General Sherman

The General Sherman Tree, in Sequoia National Park, is the largest known single-stem tree alive on Earth today, by volume. (Apparently there are taller, fatter, and older trees, but since the 1930s wood volume has been the standard way tree size is determined.) 

This tree is a big tourist attraction (pun intended) at the park and there were many people waiting to get photos with it. (We waited in line between a family from India and a father and son from the Netherlands.) I was so impressed with how patiently everyone waited for their turn to gather behind the sign for photos. There was no grouching, no line cutting, nor general unpleasantness among people; everyone just happily waited their turn, and many groups took photos for each other.  It really reminded me just how lovely people can be.

Waybound at Yosemite

Waybound Yosemite was our next stop after picking up groceries at Wal-Mart. Waybound is attached to Tenaya Lodge, but at Waybound, everyone has a private little cabin - which was perfect for us since we were a group of 11. Yep, eleven of us, three generations traveling together. (Grandma, her children and spouses, and our children, plus spouses (and a spouse to be.) We're all very lucky Grandma wants to leave her children and grandchildren with incredible memories.

The food was great, and Brett (the manager) took very good care of us. He was an absolute doll!

Janet (Grandma) loved drinking her morning coffee from her porch with a view of the river and the kids* loved the cabins, the s'more fixings at the fire pits, the archery, 

and tootling around in the golf cart.

Waybound was a great spot for us to have some fun and spend time together as a family!

* I call them "kids" but they really aren't kids anymore; they're all between 20 and 26.

Getting There is Half the Fun

Lots of people wonder what people who live in a vacation destination do when it is time for their vacation. For us, it means visiting other vacation destinations. It's our chance to remember what it's like to see amazing things for the first time. This year that meant a trip to California. (A state none of us had visited.) After traveling by horse-drawn taxi, a ferry boat, and by car, we boarded a plane in Traverse City.

Except for a few crying children, a four year-old seat kicker, and a short delay, we landed in Fresno without incident. (Luckily, I'm one of those people who can often tune those noises out; the rest of my family, not so much. But the flights were short...) Thankfully, the car rental's computer system decided to start working again five minutes after we arrived at their counter and we were on our way. (We were a little worried because it was 10:30 pm and we thought we might have to come back when they opened in the morning - at 7:00 because, "We can only hold your reservation for 24 hours." Thankfully it all worked out.) My husband is not a fan of traveling by air, so I was thrilled that we had no major hiccups.

If you've never been in the Fresno airport, they have a really neat display of a sequoia grove to walk through on your way out. They were fun to look at, but I'm looking forward to seeing real ones!

The "Real" World

Michigan's Upper Peninsula isn't really known for its shopping. I'm ok with that - I'd rather be surrounded by beautiful landscapes and the Great Lakes than be close to big box stores. That said, when I am in the neighborhood of these stores, I take advantage of  what's available. Sometimes though, I'm a bit overwhelmed at their sheer size!  I wonder who thought a person might need to pick up vitamins, pajamas, and an entire frozen lamb in a single stop. For the record, the lamb did not come home with us; and we're not going to discuss how much I spent at Costco. Let's just say my sister-in-law is looking forward to her cash back check.

What we can discuss is the cheese isle at Kroger (or "Krogers," as we Michiganders say.) Walmart's cheese selection is abysmal, but Kroger's was amazing! I'm glad I took the time to look at the choices, because their marketing person is hilarious.

Click on the picture to make the text larger; trust me, it's worth your time. The d'Affinois sign made my day; whoever wrote those signs definitely deserves a raise. While I didn't see it quiver, it it did beckon and it was creamy and delicious.

Um......... No

Allen and I spent a recent weekend in Traverse City to celebrate my birthday. Since shopping is his favorite thing to do, we spent Saturday walking around the downtown area. As we wandered, we discovered Rocket Fizz: Soda Pop and Candy Company. Once inside, we both immediately noticed the bottle of ranch flavored pop, which we had to buy for my ranch-loving daughter. Since we couldn't just take one home for her, we picked up a small selection of flavors to try: ranch, peanut butter, mango, and honey. Let's just say our taste test was an adventure; one that can be summed up in a single photo:

For the record - the honey flavored pop was tasty.

The smell of the ranch soda was indistinguishable from real ranch dressing, but it tasted awful. Imagine drinking watered down, sweetened, carbonated ranch dressing - disgusting! It was horrible, mostly because it was sweet. Just thinking about it makes me want to gag all over again. The peanut butter was marginally better, and the mango slightly better than the peanut butter.

Then Allen decided to mix the peanut butter and the ranch, which just created an abomination that, of course, we all had to try. Please, take my word for it, peanut butter ranch is a flavor you can live your entire life without ever knowing exists. Trust me...

Mackinac Moment: Sunset Flight

My husband and I had doctor's appointments last week, and since the boats aren't running we had to fly to the mainland for our appointments. We were treated to a lovely sunset on our 5:45 pm flight to St. Ignace.

Fresh Air Aviation has several planes they use to "ferry" people across the Straits of Mackinac. The one we rode last week can carry seven passengers and their belongings. A round trip ticket is $108 for adults and that entitles the rider to 40 pounds (about 18 kg) of freight. If you have more to bring over, the additional weight costs $0.40 per pound. (That's why I stock up on chicken feed before the boats quit running.)

The flight takes less than five minutes and is a breeze. The only hitch can be the weather since the plane can't navigate in the fog or land on icy runways. This time of year we have to be flexible and be willing to change our plans if the planes aren't flying.

Capital City Comic Con

Back in February I posted about working on my Princess Leia costume, but I just realized I never posted pictures from the comic con. We had a blast! The Lansing Comic Con isn't huge, but it was a prefect con for us to start with. We had a great time. My favorite moment was getting my picture taken with a little Ghostbuster. She told me Princess Leia was her favorite Star Wars character and that she had been trying to catch up with me to get a picture. He dad was kind enough to snap a picture with my camera as well. I also got to hear Tim Russ, who played Tuvok on Star Trek Voyager, speak and answer questions; which made my nerd heart happy.

I went with my good friend, Keith. He's an incredible maker! He really doesn't appreciate it when I brag about his talents, but he really is incredible (and modest.) The man can make / build pretty much anything - his Boba Fett costume for instance. While he bought the jumpsuit and helmet, he 3D printed, built, and painted the rest of it. He even made all the hard parts of my costume, including my helmet, blaster, etc. 

Now we've got to start planning for next year! The nerd in me is thinking Star Trek, but who knows...

Atop Signal Mountain

Staying at Signal Mountain Lodge, we felt like we really should visit the top of Signal Mountain. Since we were traveling with an octogenarian, we decided it would be better to drive up the mountain rather than hike. We visited on a cloudy evening, but the view was still lovely. At least until the snow squall hit. We took a quick selfie and headed back to the car.

On my walk back I noticed this little metallic marker in the blacktop. After a little research I discovered it's a geological survey marker and there are over 200 of them in Grand Teton National Park. These metal disks are used to mark key points on the Earth's surface, and maintain a coordinate system to keep track of latitude, longitude, and elevation of specific places. After noticing this one, I tried to keep my eyes open for them as we traveled through the park.

Exploring Jenny Lake

Exploring Jenny Lake was something Allen's mom really wanted to do. Allen did a ton of research and knew if we wanted to get a parking spot, we'd better get an early start. (And he was right - when we left later in the day, the parking lot was full and people had parked up to 1/4 mile away along the sides of he highway.) 

We decided to begin with a boat ride across the lake. We could have hiked the 2 1/2 miles to the trailhead, but the ride was inexpensive and fun.

Jenny Lake isn't very big (compared to the lakes I'm use to) but like the lakes I'm use to, it's beautiful.

Once we reached the other side, we followed the signs for the hike up to Inspiration Point and Cascade Canyon.

We only hiked up 400 or 500 feet, but it was a bit of a challenge for those of us use to living virtually right at sea level. (Mackinac Island is only between about 550 and 900 feet in elevation.)

The elevation (7,200 feet) didn't give any of us altitude sickness, but we did feel it. Much of Jenny Lake is visible from Inspiration Point; the blue skies, blue water, and mountains made the perfect backdrop for pictures. 

K wasn't sure the hike was worth it until she sat down for a snack. The next thing she knew, a very curious chipmunk decided they were best friends and he needed a snack, too. Those three minutes made the whole climb up a positive experience for her.

At that point we split up. One group continued hiking up to Cascade Canyon, while the other group headed down to fish and keep Grandma company (her knees and back weren't up for the hike like that.)

Once up in the canyon, those folks got to see a mama moose and her calf!

As we headed back down I was just in awe of the beauty of the Tetons. Wyoming is just so very different from Michigan. Our highest point is about 1,900 feet, which is nothing compared to Grand Teton at almost 14,000 feet.

Once again, I took hundreds of pictures. Literally. I'm not ready to relocate, but I now understand why people love the mountains.  They are beautiful in pictures, but there's just something about seeing them with your own eyes that's different. I know I keep using "breathtaking" to describe them, but other words don's seem to capture the scale and grandeur of the Tetons. 

This picture, of a Ranger cabin on the lake, is one of my favorites from the entire trip, even if there isn't much mountain in it. Lol.

As we were taking photos, a lovely man offered to take a picture of all eleven of us. It was so nice to get a picture of our entire group! 

Jenny Lake was the perfect way for us begin our adventure. If you find yourself near Jenny Lake, I highly recommend spending the day here. I suggest arriving early - before 9:00 am if you want to park in the parking lot. Pack your lunch since only snacks and ice cream are for sale in the shops here. You're also going to want to bring water with you as you hike. If you're fair, like me, a hat and sunscreen are a must. According to this article, for every 1,000 feet you go up in altitude, the sun's UV rays increase 8% - 10%. You'll notice I have on long sleeves in virtually every photo from this trip - even when it was warm. Those shirts are for sun protection!

Signal Mountain Lodge

Our first stop was Signal Mountain Lodge, located inside Grand Teton National Park. We didn't stay in the Lodge itself, instead we stayed in cabins on the shore of Jackson Lake.

Starting in the 1920s the lodge was a place to stay for wealthy "outdoorsmen." Now it hosts visitors from all over the world and it was a great place to stay! Each family had their own cabin with a gorgeous view of the mountains and the lake. The cabins were well appointed with two comfortable, queen-size beds, a pullout couch and a full kitchen. In fact, we only ate out, at the Lodge twice.

And when I say "gorgeous view," I mean it! We got to wake up to this view each morning - and enjoy it while we drank our coffee.

To be honest though, we didn't have coffee outside every morning - one morning we woke up to 35 degrees and snow! Which actually was great because it killed all the mosquitoes.

I think I took about 100 pictures of those mountains. They were breathtaking.

Allen and I went on an early morning walk one day and stumbled upon hundreds of these flowers. Apparently, silver lupines grow wild all over Grand Teton. They were lovely.

While we were there, we even got to meet Hollywood the Elk - one of this summer's most famous visitors Signal Mountain Lodge. One morning he almost trapped Allen's mom, Janet, in her cabin! Luckily, she had a back door and was able to get out. (The park staff warn visitors to stay away from the wildlife as they are not always friendly.)

We saw him several of the mornings we were there; just quietly munching on his breakfast.

Missing in Action

Several people have been wondering where I've been lately. Well...

We went on a family vacation. My husband's mom took us all on a trip, and I've just been so busy catching up since we got back, I haven't had time to post about it. 

Now that I am reasonably caught up, and I have a few days off work, I'm on it.

My husband's family lives in southern Indiana, so we only get to see them a few times a year. That makes trips like this, when all eleven of us can spend time together, even more special. This year we visited Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. 

I had never visited that part of the country before and I can't even begin to describe how beautiful the mountains are. I mean, I'll always be a Michigan girl, and I can't begin to imagine not living near the Great Lakes, but Wyoming did not disappoint...

Totality 2024

Families don't get much nerdier than mine, so of course, we had to drive down into totality (again) for this year's eclipse. The moon arrived right on time and we were treated to about 4.5 minutes of wonder.

Totality was incredible, but I was surprised at how different it looked than in the 2017 eclipse. In 2017 the sun's corona visibly moved and appeared to have what looked like swaying tendrils. This time that wasn't nearly as pronounced, but we could actually see CMEs (coronal mass ejections); it was amazing!

Photo courtesy of Craig Turpin

We spent the rest of the day watching the moon and just enjoying the warmth of the sun.

Oh yes, and taking advantage of having access to a garage. (Something we rarely have.) Since I had access to a garage and a shop vac, I spent a good part of the afternoon cleaning out the car. That may not seem like an interesting thing to do, but since I live on a vehicle-free island, I rarely have the ability to leisurely clean out my car. So I made the most of the opportunity.