| 7/13/2013 |
7/21/2013 |
94
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VanSickle - ###
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Sicken - ### |
WAY better than last visit!!! Out site was across from the dump station, but the smell was bearable. We were also across from the pool/arcade, where Joey spent quite a lot of time, but he beat the Jurassic Park III arcade game!! We rode out on the dunes as well as swam at the lighthouse beach. Lake water had a LOT of algae in it, but after going out 30 yards it was clear. Matt, Josh, Jay, and Branden golfed twice, once at the Golden Sands and then at the Double J Ranch. While the guys golfed, the kids and womenfolk swam at the indoor water park. Food at the ranch could have been better. We floated down the Big Sable river at Ludington State Park, and Josh took Nick, Vanessa, Jake and Joey Antique-ing later. No death marches or fishing this year. The weather was REALLY hot and muggy. It was so hot that we kept losing power in the camper due to everyone running their AC! We complained to the staff, but were told "we just upgraded our system, we will get it fixed!" BAH. Joey, Ellie, Jeani and Josh all rode the Zip Line, played putt-putt, and rode in the go-karts at Craig's Cruisers.
NOTES=2013 - Sickens, VanSickles, Thomas, Lewtons, and Angyals went on this trip. |
| 8/07/2021 |
8/14/2021 |
143
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VanSickle - ###
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Sicken - ### |
08/07 (SAT) - Did not start as quickly as I had hoped. We traveled all the way through Richmond and had to turn around at 32 Mile Road because Joey forgot his phone. When we got home, Jeani and Ellie all had to go to the bathroom! Then when we reached I-69 at the Memphis/Emmett entrance it was closed due to construction! We had to get on East bound then exit at the next exit and turn around. AGAIN! WTF! We then started making good travel time after that. Only stopped for food and potty break once, just outside of Lansing. Then another stop near Whitehall for fuel, since I burned a 1/4 tank of gas backtracking! T
Then once we arrived at our site we had to back in, a minor inconvenience, but then we found that our power box was jacked up! The receptacle for 30amp service was installed upside down and the breakers were arcing! Kevin and I set about fixing the stupid plug orientation and then he almost killed himself when the box practically exploded. Jeani and I had to go back up to the office and tell them that the box was faulty. an hour later we had stable power and were finally able to relax. The Thomas's are on 143, the Lewton's are on 144, the Sickens are on 142 and Grandma Kevin is on 131. The Martinelli's and Gargano's are staying in the duplex/house near the entrance.
08/08 (SUN) - It stormed bad last night. Lots of lightning and thunder and rain. I swore I heard dripping inside the camper but was just the heavier drops from the trees above and not the steady rain. In the morning I made breakfast burgers in the rain. Then thankfully the rain stopped, and it just remained muggy for the rest of the day. Josh and the women folk (Jeani, Amy, Kelly, Ellie, and Grandma) all walked up to the boardwalk shops and a few other stores along the main drag. Grandma lost her wallet because she was using her "fanny-do". I asked what that was, and she said, "oh, it's because the pack sticks out father than my fanny do." Oh, Lord. Kevin borrowed my truck and drove around town looking for it. They found it in the last store we went in. We all had the chicken from the BBQ Chicken Shack place on the boardwalk. It wasn't too bad, but it wasn't the World�s best. We then visited with the Martinelli's and Gargano's before heading back to batten down the hatches because another round of storms was coming.
08/09 (MON) - No storms last night, but it was raining/sprinkling in the morning. the plan for today was to go to Ludington and do some shopping at the following places:
Vintage Nutz - Opens 10am - 212 W Ludington - Not as great as I thought it was going to be. Lots of vinyl and hardly any CD's.
The Windowsill used books - Opens 10am - 107 S James St. - Still a great place to visit but the Sci-Fi/Fantasy section left much to be desired. Very sparce.
Backstage Hobbies - Opens 12pm - 119 S James St - Awesome place for RPG and video games. I was able to find my Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 edition Players Handbook, DM Guide, and Monster Manual!
The Book Mark - Opens 7am - 201 S Rath Ave - New bookstore nothing to report.
We had chicken quesadillas for dinner and it rained from about 5:30pm to well after midnight.
08/10 (TUE) - Plan to go to the beach today. It�s supposed to rain. We'll see how that goes. What a hot and muggy day! The humidity was pretty high but the temps were in the mid 80's. Kevin and Grandma made breakfast while Jay, and Matt got their machines setup for dune riding. The kids all went on a death march across the dunes while Jeani, Josh, and Kelly rode out to the beach with Jake in his truck. The water was nice and cool/cold but still warmer than Lake Superior. David, Andrea, and the girls finally showed up and are on site 67. They are staying in a tent further down the hill in the campground. We have been instructed to stay 6ft away and wear masks when around them because the scary Lambda variant is running rampant! Andrea wants us to wear masks even outdoors! Eff that. We were to have Summer Thanksgiving for dinner, which we did, at almost 9pm! It tasted so good! Then we were hit by some pretty high winds and lots of lightning/thunder. It was pretty intense, but we were able to batten down the hatches in plenty of time. Another night filled with rain, yippee.
08/11 (WED) - Nick and Gloria went to Ludington and found that all of the stores were closed due to a power outage because of the massive straight-line winds we had last night. There were a lot of branches down and leaves everywhere. Grandma had Jake climb up her ladder and check to see if there was a log on her camper. Matt and Amy took some damage to their main awning. 4' of it ripped off the camper and the support arm broke. John and Tracey lost a canopy as well. Matt, Jake, Jay, and Josh all went to the Hart Long Rifle Gun Range and shot several hundred rounds of bullets and had a blast! Pun intended. We shot down the 100yd lane at a couple of targets and a metal plate. Josh was the only one to hit the plate. Then we moved to the 50yd targets and Jay, Matt and Jake all took turns shooting at a bowling pin. Josh took the .22 revolver and shot at the metal bottle plates, SO cool! Then he took Jake's Sig to the 7yd lane and shot at a target and a dummy of questionable ethnicity. Lots of fun! The girls all went on a wine tasting tour with Kevin driving Josh's truck. Fox Barn Winery and Oceana Winery. Then we all came back and had steak dinner with Hassleback potatoes. (sliced with onions and butter). Finally, of course, a storm warning came up and we all had to batten down the hatches, again. This time the storm missed us to the south but caused the sky to turn a scary shade of orange and yellow. Kinda like being in a wildfire without the fire.
08/12 (THU) - Happy 21st Anniversary to Josh and Jeani! Today is another beach/dune day and rib smoking dinner! Grandma Kevin, Ellie, Deed and Co. are all going to Ludington to float. Matt made Breakfast Burritos. Instead of going to the beach, Josh, Jeani, Amy and Kelly all went to the pool and swam/floated. Ellie, Grandma and Kevin with Deed and co went to Ludington and floated down the Au Sable River. Joey and Matt went out on the dunes in Matt's Razr. Joey drove most of the time and got them stuck twice. Once he buried it to the frame the other it almost slid down into a stand of trees backwards. They had to be towed out. But then all was well. We had smoked ribs, corn on the cob and a five-bean side dish. Josh made a yellow cake dump mix with Faygo Twist (Sprite) and all agreed that it was delicious. Weather was gorgeous finally! Josh and Jeani went to the Sable Point Lighthouse and watched the sunset over Lake Michigan.
08/13 (FRI) - Overnight Holly developed Colitis or some such. She had to go out and poop 3 times and the specimen in the morning had blood in it.
Josh called the vet and they advised watching her closely and starting her on a bland diet. We are giving her cold dry Turkey and she is eating and drinking.
Possibly due to stress as all other symptoms (e coli, cryptosporidium, and giardia along with salmonella) have been eliminated. Josh was wiped out.
We had leftover breakfast burritos. Jay, Matt, Ryan, and John are all going golfing, while the rest of us stay back at camp and Rest & Relax and get stuff
packed for travel tomorrow. The Thomas's, Martinelli/Gargano's, Grandma and Kevin went on the Macwoods Dune Rides and then going to ride the go
karts at Craig's Cruisers, then the Island Putt Putt Golf Course. Ellie did the hamster wheel coaster twice in a row and loved it! The kids
stayed back and played some arcade games while Jeani and Josh walked back to camp. Later on, Joey and Ellie took their tickets back and got some trinkets.
08/14 (SAT) - Travel day - Going Home! Pulled out at 9:30 and arrived home at 2pm. Stopped twice, once for potty and once for fuel. |