July 12 -22 Michigan's Upper Peninsula

Peter and I have officially become Yoopers.  This is the local name for residents of the U.P.  or Upper Peninsula of Michigan.    There is a long suspension bridge from the mitten part of Michigan to the U.P. where Lake Superior meets Lake Huron.

I love this place!    Water on all sides, long sandy beaches, hikes with waterfalls, very little traffic and comfortable temperatures.  This is the closest to Washington State that we have experienced-----the only things missing are snow-capped mountains and major cities.

 Sault St. Marie:  This is the major city in the U.P.   It has an actual mall.  The anchors on the mall are Walmart, J.C. Pennys, and JoAnn Fabrics.   Sault St. Marie is best known for the waterfall and rapids that separated Lake Huron from Lake Superior.   These have been bulldozed out and there is now a set of locks called the Soo Locks so that boaters and commerce can flow between the lakes.  Apart from the locks there wasn’t much to see.  However, there were other hidden jewels available just west of here.

 

Tahquamenon Falls:  West and South of Sault St. Marie lies a wonderful state park.  We hiked to a lovely set of falls.    Remember, there are not a lot of mountains in Michigan, so the drop on the falls was fairly short.  However, the width of the river created a curtain of water that was really lovely.  People were wading in and around the falls despite warning signs to stay out of the water.   A couple of miles up from the lower falls was another set of much more impressive falls.   Walter was beginning to tire by this time---dangerously so----causing Peter to kick a large hole in the retaining fence and take him down to the water.   After a long drink and a short rest lying down in the water he was ready to tackle the climb back to the top, with only two stints of me carrying him.

The real jewels of our visit lay to the south on Lake Huron:  St. Ignace and Mackinac Island.  These are tiny towns on a par with Poulsbo in the 80s----1980s; not 1880s. 

St. Ignace has a museum that is fascinating—or was to us.  In chronicling the history of the    Archaeologists had uncovered some evidence leading to the hypothesis that the early inhabitants were here in the United States over 6,000 years ago.    DNA evidence shows that these early people were genetically related to the early tribes from Greece.      There is also clear evidence that over one million tons of copper were mined from this area yet no copper relics are found.  There is copper that suddenly showed up in Greece in the form of plates, art, and utensils at about the same time.   Finally, archaeologists uncovered stone tablets with carvings of a syllabic alphabet---when compared to Etruscan writing, the symbols are remarkably similar.  Other evidence of a link between ancient Greek peoples and early North American natives I thought was a little flakier.  It included stone carvings, rock stacking, and rock implements and tools.   It was all pretty fascinating.

area, the curators had a display about the native prehistoric people of the area.

 

Just east of St. Ignace and a mere jet-boat ride away lies Mackinac Island.  This is a really unusual place.  The island is eight miles in circumference----it was the second place to be designated as a National Park (right after Yellowstone).  It is accessible by plane and by ferry.   The residents banned   There are horse and buggies, horse and carriages, horse and wagons.  You can also rent a bike.    There is something for everyone here----fabulous restaurants, hotels, a fort, quaint shops, and tons of fudge and candy----they are renowned for their candy.

cars in 1898 so all transportation is by horse.

I have mixed feelings about the car ban.   On the good side it slows down the pace of life, it’s very quiet----especially when you get away from town, and there is a weird feeling of safety and calm   On the downside the smell of horse droppings and urine permeate everything, wafting towards you at inopportune times (like after your first bite of fudge—which visually is rather horse-dropping in appearance).  Horses or not----I am definitely going back.

as you listen to the clop-clop of horses going about their work.

  

 

 

Detroit, MI July 5-11, 2013

 

I was fairly worried about our camp site for this leg of our journey.   Detroit has a terrible reputation   However, I was relieved to see that the area we were in (Ypsilanti----I have no idea how to say it) was quite suburban and quite nice.   Peter  had chosen very well in light of his planned work trip to Austin, TX for two days; leaving the pugs and I alone.   The park was situated on a large lake with a one mile walking path around the lake.   Swans paddled around the lake, there was a swimming area and a couple of water slides.   All in all, very nice.

right now due to huge unemployment and poverty.

 

Old Ford Museum Piquette:  Our first day trip was to the very first Henry Ford “factory” in downtown Detroit.   This was little more dodgy.   Lots of factories with broken-out windows.  Lots of graffiti.   The museum was fabulous, however.   This was the first factory building cars that Henry Ford managed to make successful (he failed in business twice previously).   Our tour took 3 hours and I learned a tremendous amount.   At the time Ford started this business there were 2,500 car development companies in the United States.   What he did that was unique was institute a system of “just in time” delivery.   This is the system that Boeing uses today.   In the Piquette factory a car was built by a group of men.   Parts they used were delivered and staged at the work station.  This took an amazing amount of orchestration.  Henry Ford began his career working for Thomas Edison.  He worked for Edison for about 8 years as a chief engineer at a DC power generating plant.  There was a synergy of really talented people in Detroit at this time.  There were machine shops, steel was being produced here, mills were being supplied by ore ships in the great lakes.  The Dodge Bros. had a machine shop building a lot of mechanical devices.   Henry Ford’s success was helped by right place, right time, right contemporaries.

 

 

Trip to Canada to Spa---Peter left yesterday for Texas.   I used the time to get a pedicure AND a manicure.   Today I am headed to Canada to the town of Windsor, which is right across a tunnel from downtown Detroit.  I am going to Caesar’s Palace for a spa day.  I had a wonderful massage and scrub and won enough in the casino to cover the costs. Everything was perfect until I came back   I decided to take the bridge rather than the tunnel.   It was all fine as I approached the U.S. border.   “Where are you from?” asked the border patrol.  “Seattle.” I replied.   “What were you doing in Canada?” he asked.  “I went to the spa.”  I replied.   “Aren’t there spas in Detroit?” he asked in what I perceived as a snotty tone.  “Not ones as nice as this one in Canada.” I replied sweetly (although I think he thought my reply was rather tart).  “Hmmmm,” he said, “Who is this car registered to?”  I paused.  “It better be registered to my husband and I, but it could be just my husband.”   I should not have opened that door.   “Where is your husband?”  Uh oh.  “I’m not really sure. . . . .but I think Texas.”  I was getting a little rattled and my memory was failing fast.   “What’s he doing in Texas?” he asked.  “You know I’m not really sure, it’s usually secret.”  I was on the receiving end of the most incredulous look.  “You don’t know what your husband does?”  “Well, you see, we have separate careers and his work is with the government.   I don’t really pay attention.”
across the border.

He shook his head clearly signifying that he was thankful he was not married to me, handed me my passport and waved me through.

 

 Ford Rouge Assembly Plant:  We began with a tour of the Ford Rouge plant.   This is where they build the F-150 trucks.  However, this was the first of Ford’s major factories.  It employed a new system of manufacturing called “vertical integration”  Placed on a river adjacent to Lake Erie Ford brought in by barge raw materials iron ore, coal and limestone.  From these they manufactured all the metal parts for the cars.  He also developed an assembly line where the cars moved and the workers built the cars as they moved by.   Using this method, the raw materials  of iron ore, etc. a brand new car every seventy-two hours.   This was how he built so many Model Ts.  He was dependent on no one for parts, because he manufactured all his parts.   His designers developed the Model T to be incredibly hardy and flexible to better handle the rough roads of the time.   Additionally, employing over 100,000 workers, he doubled the going wage of $2.50 per day to $5.00 per day to staff his factory.

 

The Museum:  This is a museum featuring the Ford family’s collections.   Of course, there were cars.   But there was also a lot of Lindberg memorabilia since Henry Ford and Lindberg were close friends. 
 There was the car that Kennedy was riding in when he was shot.



  The chair that Lincoln was sitting in when he was shot. 






George Washington Carver’s microscope. 










The bus that Rosa Parks was riding when she refused to give up her seat,

and Buckminister Fuller’s Dymaxion house built by Ryan Aircraft in San Diego.

Monroe, Michigan

Campground:  We checked in to our new campground in Monroe, Michigan.   This one lies directly adjacent to the freeway.  It’s a really nice campground with tons of amenities-----and only a mile from Lake Erie.   Further investigation revealed a huge coal fire generating plant to our northeast, cooling towers for the nuclear power plant to our southeast; two sets of railroad tracks bordering the park on the west with direct freight access to Detroit and above us the flight path for Detroit International Airport.   We turned up the air conditioner and fans and hunkered down.

 

Raisin River National Park—1812 War---I knew about the war of 1812----the British burned down the White House.   The details I was missing were how far flung the war was.   Major portions of the war took place on the Great Lakes and for a time,  Michigan came under the control of the British.   I’m consoling myself with fantasies of the students in Michigan knowing nothing about Father Junipero Serra.  We spent a fun morning poking around the battlefield and touring the brand new interpretive center----this is the newest of the National Historic Sites.

 

 

Custer—We wandered into downtown Monroe, Michigan.  There on the corner was an enormous statue.  Peter was sure it was the hero of the War of 1812.  I  pointed out the huge C U S T E R on the side.   “Hmmmm,”  said Peter,  “I wonder if he was related to the Custer at Little Big Horn.”      I pointed out that he looked just like the Custer at Little Big Horn.  Two days later as we stood in the Custer museum in downtown Monroe, Michigan,  Peter agreed with me----it was the same Custer and he was born in Monroe, MI and married his wife there and, in fact, his entire family lived there and STILL lives there.   I was right.

Our last stop in Monroe, MI involved a very fun walk around town with map to view local architectural styles.  Walter hated this.  Jaxon thought it was boring, but Peter and I had a great time.  I made a video.  It can be viewed on YouTube.  Here is the link: 
 

http://youtu.be/wH7x8IzrTX0

July 1, 2013 Pennsylvania and Ohio

Luray Caverns:   Just minutes from our camping spot was a set of caverns.   Having gone  spelunking last year with the grandsons, I was feeling a little wary of signing up for the tour.   We stopped on our way to dinner to check out what was involved.   When the attendant told me we could bring the pugs in pouches strapped to our chests, I concluded we would not be wriggling through holes.   Do not miss these if you are in the area.   Without the pugs, Peter and I embarked on a tour of some truly beautiful caverns.   The most magnificent feature was the reflecting pond, which is always absolutely still and provides a perfect mirror image of the stalactites and stalagmites.  As you can see it is difficult to tell where the water meets the land.

 

The next day it was on the road again, this time for a two-day stop in a KOA northeastern Pennsylvania.   It was a long and horrid trip.   We paid tolls to drive on turnpikes that appeared to me had not been repaved since the 1970s.    Narrow lanes, lots of fast traffic and a jolt and a jounce every 300 yards.   Tired and cross we pulled off the exit ramp to the road leading to our camping spot.    Confronting us at the bottom of the exit ramp was an enormous Westinghouse plant-----think something slightly smaller than Boeing in Everett.    As we turned another corner I saw a sign directing delivery trucks to the “plasma center”.    “Good heavens,”  I said to Peter, “What is Westinghouse doing with blood?”   He didn’t reply.   When I looked over at him, he had one of those, “Oh my God, she’s lost it” looks on his face.   Much later we both had a good laugh when I realized Westinghouse was building plasma TVs.

 

Another trip north and up a much better turnpike brought us to one of my favorite stops.  Marblehead, Ohio.  We were camped on a peninsula jutting out into Lake Erie.   The state park had long sandy beaches for walking that allowed dogs.   It was very odd to walk along a beach with waves with no tang of salt in the air.   Walter couldn’t get used to the fact that he could drink the water coming in-------he wasn’t making the connection that this was a lake either.   We had some great laughs by Marblehead lighthouse where, to save the shore, the community had put riprap (big concrete slabs and hunks).   As the waves came in, the water  would rush up into the spaces between the chunks and Walter would race down to get a drink, only to get splashed in the face as the next wave came in.   Lots of barking and yipping.

 

Edison’s birthplace:   Thomas Edison was born in Milan, Ohio, a place that looks remarkably like the town from Back to the Future—right down to the town square with the clock tower.   We took a day trip to see Edison’s childhood home.   He was quite the handful as a child.   He lasted 3 months in the public school before his mother decided to homeschool him.  His first invention at age 20 was a stock ticker for the stock exchange.   He sold it to the president of Western Union for $40,000.   The story goes that Edison told the Western Union president that he would have sold it for two or three thousand dollars.   The president responded by saying that he would have paid $100,000 to have it.

            What impressed me most was the relationship that developed between Henry Ford, Carnegie, Rockefeller and Edison.  So many smart men meeting and talking together.   It reminds me of Seattle with Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Richard Branson and the Boeings.  All kind of working together on and off and developing some really neat things.