WCP #28: Vacation Wap Up - The West Coast

After leaving Petoskey, we drove down the coast to Traverse City. We attempted to stop @ the Music House Museum, but they didn't open for another hour & we didn't want to wait around. Coming through Traverse City was stop & go bumper to bumper as it was the Cherry Festival. The place was packed. There was going to be an air show over the water, but again, it would have been an hour wait so we kept on cruising. we hit Sleeping Bear Dunes around 1:00, drove the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive: 7.5 miles through the woods & dunes. I'd never taken that drive before... it was beautiful w/ some really cool trails. After that, we hit the Dune Climb. Stephanie blew out her flip-flop, so she & Isaiah stayed @ the bottom while I went up w/ Aiden & Solstice. They weren't as in to it as I expected, but it was fun... & sandy. Afterwards, we had some lunch & hit the road.

We took 22 down the coast to US 31 & followed it into Manestee. What a shit town. From now on, I'll go out of my way to avoid that town. we stopped there because we were beat & needed some sleep. The Days Inn was reasonable & had a pool so we checked in & watched some TV: Bye Bye Birdie & a Greatest American Hero marathon. The next morning, Monday, we started home. We stopped in Ludington for a couple hours & then dove south to Holland for lunch. I'd always been under the impression that Holland had lots of windmills & Dutch stuff in town, but I'd never realized that it was all in amusement park type places. Stephanie didn't know this either. How did we not know this. It'd be cool to check it out if we had the whole day to spend, but w/ only an hour or so, we skipped it & grabbed a bite @ some Irish pub where Aiden got to watch the Tigers game... possibly the highlight of his trip. After we ate, we hit the road & were home in 2 1/2 hours. Isaiah @ the Dunes View from the top - Solstice is a speck on the upper left More problematic Native American imageryat the beach in Ludingtonat a stature in Holland, MI
Over all, it was a fantastic trip, probably the best vacation we've taken as a family. next time, we plan to get a room in Ludington & maybe do Holland more thoroughly. I really recommend the roadside tourist traps too. They're so camp & fun, but on to the important info... Your Visions of Ypsi Player of the Day. From the get-go, I'd been picking Spain & The Netherlands to reach the final, but going into yesterday's match, I kind of assumed Germany would advance. I'm happy to say that didn't happen, & a big part of Spain's success was because of their rock in central defence. Not only did he score the winning goal, but his dedication & fight was fantastic from beginning to end. Therefore, Your Visions of Ypsi Player of the Day in Carles Puyol. His team congratulates him after winning the award