2008 Vacation Adventure - Day Two

2008 Vacation Adventure – Day 2

We started our day with a simple breakfast in the condo, then set out for a healthy walk along the ocean, where I got to play Lifeguard. Despite the promised sun, the day was overcast. We weren’t disappointed, however, since it kept the temperatures in the upper seventies instead of the extreme eighties.

The highlight of our trip this far is the cruise through the swamp we took today. Driving a high-tech airboat he built himself, Captain Bruce had us hunting down alligators, discovering a gator nest, and even holding a baby alligator! We cut across a cattle pasture – watch out for cows crossing! – and decided not to get out of the boat for pictures when we saw the bull guarding his herd. He looked as scary as some of the gators we came across!

Keeping with the theme of the day, we ate supper at R.J. Gators next to our Wyndham Resort. The snow crab was fun to eat and delicious after a day of tracking gators and touring the Florida countryside.

Now its off to the movies, then packing and cleaning for our trip to Port Canaveral and our Carnival cruise tomorrow!

U.P. Blessings

What a joy to live in the Upper Peninsula. Just when winter starts to feel oppressive, here comes a fresh layer of snow and a Poker Run by snowmobile. That’s the fun we had this weekend when my guy Craig hooked a sled to the snowmobile and took our daughters and I on a wintry backwoods tour of the Garden Peninsula and Cooks area. We started at Craig’s house south of Garden, cut along by the lake, up through the trails past Mill Street and crossed the highway at Mini Mart. Then it was up Little Harbor Road and a left on PP Road where we met up with the official groomed trails. As the snow-covered wonderland flashed past our steady 20mph pace, I marveled at how quickly the trip to Sidetracks Restaurant in Cooks went compared to the three-hour plus journey by horseback. I loved checking the scenery to see where we’d been in the summer on the horses and remembering the green, lush landscape. After hot chocolate at Sidetracks, I jumped in the sled with Halle and enjoyed the full thumping and bumping of our trek. Tara had the opportunity to drive as we angled northwest and landed at Big Springs Bar where we had our tickets stamped, used the facilities, and rode a few miles south to our friends the Maki’s home where we had a trailer and truck waiting for the drive to Manistique and our chance to win big. Unfortunately, I got the best hand in our group – a flush with a King high. Not good enough to take home a cash prize. Down in the Elk’s Club dining room, we enjoyed delicious hot chili, prime rib sandwiches and cheeseburgers.

Yes, it was noisy on that snowmobile. And we stunk like gas fumes afterward. But what a great way to pass the cold weather – and what great memories for our girls and us. Come on up and give it a try!