A Very Special Travel Day - (Silver Lake, MI)

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!  :)

Linda called her Mom this morning, and I did a Skype call to mine a little after that.  She really likes that Skype thing.  :)

But, not only was it Mother's Day, it was also Linda's Dad's birthday, may he rest in peace.  We still miss you, Van.

AND it was on this date, May 9th, five years ago, that we moved into our fifth wheel and became full-timers.  Yep, it's been five years and we still can't believe it!  When we started, we were pretty dedicated to doing three years.  Well, that came and went in a flash, and here we are with no end to this lifestyle in sight.  :)

So, today was a very, very, very special day for us.  :)

 

After our "Mom" calls, I continued to try to figure out where we were going and what route we were going to take today.  After running though several scenarios, noting that we would have freezing temperatures overnight, we finally ruled out boondocking.  And I couldn't get hold of anyone at the state parks I called to ask questions about whether they are still on off-season rates, whether there is a park entrance fee for each night in addition to the camping fee, site sizes, big rig friendliness, etc. 

Ultimately, we decided to just go to an RV resort that has "pre-season" rates of $25 a night with full hook-ups.  We would then explore some state park options from there.  :)

It was about 11:00 when we finally made our decision.  Fortunately, it was a bright sunny day, although the temps never got out of the lower 50s.

We got packed up and disconnected and I even checked the lugnuts on the trailer tires with my torque wrench.  It's always a good idea to check those, especially in the days after the tires have been removed and put back on.

We were on the road by noon with 184 miles to go to our destination.

Okay, I have to ask.  Does anyone else do this?

As I'm driving I watch my trip odometer.  When I got to 18 miles, I said to myself "A tenth of the way there".  When I got to 60 miles "A third of the way there".  Ninety miles "Half way there".  Etc., etc.  Does anyone else break their trips down into fractions and percentages to help get through a long day of driving with these little mini-goals?  :)

Anyway, we took  Indiana 4 to Indiana 13 north into Michigan.  Indiana 13 turned into U.S. 131 in Michigan and we followed that all the way to Grand Rapids.  After the town of Three Rivers just into Michigan, we were on four-lane roads almost all the rest of the way.

We picked up I-96 west toward Lake Michigan and then took U.S. 31 north to the Mears exit.  Everything was smooth sailing today .... except the last mile or so of road between Mears and our destination was torn up and is under construction.  With it being Sunday, there were no workers and no delays, but it might be interesting getting out of here.

We arrived at the Silver Creek RV Resort around 3:30.  I found it via RVParkReviews.com where it got great reviews.  And when I saw the $25 rate good through June 3 (the peak season rate is $40 - $50), it went up high on our selection list even though it's not exactly what we prefer in the way of parking.

We paid for one night and got set up in Site 40.

There is almost no one else here.  They gave us a site on the end of a row, so we have a big yard and no neighbors on our door side with a wooded area across the road.

The sites are huge, a combination of back-ins and pull-throughs, with full hook-ups and 50-amps.  It doesn't have the "it" factor, but for an RV park, it is very nice and the sites are well spaced.

If they had a large hall for seminars and meals, we'd definitely consider this place for a Rally.  :)

Told ya nobody is here.  :)  The rigs you see in the background in the distance are seasonals.  And there is another big section in the back.  Seasonal sites are for seven months - April through October - and the cost is $2,800 ($400 a month), plus metered electric.

Once we got the utilities hooked up and all settled in, we decided to just stay here a couple more nights.  With our run from Louisville and all the stowing and unstowing of stuff just about every day while in Elkhart/Goshen, we were ready to just unpack everything and sit for a few days.

Though the address is Mears, the closest little town is Silver Lake and it's a small, touristy place whose draw is the large sand dunes that separate Silver Lake from Lake Michigan.  Silver Lake State Park includes several tracts and there is an off-road vehicle area for riding through a section of the dunes.  But, the town is almost dead right now.  Apparently, the season doesn't really get going until Memorial Day weekend.

We struggled to find anything open to get something to eat.  Eventually, we found Bubba-Qs, where we got some BBQ and ice cream.  :)

After our fine dining, we drove on through town and finally ended up at the Little Sable Point Lighthouse.

We walked over the dunes from the parking area to the lighthouse, one of the tallest working lighthouses on Lake Michigan.

Of course, I manuevered around to get various angles of the structure.

In this shot, you can barely see Linda in white at the base of the lighthouse.

Cool.

We would have loved to have gone up in it, but it is still off-season around here, and the lighthouse tours don't begin until June.

After filling up my shoes with sand and taking all the pictures I wanted, we went back to the rig and relaxed.  However, as the sun started to set, it looked like it was going to be a pretty sunset.

I wanted to get out on the tall dunes, but gates accessing the pedestrian parking were closed.  We'll have to figure that out another day.

We went to a small beach area, but the actual beach was cut off by a channel and it was too cold to wade through.  :)

Still, I took a couple of shots there ....

before we went back to the lighthouse.

Linda was cold, so she waited in the Jeep while I did some more dune-scrambling to get a few last shots for the day.

I should probably leave you with that one, but I've got one more that I took through the leaves before the sun finally disappeared.  :)

And with that, we headed home.

As I pondered this very special day with its very special end, I was reminded of something I just read in Edward Abbey's "Beyond The Wall".  And I quote:

"The worse the world appears to become, with our industrial civilization sinking deeper into its misery and squalor, drifting toward universal civil war, the better and happier my personal life becomes.  A curious inverse correlation there, disturbing to my sense of justice.  What have I done to be so lucky?"

And that's the question we ask ourselves all the time.  What have we done to be so lucky?

With financial crisis throughout the world, and foreclosures, and unemployment, and natural disasters, and man-made disasters, and terrorism, and crime, and political sniping, and corruption, our biggest problem today was "Where are we going to park our home so that we get to experience something that makes us happy?"

Indeed my friends.  On this very special day in our lives, we must continue to ask ... "What have we done to be so lucky?"  :)

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Comments

[Nancy and Bill]

You get what you give!! You and Linda give your all in whatever you do. You have touch so many lives in such a positive way. We just want to say Thank You for sharing your lives with us. Congrats on the 5 years and here's to 5 more.......Nancy and Bill

[Bill Joyce]

Beyond the Wall was published in 1984. In other words, nothing has really changed in the last 26 years.

We stayed at Silver Creek RV Resort many years ago because it was satellite friendly, most of other the parks and campgrounds are under heavy tree cover. You should visit the Shelby Gem Factory, http://www.shelbygems.com/ , while in the area. Interesting place and you don't have to buy, we didn't.

[klueck]

Thanks for sharing your travel during the last five years. You are indeed very lucky to be living the life you do.

Loved the sunset pictures....keep them coming.

[Tim Fansler]

Hello Howard,

Until I got a GPS I used to do exactly what you described.... 10% there, 20% there, etc. With the GPS it counts down the miles to the next waypoint. I guess that wouldn't help much if you were driving from Florida to Michigan on I75 But somehow it just seems to make the monotony more tolerable.

You're getting up into my neck of the wooks now. I was born in Detroit (don't go there) and lived there until I was 12 when my parents decided it would be more pleasant to be unemployed in Florida than in Michigan... so we moved.

I don't know if it's still the same (probably not) but I remember one summer when we spent a week's vacation in the NW corner of the 'mitten' on lake Leelanau (not too far from Traverse City). The water then was so crystal clear that when we took a rental boat out to go fishing, all we had to do was look down, and we could see where the fish were. We caught a bunch, believe me, and ate well.

I remember we also made an excursion over to the Big Bear sand dunes (also up in the northwest corner of the mitten). They seemed so vast to me as a little kid, but they probably don't compare to what you saw in ... where was it?... Eastern Utah?

Anyway, I hope you enjoy my home state... sorry about the cold weather..

[Dee Walter]

Congratulations on five years on the road. I hope you have many many more. You're in the area I spent many of my teen years. Have fun!

[Kirsten]

What a beautiful lighthouse/sunset picture. Thank you for that.

[Herb Stark]

That post from Edward Abby, Cactus Ed, about sums it up for me also...Thank You Lord.

[Rod Ivers]

I will approach a long day of travelling in segments. By finding possible camping spots after 100 miles, then perhaps after 180 miles, and then perhaps 250. As we reach each spot, we then confer on the radios, if we want to stop yet! Naw we feel fine and the day is only half over, or we got an early start so lets press on. Once in a while we do stop at an early destination, to go explore and find some supper at a local joint. You know like the header on our blog, "No where to go, and all day to get there!"
Rod

[Tom & Marci]

Try Hart's Pizza in Hart, MI . . . right down the road from Silver Lake. We were there last summer and it was very good. The Silver Lake area is fun -- you used to be able to rent jeeps and drive on the dunes with a guide. We did that when the boys were small - they loved it! It gets very busy and crazy around there in the summer, though.

You won't find too many state parks (in MI) that are big rig friendly, which is unfortunate because they are really beautiful. I'm going to miss staying at the state parks! You might try Hartwick Pines State Park. It could be on your route from west to east. It's one of the few (2!) that have full hookup sites.

Remember the guy who gave the RV Maintenance Seminar at the Branson rally? Dave something . . . his wife manages a campground in the Silver Lake area. I can't quite remember the name, but I think it begins with a "C".

[Sherry Boyd]

Great choice of quote and great author to quote from. You can't have a better companion than Cactus Ed. Love his life's work both writing and actions. Like him you two are real inspirations. Can't thank you enough for moving our full timing date way up. I figure we can leave about the time I've caught up with the journals. I've worked my way from The Decision to January 2007, in about 2 months. Only just over 3 years to go.
LOL!! Looks like fall of 2010!! Rather than 2013
Sherry

[Flyone]

Amen brother, Amen

[PWdestiny1]

Howard & Linda thanks for the five years that I have been able to share in your adventure. I would love to be a full timer, but my husband is just living in a world of what if's. Well a very close friend of our had a heart attack and died this morning so now I'm asking him "What if" Life is so so short
pwdestiny

[Dan and Gail Brogdon]

Congratulations on the five year anniversary and thanks for all the valuable information you so willingly share. Glad you are taking time to just relax. Hugs to both of you.

[paul/mary austin]

Howard and Linda,We made it to Traverse City-are camped at the Holiday Park Campground. We think our site could have the "it" factor-is beautiful with the trees, birds and water. It was great meeting you both-congrats on your 5 years of rving. Hope to see you again soon.

[Don and Dee Stanger]

Hi there,
Bubba Q's is one of our fav's. BBQ is great and the ice cream got us thru the summer in 2008--a crazy time in our lives. Bubba is a hoot and we love him. Hope to see you in Ludington.

[George Stoltz]

Or, you could quote Charles Dickens:

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of time..."

I really don't think times or things will get better for a long time, but my glass is half full and I see today as the best of times. The house is sold and we are on the road -- fulltime. Life is good.

[Jerry & Carol]

Thanks for being an inspiration to us wannabees. Our plan is coming together faster than originally planned - that's a good thing.
Yes, I too break up travel distance as you do. With my GPS, I like to play the recalculating game. Unless I have a destination deadline, it is not unusual for me to turn right when Gertie GPS says go straight. She is good about keeping track of where I am.
Keep the light burning for us wayward travelers.

[emery Nash]

Since there is nothing that guarantees that fairness has anything whatsoever to do with life, happiness is as happiness does, period.

You guys do it very well!

Congratulations

[Mike and Gerri Jones]

Congratulations on your fifth anniversary!! We wish you and Linda many more happy miles! :)

Your pics were beautiful as usual. Thanks for sharing.

I didn't have a quote but the other night sitting under the stars listening to the quiet of the evening I had those same thoughts. Life is good!

[V4Vagabond]

Howard,
I love love love your lighthouse in the sunset shot. Wow.

And your attitude ain't half-bad either!

Vee

[Doris Arnold]

Happy 5th Anniversary! You are an inspiration for the newbies like me to make it 5, 10 and 20 years down the road.

[Tim Thorpe (tntlowrider)]

Howard and Linda, congrats on the five years. Never thought I would be doing the same thing this soon. Only I will continue to work, pay off the bills and then we shall see. You have been a great inpsiration to all of us. The start of another five.

[Tina]

Congratulations on the 5 years!! THANK YOU BOTH so much for your daily journals and being so honest and real. It will be a while before I can hit the road, so for now I travel via your blogs.

Hear is to many more years living your dreams!

Tina