Morning musings:
Went to bed last night and
woke up this morning in line with another time zone…that always happens when
heading back east. My body clock
acclimates so much easier going west than coming back east. It’ll take a few days and maybe some resolve
to get back to the sleeping rhythms of Eastern Standard Time…of course, the
fact that both of us tend to be night owls might throw a kink into the ‘early
to bed, early to rise’ plan we’re hoping to adopt.
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Fell asleep to the sound and
sight of a thunderstorm…woke up to sunshine and a bit of wind. Checked the forecast and rain is off the
screen for now.
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There
are many songs with reference to ‘home’ in the title that I could have used for
today’s post title…we’re only 200 miles from home and plan to get there
sometime this afternoon. Homeward Bound
(Simon and Garfunkel), Home (Phillip
Phillips), Our House (Crosby, Stills,
Nash and Young) and Take Me Home Country
Roads (John Denver) are just a few that would have been appropriate. But this title works for my thoughts of the
last day or so.
No
matter how anxious I am to get away or how good the time away has been, as soon
as we turn our thoughts toward the return trip I feel the pull. It gets stronger as we get closer to Michigan…it’s like
an invisible rope is pulling us toward home.
A horizontal gravitational force of sorts. Makes perfect sense to me.
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4 p.m.
Update:
We are currently hanging out with a whole lot
of other people at the southbound rest area on the north side of the Mackinac
Bridge. The bridge is partially closed
due to high winds up to 50 mph…only empty pickups, passenger cars
and vans are being allowed to cross. The rest of us are left to wait until the
winds calm down. Bah!!
Stopped
at Lehto’s for a pasty then sat in a line of vehicles for over 35 minutes
waiting to cross the bridge before we were told to turn around or go to the
rest area. It’s not like there another
way over to the other side…😏
Even
though it’s a spectacular sight, watching huge waves crash into the bridge gets
old real quick. Especially when you want
to cross that bridge but can’t because the wind causing those waves is what’s
keeping you off the bridge. So I decided
to get the computer out and make productive use of my time.
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At the
beginning of this trip, I wrote that I considered the Mac Bridge the
Gateway to Adventure but I’m having a hard time finding the adventure in being
stuck at the Gateway. Sixty more miles
and we’re home…3.5 miles of water in the Straits of Mackinac is preventing that
from happening. Feeling more than a
little frustration at watching some people cross while we were turned
away. This would sit better with me if everyone had to wait. Just sayin…
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4:30
p.m. Update:
Tired
of just sitting around…time to go lose some money at the St. Ignace Casino.
Evening
Update:
Weather
was sunny and amazingly warm considering the time of year and the ferocity of
the wind. There are several areas along
US 2 where the lakeshore is close to the road.
Been on that section many times before and I know to look for sand on
the road. So I was prepared to be
sandblasted by beach sand but I was not expecting the waves to be crashing up
and over the rocks to send spray across the road, too. And bonus! there were times when we got
pelted by both sand and water at the same time. 😐 That was a brutal 5 miles or so.
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9 p.m….Sitting
in a hotel in St. Ignace right now. Our pockets
are a little emptier because of the casino thing and bellies full because we
just got back from supper. We kept
checking the bridge website to get updates…still partially closed. After a couple of hours at the casino, we
walked outside to check the wind…still blowing like crazy. 😕 Then we sat outside
to discuss our options and all of them involved taking a chance. What tipped the scales was me getting
cold. It was after 7 o’clock, it was
getting dark, the temperature was dropping, and the bridge was still
closed. Time to get a room before there
weren’t any to get because they’d be full of stranded people. One last look at the bridge website…still
closed. Made a call and got a room. Kim checked the bridge site again while we
were eating…it was downgraded to ‘wind escort’.
It gave a list of high profile vehicles being allowed to cross with an
escort. Don’t know whether we’d be able
to cross but we’re okay with being in a warm room for the night. Will get up in the morning and finish our
trip. So I’ve made peace with the fact
that the end of the day didn’t end the way we had planned. End of pity party….
As of 11 p.m., the bridge has been downgraded
to a ‘High Wind Warning’; we should be able to cruise on back home tomorrow
morning. There are big green areas on
the radar map right now so it may be a wet ride. But that pull to get home is so strong….😉
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Small
Town of the Day:
We encountered plenty of small towns today
on US 2…but none had a population sign.
I have no small town of the day.
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Friday
miles: 145 miles
Total
miles: 2,826 miles
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