Sunday, July 12, 2009


Which two? Oh well, I guess any one of them would be fit to live in ... ya think?

A couple of the residents ... wonder if they go with the place?

Being from Washington State, I have had my fill of trees. I know most people love them but my preference is wide open spaces, across water and land; fields of green; panoramic views where you can see forever ... so what did we find?
Phil and I got a good laugh from this sign and had no choice but to drive through.

Our faithful "Carmen" Garmin lamented: "Lost Satellite Reception" many times as we drove south through the tunnel of trees enveloping this section of the highway along 20 miles of coastline.

A peek at someone's little cottage by the lake.

Isn't this a fantastic home? Right off the pages of Architectural Digest. Must be a young family as there are toys in the yard.

This beautiful white-tailed doe was as curious about us as we were about her.
I decided she was part ham as she posed for her close-ups without flinching.
What a special moment!

Elegant, huge and immaculately maintained homes along the shore of Lake Michigan. Hundreds of them ... mile after mile.
We didn't know there was so many people with so much money in Michigan!

Private docks across the street.

Our Lone Ranger parked in front of Penny the Pace and that blue area at the end of the road is Lake Huron. We couldn't get a lakeside spot ... most are full of seasonals. But, this is a great park and had we not needed FHU, they might have found us a waterfront spot with water and electric.

Phil took this picture of Mackinac Bridge from our campground on Lake Huron.

Sunday, July 05, 2009

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY AMERICA!

Yahoo! What a gorgeous morning here in Iron Mountain, MI! The temp was 62 degrees when I got up at 7:30 am and the sun is shining … no breeze and not a cloud in the sky. The forecast is for a high of 79 and in MHO, it doesn’t get much better than this. Fortunately, this campground does not allow fireworks but even so, here at Summer Breeze RV Park all sites were full however, they are beginning to pull out already. The local “amateurs” were here in force and we experienced our first obnoxious smoky campfire right next door that kept us from opening our door and windows on that side of Penny the Pace. When we bought her five years ago, it took many weeks using “Fabreeze” daily to eliminate the smell of campfire smoke inside. I guess once in five years isn’t much to complain about but it was not a pleasant experience. We have gone to the movies and taken one day trip but decided to stay off the road this weekend as a safety measure.

Last week I forgot to mention our Passport America RV park (with no restrictions) called Stop and Dock Marina and RV Park in Two Rivers, WI. I told Chuck I would critique his park in my blog so better late than never. With only 18 (all FHU) sites, it is located on the shore of a small tributary of Lake Michigan and had been a bustling fish camp at one time. Then the level of the lake dropped drastically from a COE project up north over ten years ago. The corp. is trying to correct the problem and the water is rising finally so now it is four feet higher than it has been for years and the owner rented a slip to a big boat for the first time in years while we were there. Needless to say, he was very happy. We had a perfectly clear shot at the southern sky for our Datastorm satellite with little street noise. There are several “seasonals” but they were quiet without a lot of coming and going and believe it or not, no trains within earshot. Aside from the war Phil had to wage against the tiny little black ants that had their hills EVERYWHERE it was a very comfortable home base for us and the price was right for our week on the river.

While in Two Rivers, Phil chartered a fishing boat and went fishing on Lake Michigan. The boat went out at dawn and he was home with his limit by 10:30 am! He had a great time and our freezer is full of Lake Michigan salmon and one good-size trout. It is delicious. We had a knock on the door the night before and Jan invited us next door to visit and meet her husband Richard. We went over to their beautiful Foretravel Coach, had a nice visit and exchanged e-mails. They are on a summer trip from Oklahoma and we gave her this blog address. Jan had found us through the SKPs website where Phil actively comments and makes note of our location. She said she told Richard, “It has to be Phil and Joy right next door!” And it was :)! Great fun and the very first time in five years that it has happened. Oh yes, we gave them a nice chunk of salmon when Phil got home from fishing which according to Jan’s e-mail a day or two later, they really enjoyed.

Until next time,


Sunset from our front window in Two Rivers, WI.

Welcome to Michigan!

Lighthouse along the shore of Lake Michigan in Escanaba, MI.

The charter boat Catfish is ready and waiting in the wee hours of the morning.

A beautiful morning on Lake Michigan

Here is his Phil with his limit which includes, 2 King Salmon, a Silver (aka Coho), a steelhead and a lake trout. He had a great time.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

LAID BACK AND LAZY DAYS IN WISCONSIN

After a rain shower or two and a couple rumbles of thunder last night, there is a beautiful clear blue sky this morning and the temperature at 7 am was 68’f, however it is windy. The man next door left their RV awning down night before last and hasn’t returned. This morning when I got up, there is about an 18-inch tear in one corner and the wind is still blowing. No doubt when he gets up Phil will put the guys awning up as a “good neighbor” gesture. (note: Phil says it is an old tear but put the awning up anyway). We had tape on our old awning for three years before we replaced it after getting caught in a sudden and violent windstorm (we thought maybe the tail of a tornado) with the awning down in North Dakota in 2005.

Our drive from Dodgeville this past Wednesday was uneventful, just the way we like them. The Wisconsin countryside did not disappoint and I took many pictures. The verdant landscape dotted with farms complete with barns and silos is breathtaking in the fact that is goes on and on and on! There are more small evergreen trees (mostly pine) as we travel north but deciduous trees continue to be the norm. Last week I mentioned the lack of orchards but we found several while taking a daytrip north in Door County—mostly apple trees. Many vineyards and wineries are evident as well. Sturgeon Bay was a bit of a disappointment after reading all the hype. The town is torn up with major street and bridge construction and even with the help of the visitor’s center we found it difficult to find a (non-smoking) place to eat and finally after checking out several options ended up at a familiar Applebee’s with a nice location on the bay. I had hoped for a great local seafood place … but that didn’t happen.

Margie and Roger, our friends in Gallatin, TN where we stayed two weeks in April and May have purchased their motorhome; a like-new, 40 ft., 2007 Phaeton QDH with four slides built by Tiffin. It is a beauty and they are thrilled to have it parked in the driveway at long last. Now when the house sells, they will be ready to start the next phase of their lives together in “Phaez2”, the moniker they have given their new home. Margie has faithfully blogged (her blog is linked on my sidebar) every hill and valley over time in the journey towards a new fulltime RV lifestyle and you can check it out here.
Until next time,


Well, we took a picture of Phil putting our 48th state (Iowa) on to complete our state's traveled map but I've lost it! This one will have to do :) Wahoo! We did it!