All Road Lead to Beckley..... The end of the trail

03-Sep-2018
Avon NC


Don't know how we did it but once again we ended up at the end of the last day in Beckley West Virginia. Both the 2017 Halibuti and 2018 Big Bender Ended up within 10 miles of each other on the final night.
I think we may have even slept in the same parking space at the Tamarack Travel stop.

Anyway we made coffee in the parking lot and rolled on home to Avon.
Nice to be back. Still hot.
Guess its time to go fishing

Trip Summary

Days on the Road                    45
Nights on the Road                  44

Nights Slept in the Gunship    31  (70% a new record)

Miles                                       9,938


States (18 total, some more than once)
North Carolina (Duh)
Tennessee
Kentucky
Missouri
Kansas
Colorado
Utah
Wyoming
Idaho
Oregon
Washington
British Colombia (actually not a state
Montana
North Dakota
Minnesota
Michigan
Ohio
West Virginia
Virginia


Here's a big piece of the trip. Plus or minus.

Son of a Saginaw Fisherman

02-Sep-2018

Saginaw Mi

Just a song I like.

Anyway we rolled straight south through Michigan avoiding major metropolisi like Detroit.

Found ourselves at quitting time near Saginaw.

So we stayed the night.

Ate a pastie just to get the full Michigander experience.

On the way down we stopped at Hartwick Pines

We also visited Shiawasse Preserve outside Saginaw.

Then we rolled again

First time I’ve seen a purple port-o-john

Obtuse reference to Jackie Treehorn

Hey Lock Ready!

2-Sep-2018 (Happy Birthday Edna!)

Saginaw Mi

We rolled up the UP to the convergence of Lakes Superior and Huron at Sault Ste. Marie.

Found a very nice little town on the US side.

Did a little drive around and decided to book a hotel right on the strip near the Soo Canal.

It was great!. Lots of neon too.

Took in a little lock observations. Reminded me back of my days in the Panama Canal Zone.

Greek food nearby was pretty good. 

Partying down on the strip

Working up the UP

1-Sep-2018

Sault St Marie, MI

Caught some sunshine here and there after a bit of rain in the morning.

Tahquemenon Falls, Witefish Point, Shipwreck Museum.

I’m a big Gordon Lightfoot fan but I may never need to hear the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald again.

But i do like saying Gitche Goomi.

A few pics

We saw two of these yesterday. This one parked and a different one on the road. Perhaps there is a Labor Day convention of these things here in the UP?

40 days and 40 nights

31-Aug-2018

Shingleton, Mi

Michigan Upper Peninsula

We’ve been on the road for 40 days.

This trip we’ve spent most nights in the gunship.

Perhaps the team’s overall personal hygiene will need some tweaking upon our return to civilization.

Perhaps its just Captain Bob

Probably need to find the 3 day old smoked whitefish I know I left somewhere in the Gunship

Anyway we did 7-8 miles on the 12mile Beach Section of the North Country Trail.

Mostly along the coastline of Lake Superior to Spray Falls.

Single track with some recently repaired breakdown.

Derrumbe!

The monarch butterfly migration appears to be gearing up.

Any big patch of goldenrod seems to be holding. 

We counted a half dozen just around a visitor center yesterday.

Also a few that weren’t monarchs.

Last night we had dinner at the Tanglewood Inn in Shingleton. 

All you can eat baby back ribs and Bells 2 hearted ale.

Miss Sciency had the Chicken Avocado Club and pink wine out of a small bottle

We slept in the gunship in their parking lot and used the restaurant WiFi to watch the movie “Fargo”.

Observed no malfeasance whatsoever.

Slept like a rock.

Woke up and came inside for coffee and to work on the blog.

Just ordered pancakes.

Red State, Blue State, Purple polka dot State.... does it matter?

29-Aug-2018

Outside Carp Lake Michigan

Let us unite and agree this sign transcends political party.

Easily the best sign seen the entire trip.... so far anyway.

On the big Lake they call Gitche Gummi

30-Aug-2017

Marquette Mi.

Others besides Lightfoot and Longfellow have written about it.

Apparently the Ojibwa people who gave it the name spell it differently.

In their language it means “Big Water”.

It seems as big as any ocean. 

The French called it Superior- a name that truly fits.

It is magnificent!. 

An ocean inland. 

Beautiful Coast. 

Even surfers.

And the Sun came out to give us a pretty day.

You gotta put your feet in it