A Walk on the Shores of Lake Michigan

A chilly and rainy weekend.

After delivering in Amherst, WI on Saturday morning, we drove over to Appleton and parked behind the Walmart. We just relaxed, napped, and had dinner. We needed a rest after driving all night long.

Sunday morning dawned another chilly and drizzly day. After grabbing some breakfast, we headed out to finish the 50 miles that were left to our reload.

On the way we drove around Green Bay, WI. We've never been anywhere near this part of Wisconsin, so it was all new territory with lots to take in. Green Bay was not nearly the size I expected for a city with a professional football team.

On over at Casco, WI where we were to load this morning, we parked at the mill there and examined our options for the afternoon. Casco, while a nice town to look at, only offered a pub for vittles and not anything else. However, I had made note that the shore of Lake Michigan was a scant 10 miles further east. And so, after a little persuading of the non-site see-er in our small touring company, we unhooked the trailer, and "bob-tailed" over to Algoma, WI.

It being a Sunday afternoon, most everything was closed here as well. It was almost spooky how deserted the streets were. We practically had the entire town to ourselves! All the little shops may have been closed, but the boardwalk and waterfront park was open. I'd never been to or seen the any of the Great Lakes before, other than a quick glimpse in northern Ohio as we passed by on the interstate a few years ago. I was amazed. Add some surf, seagulls, and a light house....it felt just like being at the beach...in winter.There were even some shells mixed in among the piles of pebbles that had washed up.The water just goes on and on, just like the ocean. Only difference is, Michigan's on the other side instead of Great Britain.It was very breezy, which is evident by my wild hair. The whole experience was worth it, but I have to tell you, I had some work getting all the tangles brushed out when we got back to the truck.Two more brave souls braved the cold and wind to do a little fishing. I enjoyed the walk on the beach, but I don't know that I could have done any fishing in that weather. They must be very dedicated...or desperate!After our walk on the shore, we drove through town and found an eating establishment that was open for business. Kind of an odd name for a diner in Wisonsin, but we fit right in with all the penguin decor inside, with our frozen fingers and toes. Fortunately it was toasty warm and we enjoyed thawing out over a yummy cheese pizza and cherry pie.This morning dawned clear, beautiful, and a little warmer with less wind. We were loaded and rolling by 6:30 (one benefit of coming east is the time change. It works against us, but in loading it works in our favor, giving us a head start on the day.) We're almost to Madison where we'll head south. We're going 40 miles out of route to avoid driving through the heart of Milwaukee and Chicago. While it would have been fun to see those cities up close and take pictures to share, we opted for making time and avoiding the gazillion toll roads around Chicago. We have to be in Nacogdoches, TX in the morning.