Michigan - Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

A month later....

So after our fairly exhausting hike up the Dunes we hopped in the car to do the 7.4 mile scenic drive to see some more sights of the Sleeping Bear Dunes....

The first stop is the covered bridge

The next few stops brought us Glen Lake and the Dune Overlook

This shows the historic D.H. Day Farm (the white barn)

At the next stop you have the option to park and hike the 1.5 mile Cottonwood Trail...despite our tired legs we just couldn't resist and were so glad we didn't! It was so breathtaking back there, it was like a different world. In fact for Kris it was probably close to his dream world because we both agreed it looked like the desert of Tatooine which led to a reenactment by the two of us of the scene where R2D2 and C3PO separate while walking through the desert. I took the part of R2D2 since I only had to say "beep beep beep beep". I can safely say after this hike it's clear to see why Sleeping Bear Dunes was ranked as the most beautiful place in America!

This would be around where the Star Wars re-enactment took place

At the next stop we learned a little bit about dune ecology. The trees in the picture are cottonwood trees. They are the only common tree on the dune because their fast rate of growth allows it too keep pace with burial by the sand. Also seeing the trees in groups is very common because the dense root networks help to hold the sand in place.

This basswood tree serves as one of the dividers between the dunes and the beech-maple forest.

And just a little ways down the road you find yourself in a completely different environment....

The next stop serves to remind us that we are certainly not the first living organisms to grace Sleeping Bear Dunes with our presence....what amazing fossils....

The next stop at the Sleeping Bear Dune Overlook was probably my favorite one...it gave us great views of the lake and also got us a good view of the Sleeping Bear Dune...I will try to point it out in one of the pictures below but for those who don't  know here is the legend of the Sleeping Bear...
          "Long ago, along the Wisconsin shoreline, a mother bear and her two cubs were driven into Lake Michigan by a raging forest fire. The bears swam for many hours, but eventually the cubs tired and lagged behind. Mother bear reached the shore and climbed to the the top of a high bluff to watch and wait for her cubs. Too tired to continue, the cubs drowned within sight of the shore. The Great Spirit Manitou created two islands to mark the spot where the cubs disappeared and then created a solitary dune to represent the faithful mother bear."

Yes those are people climbing up...no we didn't try it!

The dune at the top of this picture is the Sleeping Bear Dune

The last two stops showed us North Bar Lake and the Pine Plantation...North Bar Lake is at the top of our places to see the next time we visit list. According the brochure it has some of the better waves in the area, the water is slightly warmer and the beaches are more sandy and less rocky.

At this point it was fairly late in the day (around 7pm if I remember correctly) so we decided it was time to head to Traverse City to find our hotel and also some dinner. That night we ate at a great local brewery and got to see a little of downtown Traverse City.

Next post will cover our sailing adventure on the Manitou (and will hopefully be posted sooner than a month!)

Michigan - Hiking up the Dunes!

Now obviously the highlight of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park is the dunes themselves. Besides the crystal clear water the other biggest surprise about our trip was the size of the dunes. Kris tried to prepare me by describing how big these dunes were but it is something that unless you have seen it you cannot even begin to comprehend. Sleeping Bear Dunes was voted the most beautiful place in America in 2011 and for good reason. Now when you first drive to the dunes this is what you see....

Okay it does look like a HUGE pile of sand but truly from the parking lot it looks like once you are up and over this initial 100 foot climb then you made it and the lake will be on the other side....deceptive little hill....after your first climb this is what you see....

Okay so I guess the lake is a little further way...so I took some time to take some scenery pictures before we ventured on...

Once again it looked like over the hill and we would have made it to the water....

Kris opening his arms to the beautiful view of the water...right?

What do we get? Sand, sand and more sand!!

However we weren't giving up yet...so on we walked....

Okay at this point we meet some people coming back and find out it is a few mile hike EACH WAY to the water...through the hills and I swear the softest sand you've ever stepped in.... We also ventured on this hike bringing no supplies with us (ie food, energy gels, etc...) so around this time we decided to surrender for now. However it is safe to say that "Hiking all the way to the lake through the dunes" is firmly entrenched on our bucket list! On the way back I tried to take some pictures to show how incredibly steep the hill actually is....

After our hike we decided to venture on in the car through the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive...where I hope to pick up tomorrow night!

Michigan Part 1

While I've been loving reading other people's blogs recently I've been lacking motivation for my own! Anyways I figured it's finally time to at least put up the next entry!

So timing worked out magically back in July and Kris and I were actually able to take an 8 day vacation (our longest ever) together to his home state of Michigan. Prior to this trip the only time I had been to Michigan was in 2005 to sadly watch Michigan ruin Penn State's dream of a perfect season (I *still* want those 3 second back!!!)...so up to this point my memories of Michigan were far from fond, however we were determined to change that.

The trip actually started with a stop  in Cleveland, Ohio to spend a weekend with my sister and her boyfriend Bobby. We had an awesome relaxing time and as always when we were leaving Kris says "wow...we really need to visit them more!!" One first that happened on this particular trip was the first time my sister and I got to sunbathe together!! We both love the sun so much but sadly had never had the change to enjoy catching some rays together :)

After Cleveland it was off to Michigan...we took the "long" way so I could get a tour of the southern part of the lower peninsula. We drove near Ann Arbor (booooooooooooooooooo) and around Lansing and over to Grand Rapids. Kevin and Karen were gracious enough to let their house serve as our "base" for the week. It was my first chance to meet their two amazing kids, Sierra and Jordan. We were only there for about 15 min before a nerf battle broke out so I knew it was going to be a fun week!

*sidenote* To give a little back ground of how we know Kevin and Karen...Kevin is the band director at Lee High School where Kris did his student teaching. Ever since then Kris has spent two weeks with their band at band camp during the summer..this year he got to write all the music as well (he normally only does the percussion parts) so as exciting as that was I am definitely a little Lion King-ed out! Kevin also served as Kris's best man at the wedding and gave one of the funniest best man speeches I have ever heard. Karen is his beautiful wife (and she also works as science teacher) :)

So we spent Sunday night at our "base" and then took off for Traverse City on Monday. Our departure was slightly delayed by some intense storms that came off over the lake but it was okay because Kevin and Karen's home offers I think the best view to watch incoming storms. It was pretty breathtaking.

Anyways once we got on the road we drove to Sleeping Bear Dunes (and took a little side trip since Kris had told me he didn't need directions get there.....) so I could get my first look at a Michigan "beach" (we differ on what our definition of a beach is....). One thing I was  not well prepared for was the weather...I hadn't really looked at the weather report before we left and I assumed the highs while we were gone would be similar to Baltimore. Needless to say a high of 72 does NOT feel like a high of 89...brr...I was a little cold!

When we first got to Sleeping Bear Dunes we headed to the beach area where Kris had to concede I won as to whether that counted as a beach. The lake was VERY calm that day so there were *no* waves and where we were was *super* rocky...we had to have shoes on just to walk along the shore. Of course since we were so far north the water was also very cold...here are some pictures from that beach walk....

I had never seen a sign like this before....

Ouch! This is *not* what's supposed to be under water at a beach!!!

So proud to be in his home state!

A preview of the Dunes to come...we never actually made it this far hiking.....

brrrrrr....

Very pretty scenery

Now one thing that totally blew me away about the water in Michigan is how clean and clear it is. I've only seen "Caribbean blue" water once in my life and let me tell you this looked the exact same. I spent a lot of pictures trying to take some good ones of the water because I felt like no one would believe me that a lake can have water this beautiful....

After our brief time on the "beach" we went to the little boat museum and then saw a water rescue reenactment....

Yay!! Raggedy Ann and Andy were safely rescued!

This cannon was made to help get rope out to the sinking boats...it is said that this is only cannon made in America that was meant to save lives, not take them.

Aye Aye Captain!

I will leave you all hanging there and I hope to get the the post about the actual Dunes tomorrow!!