Remember our wonder years. We began every morning with fresh eyes. Every afternoon promised another adventure. We lived in the moment, and made every day matter. Those moments might seem long ago, but that sense of wonder can still be found. It still lives in a magical place. Where the mighty Huron, Superior, and Lake Michigan meet. Our wonder is not lost, but flows strong in the great waters of Michigan's eastern upper peninsula. A place of ship wrecks and maritime adventure. A sacred land. rich with Native American heritage and man made marvels. Where quit forests open onto rolling shores. And where we can still see eagles soar over majestic cliffs, rugged shoreline, and hundreds of islands that rise from this fresh water sea. So lets head north to the great waters, and discover the wonder that is pure Michigan.
They might be cheesy commercials. And I don't know if they are played anywhere other than Michigan. If you are from here, you know them well. They are a bit over the top. But let me tell you, they are true. We often forget how beautiful our state is. But 10 days of camping in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula and Mackinaw, will remind you.
We left early in the morning. Right after Karson woke up.
On our way to the U.P, we stopped at my all time favorite spot in Michigan.
The Mackinaw Bridge.
I am well aware that it is only a bridge. But in my family, it is so much more. My parents always say, when you cross that bridge, and enter the U.P., you leave all your troubles behind you.
During our five days, at Brimley state park...
We roasted marshmallows, and made s'mores.
Karson respected the campfire &learned the sign for 'hot' on vacation
We ignored the sticky mess that you end up with, when you let a 17 month old eat a s'more.
We played on the beach.
translation: Daddy and Karson made sand castles, while Mommy froze in the beach chair, and took pictures.
We ate popcorn from our Camp Hosts.
We couldn't figure out what happened to the popcorn, when it disappeared before it was really gone.
It was right before dinner...
We put Karson to sleep in his stroller.
We went to the beach anyway, when it was too cold to swim.
To eat ice cream sandwiches, and play in the sand.
We ditched our diaper to play, when the water was just too much fun to resist. Even though it was freezing!
We took more naps in the stroller...
We headed to the Soo Locks in Sault St Marie, when it was too cold to even play on the beach.
We headed straight back to the beach, as soon as it warmed up.
We quickly got everything put away, when it rained on our last night. We all met in the trailer with high fives, a dance party, and ice cream sandwiches. And, a little indoor play time for the Munchkin.
. We got to enjoy our nightly ritual, of putting my baby to sleep in the stroller, and watching the sunset, when the rained stopped.
after about 5 minutes...
Our time at Brimley was wonderful. There were times the temperature got into the 50s. Ok, only 59, but that is still the 50s. We lunged in sweat shirts, took long walks and bike rides, played on the beach when the sun was out. We relaxed during nap time, and walked Karson to sleep in the stroller each night. We made big breakfasts over the fire, and grilled each night for dinner.
The morning we left Brimley, the Explorer read 59 degrees.
We headed back over the bridge to Mackinaw City, to catch a Ferry to Mackinac Island
yes they are spelled differently, but said the same {mackinaw}
It is not required that you wear a life jacket on the ferry.
In fact, upon asking last year, I found out there are no infant life jackets on the ferry.
Which I believe should be illegal.
We were asked why we had Karson wear a life jacket, by more than 1 person.
My answer:
In our family, if you are on a boat and you don't know how to swim, you wear a life jacket.
End of story.
We were on a boat.
Obviously, Karson doesn't know how to swim.
Therefor, he has to wear a lifejacket
your child should too
Ok, I didn't say the last line.
But I wanted too.
We took a carriage tour around the island, and stopped at the butterfly house.
Karson was pushing people out of the way, trying to catch the all the butterflys.
After our stop at the butterfly house, we got back on our carriage, and headed for Arch Rock.
Just long enough for some pictures.
When our 2 hour tour was done, we got on our bikes, and rode around the island. We had to stop half way for Karson to eat lunch, because he slept through lunch earlier.
he threw a rock, and it hit him in the head
We stopped at Mackinac Island Public Schools, for Karson could play on their playground.
See the bride in the background.
I love that bridge!
After spending the entire day on Mackinac Island, we headed to Wilderness State Park, right at the top of the Lower Peninsula.
in case you were wondering, there is a commercial for mackinac island too.
At Wilderness State Park....
Bundled up in the mornings, when it was so cold!
We took walks through the sand, while Daddy cooked breakfast over the fire.
We made delicious breakfasts over the fire almost every morning.
We played on the beach, when the weather warmed up in the afternoon.
We snuggled in our towels to get warm, when the sun went behind a cloud.
We played at our campsite, when it was too cold to play at the beach.
he does not have a mo hawk. the wind must have just blown what little hair he has.
We laughed when Karson started saying 'uh ohhhh.'
We made sandcastles....
...just for Karson to destroy.
We cheered so loud for Karson, when he got over his fear of walking in the water.
We found Karson standing dancing on the table, in the trailer.
We took a picture.
We watched Munchkin enjoy smores each night.
We played on the beach all day, the last 2 days, when it was actually in the 80s.
We ate home made donuts for breakfast, from the general store down the road.
We helped Daddy carry fire wood.
We caught minos in nets, and put them in buckets for Karson.
We took lots, and lots of rides in the stroller.
We had coffee cake for breakfast, on the beach on our last morning of Vacation.
