Once more into the breach . . .

The trouble with traveling so much in a year is you kind of get used to it.  Much like divers, there are certain decompression protocols that must be strictly followed or the lack of movement will cause symptoms like the bends ;-).  Fortunately, we got a chance to slowly decompress in late August following the Alaska trip.  Harry and Nancy Radcliffe invited us to spend a few days in Leland MI at their recently remodeled home.

Saddle up N6321T once again for a flight to Traverse City by way of Ashtabula County Airport, OH (home of a great little diner right downtown).    Of course by now, travel has become so old hat we have to find other activities to while away the hours.  

Growing up in Michigan, and later as a skier while stationed in the Mid-West, we've seen a lot of the state.  Nevertheless, the Traverse City and Leland area are very different in the summer.  We fly into Traverse City Airport to find Harry and Nancy on the ramp waiving us into a parking spot not more than 30 yards from the terminal.  They've apparently been negotiating with the ramp guys while waiting for us to arrive.  We stop to get some steak, salmon and assorted other things for dinner, and after a 30 minute drive to Leland, we arrive at the house.

We're staying upstairs so the tour starts there.  When Harry found this place it was apparently somewhat of a cabin with few windows, a dark wood interior, and a tight layout.  He's taken a number of steps to open the place up -- added a lot of windows and removed a lot of walls.  Coupled with light colors and cathedral ceilings, this is now a very open and comfortable place to live. 

The whole back of the house is one large "L" shaped room bending around to the right with (you guessed it) a lot of windows.  In the pic above, the main door is on your immediate left and the stairs above are on your right.  I say main door because in this area "front" is a relative term.  The main door is actually facing a wooded area which you can see two pictures below.  You get there by walking to the left of the driveway and up a bolder-lined walkway.

Continuing into the house there is a beautiful sitting area with great view. 

Just beyond a second sitting area is the dining and kitchen area. 

The dining room opens onto a tree-covered deck which will be the location of a nice dinner tomorrow night.  For now it's a great place for a steak dinner for just the four of us.  After dinner we head out for a short walk downtown for iced cream and a stroll about the docks (see  below).  Harry says this is a safe harbor, meaning there are only a very few boats docked here permanently.  The idea is if Lake Michigan to the west is hosting a particularly nasty storm, there is supposed to be room for a lot of boats to dock while it blows over. 

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The next day starts off with blue sky and sunshine.  There is a golf course not more than 50 yards from the house.  You have to go a ways further to get to the club house and #1 just to the south of Bartholomew Park (above).  The course is quite beautiful.  The front side to the south of the Park is fairly open so you have to work at getting yourself in trouble.  The back side to the north (and east of Harry's home) has extensive woods lining virtually every hole.  You don't have to hit very far into the woods to find marshy land on many holes back here, so directional control is substantially more important than distance most of the time.  Harry and I get around in pretty good order. 

Nancy and Ann, who have been walking around town, whip up some sandwiches to go when we get back and we head for their boat.  They are docked right down by the Mercantile (The Merc), the main and only grocery store in town.  This is a beautiful setting, relatively close to the main harbor to the west.  It's on the upstream side of a dam and a short ride down a channel to Lake Leelanau to the east.  The channel was formed around 1854 when a dam and sawmill were constructed.  This raised the water level 12 feet and caused three lakes along an inland river to become one - Lake Leelanau.     

Things are pretty laid back in this area.  We're giving the duck below good odds he'll beat us down the channel.

It's not clear when this race led to such anxiety.  Nancy consoled Harry as she talked him out of throwing himself overboard ;-).  

Seriously, though, it's nice to be out on the lake and Harry is having a good time taking us out while the area has a mind to show off.

The pic to the right is Bartholomew Park from just around the bend from the channel.  Keep that view in mind as we'll be coming back in an hour or so.

Nancy is particularly happy in this
area as she grew up just to the north of the golf course in the wooded home pictured here.  It was tough to get a good view from the boat because the telephoto required a bit more stability than I was able to manage, but this one is not bad.  Harry shuts down the motor for a while as we enjoy the sandwiches.

Harry has been fussing about the amount of gas and for good reason.  Seems it is difficult to know exactly how much gas is in the tanks any time other than when full or empty.  As a precautionary measure, we stop back at Bartholomew Park and Harry calls Nancy's brother John who is preparing dinner for the evening.  

John is a talented guy.  From what I could gather, he has been a general contractor, actually supervised the remodeling on the house while Harry was still working in DC, and more recently makes his way as a chef.  In between all these activities, he has also developed logistical skills; for example, delivering gas to the dock at Bartholomew Park.  With an extra 5 gallons of gas, we make our way back to the channel, . . .

. . . but not before Harry's hat attempts to drown itself.

We eventually find our way back to the channel.  There are numerous large and beautiful homes lining the channel on the way back to the dock.

These are just a few.

 John (white hat) has been busy all afternoon (aside from gas delivery ;-).  When we get back to the house he's well on the way to preparing a meal for eight with those salmon we picked up yesterday heading the menu.  Friends Ted and Tally, Nancy's mother and John join us on the deck for drinks and dinner.

John is an excellent chef, and the setting does its part to make for a very nice evening.

 

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Next up -- Mackinac Island.  Interesting place.  It sits between the upper and lower peninsulas, just to the east of the Mackinac Bridge.
We amble over to the Mackinac Island airport from Traverse City in just about an hour.  Harry is doing the flying because he has been twitching ever since we landed -- plus he wants to show us all the points of interest in the region.  The island is much like Tangier Island on the Chesapeake, or Ocracoke Island NC, in that you can only get there by air or boat (or an ice road in winter).  The airport is very modern and in good shape.  Notwithstanding, we made this trip just in time because they are about to close the airport for a few weeks to resurface. 

Most of the economy is dedicated to tourism.  Although there are a lot of historical points of interest, the most noteworthy facility on the island is the Grand Hotel (below) just outside the town on the southern end of the island.  You can see it in the foreground of the shot above -- the large white building this side and left of the harbor.  That's it below as well. 

The island is reminiscent of the late 1800s in some ways, and very modern in others.  On the one hand, other than the aircraft and boats that visit, and a few other exceptions, motorized vehicles have been prohibited since 1898.  Instead, everyone gets around by horse and carriage, bicycle, or by walking.  Snowmobiles are an winter exception.   

We hail a taxi and head for town.

 This is the Grand Hotel from ground level . . . 

 . . . and from just inside.  Then there is the local neighborhood.


The view of the bridge from upstairs is spectacular.

Heading into town, it is apparent folks here make a special effort to keep the place beautiful.

It is amazing how quickly you get used to the idea of seeing horse drawn carts and carriages making deliveries and hauling people.  It's pretty relaxing knowing no one is going to be doing more than about 10 mph on a bike anywhere on the island.

Folks just wander in and out of shops all up and down the streets, easily avoiding the slow moving traffic. 

It's only down at the waterfront that you see powered transportation.  The harbor is very nice and very photogenic. 

There is a rumor Al Capone spent some time vacationing on the island.  Whether that's true or not, it has not stopped local businesses from using the rumor to lure tourists.  Some are more susceptible than others ;-).

It's been a long day, so we call for another taxi.  This one turns out to be the rush hour milk run from downtown to the airport.  The added benefit is we get to see a lot of full time residents headed for their apartments and homes after a long day in town, some with groceries that just arrived by boat.  A lot of the residents in the summer will depart, much like cities in Alaska, when the tourist season is over and snow is near.

Back at the airport Harry gets us fired up and headed back to Traverse City.  The area continues to show off for us all the way home.  The pic below is from above of a harbor on a small island northwest of Leland.

That evening is a lot of fun.  Nancy calls ahead to find out what time one of their favorite restaurants closes for the evening.  Fortunately, we have just enough time to get there.  Good choice.  We're seated on a waterside wing of the restaurant and enjoy some great wine with some of the best perch we've ever had.

After dinner, Harry is fired up.  What appears to be aimless driving in the dark turns out to be a visit to a sliver of land they own which provides access to a dock.  Ann and I have always been especially pleased with how brightly the stars shine at our home in Waynesboro compared to virtually any developed area (including Waynesboro itself).  Well, we all make our way through some woods in pitch black darkness with flashlights until we get to the dock.  This is well worth the walk.  What a sight.  The sky is sparkling with billions of stars.  It almost glows.   

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We've been talking about the flight home for a few days now and watching the weather.  There is a front accompanied by a series of storms that has been slowly moving across the midwest.  On what turns out to be our last day in Leland, we're still not sure whether we're going to get blocked or not.  Harry and Nancy need to be back for some specific events, so getting caught on the wrong side of large storms is not an option.

The forecasts are somewhat unclear about what to expect.  There is only one thing to do!!

Head back out to the golf course for another 18 holes.  Nancy and Ann join Harry and I this time, with Nancy playing and Ann providing color commentary.  Nancy hits the ball well, and we make our way around in good time.  Now we have another decision to make.

We take another look at the weather.  We check the radar.  You can see a front moving in from the west.  Time to make another decision!!!  Wine tasting.

This time Harry unveils his restored, red VW bug convertible.  This just tickles the gals no end as they are going to do the driving while Harry and I sit in the back.

Apparently this is payback for all the times they've taken the back seats while Harry and I are either driving or flying us somewhere. 

Everyone else gets to do some tasting as I am our designated pilot for the afternoon, preserving our departure if we choose to do so.  

After picking up a few more bottles of wine, we finally make a departure decision.  The front has already passed us and it looks like a few drops are about to fall.  We head back to the house, grab our stuff, and head for the airport.  On the way we stop by a Mexican place Harry knows and we pick up an assortment of meals to go.  Departure is pretty easy.  We file for 9K direct MRB direct FDK.  Up here it is a pretty good bet we'll get what we ask for,  and that is what happens. 

We finally catch up to the front as we are reaching 9K.  Once past and in clear air, the gals (once again in the back ;-) break out dinner.  We have a small tail wind that shortens the flight.  The sun is beginning to set as we cross Lake Erie.  That's Cleveland just below off the right wing.

The rest of the flight is uneventful.  We are able to return a small part of the Radcliffes' hospitality when they spend the night with us in greater metropolitan Waynesboro before they depart back to Traverse City the next morning. 

This has been a great way to finish traveling this summer.  Harry and Nancy are great hosts, their Leland home is outstanding, and there is a lot more to do up there that we've had a chance to do in our short time.  Good thing its only a few short flights to get there.