THE GREAT LAKES STATE

After leaving the Dakotas we traveled back to Michigan for the first time since we began full timing ten months earlier. We returned to be with family, enjoy the company of friends, see our doctors, and travel the northlands of Michigan.

We spent two nights on our journey from Bismarck, ND. Upon arriving we did some mooch docking in the parking lot of our former church. The parking lot would be the first and last place we would stay on our visit to Michigan. During our stay in Michigan we also stayed in two Coast to Coast Parks, one church camp, and a National Forest Campground. More about that in a moment.

Certainly, one of the difficulties of full time RVing is being away from family for extended periods of time. Phone calls, text messaging, video calls, and Facebook, makes it a little easier but there is no substitute for being physically together. We were going to spend three nights on the road from North Dakota but that last day I was way past due on loving on my family so we pressed on and arrived a day early surprising our granddaughters. We let the grownups know a couple of ours in advance. The time we spent with our eldest daughter and family was wonderful! Absences prevents you from taking for granted something so precious and valuable.

One of the things that had become apparent was my need to find a new Primary Care Doctor who would be comfortable with treating me while on the road. I had a great PC Doctor but he had cut back his hours significantly and didn’t seem comfortable with long distant Doctoring. Finding a new PC Doctor was not as easy as I expected. I asked family and friends, other Doctors I see, searched the web, and a few other paths to find someone. I got a lot of recommendations but when I would call their offices, they were either not accepting patients or were not doing Teledoc or virtual appointments. Finally, our last week in Michigan I found my new Doctor. He was highly recommended by a friend and met all the things I was looking for. He was even available for an appointment that week so we could meet each other before we hit the road again. So, mission accomplished. We have had one virtual appointment and I am delighted with him.

Our first campground was the Outdoor Adventures’ Lakeshore Resort in Burton Michigan a part of the Coast to Coast network. This is a very large park with all kinds of amenities. It has a beautiful lake and rowboats and kayaks are free as a part of your camping fees. There is a very nice miniature golf course. Two pools for swimming, one of which has a splash pad and a lazy river.  There are several cabins to rent as well. While we were there the park was very busy. We arrived for the weekend and thought things would settle down during the week but that really wasn’t the case. We stayed here for two weeks. While we were at this park our kids came and spent a few days. Both the Michigan and Minnesota crews were there. We had a fine time with all the family. In addition, several members of Mary’s family stopped by. I always enjoy my in-laws. We also had a visit from some Escapee friends. This is a nice park with plenty to do. My only down side to it is that the grounds were pretty dirty. There was way too much litter lying around.

The next stop was the Heartland Woods Resort Park which is also a Coast to Coast Park. This park is near Stockbridge, MI. This is a beautiful wooded campground with nice large campsites. They have a miniature golf course, a couple of lakes, and two identical pools which were side by side (not really sure what that was about). We stayed here two weeks. The granddaughters came and spent a few days with us while we were here and that was a real treat. We enjoyed this park. There were two not so great things about this park. First there were no sewer hookups. They did offer a honey wagon, which we took advantage of. However, I’m pretty certain he didn’t pump out all our tanks. The second thing is the water. The water tasted as though it was flowing through old galvanized pipes. This metallic taste reminded me of the water I used to get at my grandparents when I was a boy. But that leg of the trip down memory lane I could have done without.

Labor Day week we spent at the Campground at Bambi Lake Retreat Center at Roscommon, MI. You can find my review of this campground at compendium.com.  We had a great time with our family and friends.  We always enjoy our times a Bambi Lake.

We spent a week at the Bay View Campground in the Hiawatha National Forest located on the south shore of Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Our campsite was right on the shore of the lake. It was absolutely beautiful! The campground has both reservable and first come first served sites. There are no hookups. But there are clean pit toilets and fresh water is available. This became our home base as we explored the eastern side of the UP. While there we went to Mackinac Island. Did a boat tour of the locks at Sault St. Marie, visited the shipwreck museum on Whitefish Point, saw Tahquamenon Falls, and did a Boat tour of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. As busy as we were, we didn’t even scratch the surface of what there is to do and see in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Michigan touches four of the five Great Lakes. It has more shoreline than any other of the contiguous U.S. states. There are over eleven thousand inland lakes. So Michigan truly is the Great Lakes State!