Fall festivities and fun adventures

Happy Sunday and Happy Halloween!  October has been a whirlwind.  It's hard for me to believe that we've already reached the end of the month.  The weather has been so wonderful and I loved that I was able to continue to wear shorts well into the month due to our mild temperatures.  The weather is getting cooler now, and with the cooler nights, the Fall colors are finally starting to show, although we still have lots of green around here.  I think that that will change quickly as the weather continues to get even colder over the next week.  But I'm glad we've had a wonderful month that has allowed us to get out and enjoy some fun.

We've spent several of our weekend days enjoying Fall themed fun along with some geocaching.  A couple of weeks ago we headed to Frankenmuth to attend Scarecrow Fest with Vanessa.  It was a dog-friendly event and I love to take advantage of as many of those as I can.  It was a sunny day with a little chill in the air and the perfect day for a walk around Frankenmuth.  We started our visit with beignets followed by a try at the pumpkin catapult before taking a walk around town.

Peaches was pretty excited for a fun adventure and was just a little crazy, but I was happy that I could get her to settle down for a couple pictures.

After walking around town, we stopped for lunch at a food truck and Peaches was pretty happy to share our cheese curds.  And can you even say you've been to Frankenmuth if you don't take your picture with the Zehnder's chicken?  We finished the day picking up some geocaches around town before making the drive home.  It had been a great day of fun.

During the the work week, Peaches enjoyed our mild weather by spending lots of time outside while I was busy working.  Her daily routine had never included so much time staring at the tree waiting for squirrels, but it became a regular occurrence throughout the month.   

She also got to join me for some work travel throughout the month, definitely not a normal occurrence for us either.  But several factors made it necessary for her to travel with me and I have to say that I'm glad that she did.   While I didn't know how it would work out, I should have known that Peaches would just go with the flow and make the best of the travel.  I really think she enjoyed it.  

Having Peaches join me for my travel really helped encourage me to get out and find interesting places near where we were staying.  Nights that would have been spent sitting in a hotel room were instead spent exploring.  We found some fun, interesting, and historical places and got in some really nice walks too.  

One night we stayed just outside of Toledo in Perrysburg, Ohio and I was surprised to find a War of 1812 Fort and lots of other War of 1812 history...and I even learned that the town was named after Commodore Perry.  I've been traveling there for work for years and never knew!  We also found some fun geocaches and a great new Mexican place for dinner.

I'm really glad she got to join me because I think it made the transition back to in-person meetings a little easier.  Every day really is better with a dog.  And Peaches loved the comfy hotel bed!  

On our way home from Toledo, we avoided a traffic back-up on US23 and took a detour down some country roads which ultimately led us to the small town of Stockbridge.  We decided to make a stop in town for our walk so we could enjoy the fun Fall displays around town by all of the light posts. 

There were some really cute, unique, and creative displays.  Peaches was so excited to be checking out a new place and I really enjoyed all of the displays. 

Another fun Fall part of life that we don't experience in Lansing...there were lots of tractors and combines driving through town while were there.  Definitely the sign of a small farm community.

After another busy week of work and work travel, I was happy when we reached the weekend.  We had a big weekend full of adventures planned.  On Saturday, we headed to REO town in Lansing to attend the Halloween dog trick or treating event that they were having.  This was a new event this year, and it was the perfect place to see how Peaches would handle of the excitement and other dogs.  She did great!

She caught on quickly to the fact that random strangers were going to give her treats and was excited to greet everyone.  She made friends with some other dogs along the way, but I think she may have enjoyed the pumpkin pie making station best of all.  We enjoyed a nice walk around REO town, checking out some of the vendors there, and just being outside on a nice Fall day.  It was a great way to spend our Saturday afternoon.

On Sunday we headed out for a geocaching adventure with Vanessa.  Our goal for the day was to pick up geocaches in Allegan and Cass counties so that Vanessa and I could both complete our goal of geocaching in every Michigan county. 

Our first stop of the day was Saugatuck Dunes State Park where we had a nice walk through the woods and along the dunes out to Lake Michigan.  Peaches was crazy and loved being out in the Fall woods, and we made our first geocache find of the day here to complete finding a cache in Allegan county.

We spent a little time walking along the beach and enjoying the Lake air.  There is never a bad day on the Great Lakes and I left there feeling happy and refreshed.

We spent a little time exploring the area around Saugatuck, picked up a few geocaches, and grabbed some lunch before continuing our journey South to South Haven.  We had a nice walk around South Haven and enjoyed a nice walk out to the lighthouse before it began to rain.  Luckily we made it back to the car before the rain really started to fall.

It was now raining quite hard as we continued our drive South to Cass county.  While the rain was coming down pretty steadily, we were lucky to find an easy geocache in Dowagiac and complete our our goal of caching in all 83 Michigan counties.  The radar showed that the rain was going to continue, so we ended our adventure and started the journey home.  We'd been successful in reaching our caching goal and pooping out Peaches.  I call that a good day.

Monday arrived and with it another trip for work.  This trip would take us away from home for two nights.    The first night we stayed in the Livonia area for the night.  It had been a rainy day, but thankfully the rain stopped around 5pm so we were able to get out for a nice walk around town.  The Fall colors were starting to pop out and we found a fun Halloween display made with bales of straw.  Peaches was not happy that I made her stop for a picture.  She was having a great walk and just wanted to keep sniffing.  

After a nice walk, picking up a few geocaches, and picking up dinner, we settled into our room for the night.  Peaches made herself right at home while I did a few more things in preparation for my work meeting the next morning.  She was really get the hang of life on the road!

Tuesday was a long day with a full day meeting, followed by a short happy hour, and then travel to Troy for the night.  We made a smooth drive from Livonia to Troy and settled into our room early enough to get out for a little adventure.  If Peaches hadn't been with me, I probably would have ordered some room service and stayed in for the night, but Peaches had waited patiently for me all day, so I knew I owed her a nice walk.  

We headed out for a brisk, windy walk around our hotel with no exact plan.  We had a great 4 mile walk and returned to the room feeling refreshed and ready to settle in for the night.  I ordered food from the bar in the lobby of the hotel and enjoyed a nice quiet dinner in my room with Peaches snoring away next to me.  It had been a long day, but I was so thankful that she was there with me.  I think she was happy to be there too.

I had another long day on Wednesday and I was exhausted by the end of the day.  Once the meeting ended, I was happy to get on the road and get home after three days away.  We made the long drive home from Troy and we were both happy to be home.  While I would have been happy to take a hot shower, put on some PJs, and settle in for the night, I knew that I had to get Peaches out for a walk.  We had a really nice walk around our neighborhood and went farther than I had planned, but it was so nice to be walking around our own neighborhood again.  After our walk, we had a quiet evening at home and were in bed early.  Work travel is exhausting!

Thursday brought us a beautiful sunny afternoon, so I decided to take Peaches for a walk at Benjamin Davis Park on my lunch.  The trees are really getting pretty there and we haven't taken a walk there in awhile, so there was lots of stuff for Peaches to sniff.  It was just what we both needed.

Friday brought us another rainy day, but I had big plans for Peaches to go to Old Town for the annual Howl-o-ween dog trick or treating event.  This event has been a favorite of mine for years and I have attended every one since the very first event many years ago.  We arrived at the very beginning of the event because I know how busy it gets later in the evening.  I'm glad we showed up when we did because not only did we avoid the larger crowds, but we also were able to finish trick or treating before the rain really started to fall.  Peaches had a great time and was such a good girl.  I'm very proud of how well she did and look forward to taking her to this event for many more years.

Saturday morning we spent some quiet time at home before heading out to pick up our daily geocache and get in a little walk before the big Michigan vs. Michigan State football game.  We enjoyed a nice walk around Holt and found some interesting fungus while out, including the biggest puffball I've ever seen.

After a busy couple of weeks, a quiet day with no pressure to do anything was so nice.  I was able to spend some time getting things done around the house, did some garden clean up, and began to prep for my Sunday plans of doing some meal prep and baking.  Looking ahead at the weather, some soups, stews, and baked goods all sound pretty amazing and I was excited to spend some time on Sunday working on them.

While our Sunday plans do include some meal prep for the week, we are also really going to make the most of a quiet day at home.  Of course, I'll get Peaches out for a walk and we'll have fun with our trick or treaters this evening, but I'm most looking forward to a quiet, restful day at home.  It's something we haven't done in awhile.

It's been four weeks since we said goodbye to our Maddie, and honestly, until this weekend we've been so busy between work and work travel during the week and Fall festivities over the weekends that I'm not sure I've had time to fully process it.  But we are slowly settling into life as a duo and I think that keeping busy has been good for both of us.  But our work travel is done, all of our Fall activities have come to an end, and we are entering that in between holidays timeframe as the Fall season in Michigan slowly begins to shift toward Winter.  The days will be dark earlier, the trees will soon be leafless, and the potential for snow grows by the day.   While we'll continue to get out for our daily walks and some other short, fun adventures close to home, I'm hoping for some peaceful, quiet days at home to rest, recover, and refresh.  November seems like the perfect time to prepare to hibernate and after the crazy whirlwind that life has been this year, I'm ready for it.  

As we journey on

Two weeks ago, less than 24 hours after losing Maddie, Peaches and I headed North for our annual October vacation.  This year our vacation was going to take us across the UP and I think the timing of it couldn't have been better.  While I had hoped there would be three of us on this trip, the week away from home was just what Peaches and I needed.  

When planning this trip, I had planned shorter stays in a few different locations around the UP.   It had been planned to be a very Maddie-friendly trip.  And while she didn't make the trip, I think that it worked out perfectly just the way it was planned.   

On day one, we made good time and after a quick stop at the Mackinac Bridge, we headed West to Rapid River to check in to our room for the next two nights.  We arrived with plenty of time to make the drive to Escanaba to take a nice walk around town and get some Mexican food for dinner before heading back to our room for the night.  It had been a deafeningly quiet trip North and as we settled into our room, the quiet was noticeable there too.    It is strange how much the loss of one little dog can change so much.

We had a relaxing night and woke up to a gray and drizzly day, but we were refreshed and ready for some adventures.  Since we were on the South side of the peninsula, I decided that we'd get out to explore Fayette.  It is a great State Park, and Peaches and I were happy to go visit, hike some of the trails, and do a little geocaching.  We spent our morning there, and after our visit we traveled South to the end of the Garden Peninsula to see what we could see.  It was the first time I'd ever traveled to the end of the peninsula and the little fishing town located there.  While there wasn't anything to do along the way, I still enjoyed the drive and the views.

We then began our trip North toward Munising, which is where I planned to spend our afternoon.  We traveled West on US2 to one of my favorite UP roads, Forest Highway 13.  FFH13 travels through the heart of the Hiawatha National Forest with so many beautiful views.  We stopped a couple of times along the way, but my favorite stop allowed us to get out for a hike on one of my favorite trails in the area, Bruno's Run.  As we parked and got out for our hike, I realized that while Imke, Maddie, and I had visited this trail over the years, Peaches had never hiked on Bruno's Run.  This was one of several firsts for me and Peaches on this trip.  

After finishing our hike, we continued North on FFH13 toward Wetmore and the Pictured Rocks lakeshore.   As crazy as it seems(at least to me), we haven't spent any significant time at Pictured Rocks in nearly three years.  While I made Winter trips to Munising in 2019 and 2020,  our last time in the Miner's area of Pictured Rocks was with Imke in October 2018.  I knew it was time for us to get back out there to explore and to give Peaches the opportunity to enjoy the area as much as the other girls had over the years.  

I was pretty excited that since we were last there, the trail to Miner's Falls had now become dog-friendly.  So of course we had to make the hike out to the Falls, another first for me and Peaches.  She was really well-behaved despite all of the other dogs on the trail and even made a couple doggy friends along the way.  It was a great hike.

Our next stop was Miner's Beach.  Of all of the beaches that I have visited across this country and our lovely State, Miner's Beach is hands-down one of my top three.  We arrived at the beach and I was so happy that we were completely alone.  This is one reason that I love this beach-the solitude.  I allowed Peaches to go off leash to explore a bit and we climbed along the rocky shore, over Elliot's Falls, and in the Lake.  It was beautiful and so good for the soul.  

A couple of hikers from the North Country Trail came out of the woods and onto the beach and we had a brief conversation with them before we headed further down the beach.   For the first time ever,  I walked the entire length of the beach before heading back up to follow the North Country Trail back to the car.  I love this section of the NCT and I have missed it so much.  

After getting back to the car, Peaches and I sat in the car and had a snack before heading on for a quick stop at Miner's Castle.  

And we couldn't leave the area without a stop at Munising Falls and Wagner Falls.  We had had a wonderful afternoon at Pictured Rocks, but it was time to head back to Rapid River for the night.  

After our second night in Rapid River, we woke up ready to continue our journey through the UP.  We stopped for breakfast at Jack's and then headed West.  Our first destination of the day-the Porcupine Mountains.  While it was slightly out of the way, I wanted to check out the colors in the area and I wasn't disappointed. 

It was a beautiful day at Lake of the Clouds and we enjoyed a short hike while we were in the area. While we only spent about an hour there, I wasn't disappointed that we had made the trip.

As we left the area, we made a stop to explore Bonanza Falls.  We were able to climb out on the rocks and explore the Falls up close.  What a great little Falls.  

As we continued on our way, we made a stop at Twin Lakes State Park for another hike and some geocaching.  The color here was outstanding and we met a fellow GSP owner who we had a wonderful conversation with before we finished our hike and then continued on our way.

After a quick stop at Four Suns in Hancock to pick up dinner, we finished our journey to Copper Harbor and checked into our room before sunset.  Peaches was pretty pleased with the view from our room at the King Copper.

 

Our first morning in Copper Harbor was beautiful and we woke up with plans to make the most of our day.  Of course our first stop was at Jamsen's for a turnover and Peaches was happy that I shared.

We continued our day with a walk around town and then headed out for a walk at Hunter's Point.  While Peaches has been there before, our trips have been slow and short and she's never had the chance to truly explore the paths and beach.  We made the most of our time there, climbing rocks, wading in the lake, and enjoying a break at the point.  I am so glad we got the chance to really enjoy this gem.  I love this place and didn't realize how much I had missed being able to explore it all.

We ended the day with a trip up Brockway Mountain and one last walk around town at dusk.  We spent a lot of time on our feet that day and had hiked over 10 miles.  Boy was I sore by the end of the day!  

The next morning we headed to Fort Wilkins State Park to do some more hiking.  I'd never hiked all of the trails around the park and thought it would be a good way to spend the morning.  I loved the trails there and even found a secret spot that I can't wait to visit again.  

We enjoyed a take out lunch from the Mariner at the Lighthouse overlook, ran into Tom and had a nice chat, spent time at Lake Manganese, and enjoyed some quiet time sitting out in the yard a the King Copper.  We had another great day of hiking and had plans for a nice trip to Great Sand Bay for sunset.

We were excited to see Bryce and Hope and for Peaches and Hope to have some fun running around at the beach.  We didn't get the chance to see Bryce and Hope much on this trip, but we were happy to spend this time with them and the sunset didn't disappoint either.

Friday morning arrived and it was time for us to pack up and leave Copper Harbor.   We had had a wonderful time there and the weather had been perfect, but Friday morning was gray and rainy.  We made one last trip for a turnover, a quick stop at Genny for a couple of drinks, and then made a last drive around town.  

We had a few hours of driving for the day before we would reach our Aribnb for the next two nights and I hoped to make a few stops along the way.   With lots of traffic and rainy weather, our travels went slower than expected, and we were delayed even further when we stopped to help a loose dog running along the highway.  Thankfully another couple also stopped and we were able to get a hold of her and help her back to her family...her name?? Maddie.  I was relieved that we were able to get her home quickly, gave her a quick pat on the head, and then continued on our way East.

We finally reached the Bay Mills/Brimley area and got out to stretch our legs.  The Point Iroquois Lighthouse is one of my favorites and the area was so pretty with the colors.  Peaches also enjoyed our visit to the lighthouse.

 

Our next stop was Mission Hill and the Mission Hill Cemetery.  I have loved this overlook for over 30 years, ever since my first trip to the UP.   It holds many special memories for me and I was happy to be there again. 

We continued toward the Brimley State Park for a quick hike and a little geocaching.  The rain was picking up so we didn't stay long, but we enjoyed our stop.    It was now time to continue our journey to our Airbnb.

  

  

We'd had a good day so the rest of the drive East was a quiet one.  

Finally we reached at our home for the next two nights, a lovely home with beach front property along the St. Mary's River South of Sault Ste. Marie.  We spent the next two days walking the private road, sitting out at the beach, and enjoying the solitude of the area.  What a beautiful, peaceful way to end our vacation.  

 We had had a marvelous week in the UP, but Sunday morning arrived and it was time for us to pack up to start our journey home, but if you know me, you know we can just head home without an adventure or two along the way.

Since we were so close to the Bridge, we were able to get to the Lower Peninsula early enough in the day to spend a little time exploring Mackinaw City.  We had a nice walk around town and visited a few local parks and some historic sites.  Peaches enjoyed some time in Lake Huron and I was happy that it was sunny and warm still.  

We then headed to the West about 20 miles to drive the Tunnel of Trees.  The drive was disappointing, but the last stop at the end with the lovely color and the lake view was pretty nice.  

After this stop we headed back to I75 to head South toward home.  Peaches was sound asleep quickly and the rest of the drive home was quiet and uneventful.  It had been a great week in the UP and I was sad it had come to an end, but I was so glad that I had gotten this time with Peaches.  We made some marvelous memories that I will never forget.  

The past week has been crazy.  Within 24 hours of arriving home from vacation, I was back on the road for a work meeting.  While I wouldn't normally have brought Peaches along for a work trip, this time she got lucky and was able to join me.  Other than working and picking up some Mexican food for dinner, our Monday night was pretty uneventful.  But after our meeting on Tuesday, we made a nice visit to our friends Tom, Barb, and Sherman on our way home from Grand Rapids.  It rained most of the time we were there, but Peaches and Sherman had some fun and Tom, Barb, and I had a nice conversation.  It was the best way to end our work trip!

The rest of the week seemed to be extra crazy and with the added fact that it gets dark so much earlier now and that we had several rainy days, we didn't have any big adventures, but we did get out for our daily walks.

Friday I was able to get out in the garden to pick some of the goodies that remain.  With the mild weather we're having, I expect to get a few more harvests from the broccoli, tomatoes, and celery.  

Peaches has also started a new nightly ritual of squirrel hunting in the backyard.  She'll spend most of the early evening out here, even in the rain, waiting for that pesky squirrel.  

I also had the opportunity to help two wonderful dogs, Roy and Sage, on Saturday morning as they were pulled from a Michigan shelter and taken into rescue with ISR.  Both of them are now safe and happy in foster homes.

And to end our Saturday, Peaches and I headed out for a walk along the Hayhoe Riverwalk.  The gray skies and wind made it a bit chilly, but she was having the best time.  

  

The colors along the trail are just starting and most of the trees in the area here are still pretty green.  Our weather has remained unseasonably warm, but things will start to cool down more as we get past the middle of the week.  I have enjoyed the warmer than normal Fall and the later color.  If every Fall could be like this year, I might even start liking Fall!

We have some more Fall fun planned over the next couple of weeks as we continue to adjust to life as a duo and I look forward to sharing them with you.  Thanks for continuing to follow along!