, who wanted to play with everyone human or canine but never gathered enough courage to come in the rv. Rick writes a column for a local newspaper and compiled some of them into a book. They took us to see some of the highlights of East Aurora. One of my favorite was the Roycroft campus. From Wikipedia :"Roycroft was a reformist community of craft workers and artists which formed part of the Arts and Crafts movement in the USA. Elbert Hubbard founded the community in 1895 in the village of East Aurora, Erie County, New York, near Buffalo. Participants were known as Roycrofters. The work and philosophy of the group, often referred to as the Roycroft movement, had a strong influence on the development of American architecture and design in the early 20th century." The place and everything in it is exquisite.

We also went to Vidler's 5 & 10, an original, covering two stories and four connected buildings. I could spend many days going through everything in that store. Check out their website here or go to:

http://www.vidlers5and10.com/

On our last day in East Aurora Betsy took us to Knox Park, where we had a great hike in the country and all the dogs walked off leash. The weather was perfect.

We left East Aurora sad to have to leave behind such good friends and such a cool town.   

Our next stop was Niagara Falls, one of the few things I *had* to do during the trip. We decided to take a guided tour first to learn what interests us and then return later to any sights that required a more detailed visit. The tour included a trip on the Maid of the Mist and tickets to Cave of the Winds. Like Grand Canyon or a Space Shuttle launch, Niagara Falls cannot be explained in words.  You have to see it, hear it, feel it. The Maid of the Mist took us to the base of both the American and Canadian Falls. Cave of the winds was originally an actual cave behind the falls. It collapsed in the 20s but the tour is now on some boardwalks at the bottom of the American Falls. The rumbling noise, wind, water, at the bottom of the falls was pretty impressive. Oh, yes. We were issued ponchos to go on each of these attractions.

The next day we returned to Goat Island to take in the magnitude of Niagara Falls at our own pace. We spent more time at Goat Island as well as Luna Island and Bridal Veil Falls, a subset of the American Falls. So much to see.

Then we spent four nights in a cute little campground East of
Niagara Falls. I am learning that  spending only one night in each place is not enough, it's too rushed. We arrive, check in and hook up, have dinner, feed the dogs and it's time for bed. Then next day feed the dogs, unhook and try to beat check out time. No time for blogging, laundry, relaxing, etc. So now whenever possible I try to drive longer, then stay at least two nights in each place. It won't affect our overall schedule.

Stay tuned

Houghton Lake, Grand Rapids, Toledo, Bowling Green

From Jose

After Traverse City, we went to Houghton Lake, Michigan. We needed to go there to have some work done in the RV. The holding tank sensors keep giving the wrong reading. They say the holding tanks are full when I know that is not true. This is a common problem with RV holding thanks. I wanted to replace the sensors. But the RV repair place told me it would take over a week to get the parts and over $300 to do the work. So I decided this is not *that* important. I usually have a pretty good idea how full the holding tanks are.

Our next stop was Grand Rapids but that was a little further than what I wanted to drive in one day so we stopped for the night in a little town named Paris, complete with a 18ft tall Eiffel Tower that the local High School welding class built as a project. Adjacent to the campground is an old fish hatchery that the town has converted into a park and museum.  The ponds and some fish are still there as well as numerous duck and geese. They have some machines where for a quarter you get a handful of fish food or bird food.  We spent most of our laundry quarters there, the birds and the fish were very thankful.

From there we went to Grand Rapids, Michigan. My niece Gladys lives there, my only niece I had not met yet. I did get to meet Gladys and her youngest son Victor. Her husband Lennie and oldest son Vinnie were out of town at a Raiders football game. Like her siblings, Gladys is super nice.  Very quickly I felt like I had known her all her life. She is a RN. Victor is very talented and has a great imagination. He will surely go far.

We all went to Fredrick Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park.  Fredrick Meijer founded a chain of department superstores along the lines of Walmart. He created the gardens and park to give something back to the community. The iconic sculpture in the park is a 24 ft tall horse based on sketches by Michelangelo. There is also an interactive children's learning Park. This, of course, was my favorite.

The next day Gladys' husband Lennie and oldest son got back from their football trip (Raiders lost) and we got to meet them too. We all went to dinner at Red Robin and talked into the night. It's good to know I have such great family in other parts of the US.

In Grand Rapids we had an unexpected and unwanted adventure. One morning I got up to go to the bathroom at about 5am and when I stepped down the floor was wet. I stepped in a different spot and it was wet. I turned on the light to see the whole floor was flooded. Turns out a water valve stayed open and flooded the rv. We spent the next day removing the water, getting everything off the floor, etc. We rented a rug shampooer (from the Meijer superstore) and tried to vacuum up as much water as possible. I hope it will not get too smelly in the weeks ahead.

From Grand Rapids we went to Toledo, Ohio. Does anybody remember a song by John Denver, "Saturday night in Toledo, Ohio"?  Well... We needed to go to Toledo to buy dog food. At the beginning of this trip I decided to buy the dogfood at Costco because it is fairly good, fairly inexpensive, and available in every state of the country. But to my surprise the Costco in Michigan did not carry the canned food. I called the Costco call center and, believe it or not, got a very good agent (not that I have anything against call center agents, some are very good. Right, Katie? ). She searched the stores along our route and found out the store in Toledo had 74 cases of canned dogfood. So off we went.  But I found Toledo to be very busy, crowded, not my kind of town, so after getting the dogfood we kept on going and ended up in Bowling Green, Ohio. We stayed in a cute campground called Fire Lake Camper Park surrounded by cornfields. It consists of a 8-acre lake with campsites all around it. Today we rented a paddleboat and took a spin on the lake. The dogs came too and they enjoyed it a lot. Diane made me watch "Children of the Corn", which has some references to a lake of fire. Hmmm.

The next major stop is Niagara Falls. We'll be there in a few days.

Stay tuned

Michigan lakes are ALL SUPERIOR!

As we got closer to Michigan and began talking to friends from there, we learned about the mitten symbol that is used by most Michigan folks to mark which part of the state they're from.  Showing an outward open palm and pointing to the lower thumb joint  indicates that you are from Detroit; the lifeline underneath the baby finger is where Grand Rapids sits...above the middle finger is the Mackinac bridge..., and so on and so forth.   Pretty clever, I think!  The mitten is known as the lower peninsula and residents are called trolls, while in the upper peninsula north of Mackinac Island, they are called U-pers.   It is very fascinating and kinda fun; they sell a bumper sticker of an upright hand with a perpendicular sideways hand symbolizing the lower and upper peninsulas that Is sort of a stretch of the imagination, in my opinion.  I don't think that the UP looks like a mitten or even a hand , but since Michigan rocks in so many ways it's all good.

Why does Michigan rock, you ask? For one thing, the Great Lakes are here, there and everywhere!   The hues of the water are Caribbean blue and extremely clean and clear.  Superior is huge and often tumultuous like the ocean and is renowned for sudden changing currents resulting in shipwrecks throughout the area's maritime history.  Remember the song "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot?   Michigan and Huron are intersected by the 5-mile Mackinac Bridge which we were fortunate to view from below on the ferry then crossing it in the RV toward the quaint lakeside towns of Harbor Springs, Petoskey & Charlevoix.

It takes 8 years to paint the bridge;
and, when it's finished, they start
all over again!

Then there are the bike paths and harbor towns. You could spend a week shopping and eating around the streets of the triad, but we were more excited to get to Traverse City to meet family of Jose's for the first time. And...the ambitious and spontaneous Aries in me had a brilliant idea to bike a 26-mile trail from the first town to the third; she was ready to go, go, go!   Thankfully, that gung-ho gal is often somewhat ambiguous, and her indecisiveness led to biking a shorter distance of the second half - still 16 miles which she/I are damned proud of!  So long story short, the call of the trail and TC was louder than that of the shops...

Homemade pies and fudge are more reasons why this state rocks.   As soon as we left Montana,  Starbucks stores became fewer and farther between which has been sad but actually a good thing.  It provided the impetus to get moving and eat healthier.  All was going quite well; my pants were snapping more easily, my mood improved, I was on the upswing.  That was up until...the Murdick's fudge incident.   One large box; five slabs of buttery, sugary, granular deliciousness: maple pecan, chocolate cherry, peanut butter, chocolate toffee and chocolate espresso.  It was too sweet for Jose and he probably would have taken a month to eat it all.  So the fudge thought it was safe and sound individually wrapped in delicate tissue and nestled in its beautifully decorated box.  Little did it know that once the box was opened and the sweet, lingering scents wafted together to invade my senses, it had little chance of lasting 24 hours.  The battle lasted about 4 days as Jose feebly chunked away at one flavor with the mini plastic knife provided (what are they joking?) while I overwhelmed and devastated the box, slicing chunks off of all 5 at least twice a day.   I couldn't stand the box just sitting there without sampling throughout the day until I ultimately polished off its bulk.  I will never forget you,  Murdick's fudge - ever.

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Ay Bendito! So much to say...

Aerial lift bridge in Duluth, MN that we almost got caught on in the middle of crossing when a huge barge was about to go under.  We were napping and the warning horn for the bridge shot us from deep sleeps.
Saw a sand hill crane in Wisconsin before crossing into Michigan visitor center – humongous birds that lady said have just started migrating to MI.  He looked like Kevin the bird in the Pixar movie UP; if you haven’t seen that movie, the first 15 minutes has got to be one of the most heartwarming I've ever seen, and I recommend it highly.

Jose tested me on the names of the Great Lakes – I did not pass!  They are Superior, Michigan, Ontario, Huron & Erie (HOMES for future reference!).

We are really starting to make good use of the bikes more and more.  I went through a down period in Minnesota (poor Jose), hence the little communication from me.  However, a great friend talked some sense into me, and it seems I’ve bounced back a bit.  I’ve started to eat healthier and less – thankfully with fewer and fewer Starbucks in the Central and Eastern time zones, the high-cal coffees and the sweet treats that usually accompany them have been eliminated from my diet at the moment.  Adding the biking every day is also improving my outlook.

Lake Superior in Petoskey

Seeing Lake Superior for the first time is simply amazing; every turn you take along the north shore is just as breathtaking as the one before.  I can’t even tell you how many times Jose and I burst into singing Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald!  We drove about halfway up the north shore of Lake Superior and stopped at Gooseberry Falls and then dinner at Betty’s Pies!

Awaiting Mackinac Island ferry!

Biking Mackinac Island

Mackinac Island was next on our list – we stayed a couple of nights in St. Ignace, a neat little town where the ferries depart.  We brought our bikes over on the ferry and biked the 8-miles around the entire island.  One thing you have to kind of get over is the odor and sight of the horse manure all over the roads mixed with the smell of fudge – once you leave the main street though, you leave the odors behind.  There are no vehicles allowed and all the houses are old Victorian – simply a gorgeous old town – a step back in time.  It’s actually also famous not only for it’s delightful fudge but also the somewhat sappy movie called Somewhere In Time, starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeves in their younger days.  On a food note, I thought it was kind of weird that there was little fish on the restaurant menus - I guess the lake atmosphere is more conducive to hamburgers and hot dogs compared to the ocean islands of New England where all kinds of seafood are available.  We did have an excellent lightly battered and fried white fish and chips on the mainland - a tasty treat.

Now that we’re in the Eastern Time zone, I am more and more anxious to get to RI to see my family.  Only New York, Maine and New Hampshire remain, and we’re still on target to arrive in MA/RI in very early October.  The other cool thing is that while all the leaf peeper traffic will be traveling north up route 1 to see the foliage, we’ll have already seen it and will have smooth sailing into MA/RI!

I love Michigan!!  The lakes are spectacular, and the towns are all very quaint so far.  There is an awesome 26-mile bike path called the Little Traverse Wheelway that runs from Harbor Springs through Petoskey to Charlevoix.  I was planning to split up the ride, but the 8-mile ride around the Island kind of exhausted me, so I skipped the shorter leg.  I did take some shorter rides through Petoskey State Park where we camped overnight; it is right on Lake Michigan.  When you’re on the beach, the towns of Petoskey and Harbor Springs are at either side of you encircling you in a semi-circle.  It’s just so beautiful.  I REALLY love this area!

The next day, we drove to Petoskey, ate at a trendy café called Toast and Roast or Roast and Toast; I can’t remember!  Then we did a quick run through of a small Farmer’s Market we happened upon.  Back at the RV, we unhooked my bike and I took off for the 16 mile trek to Charlevoix.  Jose and the pups drove the highway and met me at the end of the trail.  It was a nice challenge for me…

Charlevoix

Afterward, we walked with the dogs through Charlevoix and down by the boats.  The marina has one of those cool water fountains that you can play in, but no dogs allowed.  So we strolled on by toward a couple of beautifully landscaped ponds holding black trout.  Jose decided to sit by one with Matilda, but she decided to make her rules and simply walked into the pond before Jose even realized what was happening!  The poor fish had no idea what entered their tranquil waters, but she was happy, and we were mortified yet relieved that no one else witnessed it!  That’s Matilda in a nutshell!

Matilda dreaming of fish and the Great Lakes

Jose’s been n touch with his niece, Miriam, in Traverse City, and we’re going to get to see her perform this weekend!  We're also planning to connect with his nephew, Cristobal Jose (not to be confused with Cristobal Enrique, his brother!), and his sister-in-law, Gladys.  Stay tuned for our next adventure!

Goodbye Traverse City :-(

From Jose

We left Traverse City with heavy hearts. Both Diane and I liked this town a lot, the outdoors, the nightlife, the water, the shopping. But most of all I miss the awesome, wonderful family we got to spend time with; each one a very special person on their own, a super special family. So long Gladys, Cris, Beth, Miriam, Luna, Gideon, Vida, Josh. I'll be back.

I keep forgetting to mention that I have a gps tracker on.  To see where I am (updated every 24 hours), click here or go to:

http://www.greenalp.com/RealtimeTracker/index.php?viewuser=rocketjose

On a previous trip I had one of these updating every minute but it brought my phone to its knees and I spent more time babysitting it than enjoying the trip. I hope 24 hours will be sufficient. Let me know what you think.

Stay tuned