The man cannot be deterred!

My man cave

A little rain -- just an annoyance! Silly?  Maybe -- but I did convince Alicia to join me under the umbrella!   Update:  it's been raining a little too much now... not something that we have encountered over the past number of trips. 

Why are we in Grayling?

For the past few summers, we have been trying to explore new areas that offer some interesting fishing ... most recently, Arkansas, a stop along our route west (and sometimes back east) the last couple of years. In talking to some folks, they suggested that upstate Michigan offered some interesting spring creeks (rivers mostly fed by springs): the Manistee, Au Sable, and Pere Marquette.  That was good enough for us to give it a shot! So here we are in Michigan.

We knew that the weather would be like New England but accepted that as part of the "Adventure". Well this post is being written as we sit out a full blown rain storm.

Kevin in the Manistee

Alicia in the Au Sable

Kevin in a different section of the Manistee

What to do when the fish don't want to play

The art found in not fishing.

One Happy Camper

We went to K-Mart to buy replacement Fix a Flats (2) ... as Alicia went looking for a flame diffuser.

I had to smile as I saw her with a large box --- a new Coleman stove. How to keep you wife happy? a new camp stove every 17 years.  Her big grin was the exclamation point.

What to do with a new stove, well, open it up and use it immediately.

Damn shiny new stove!

Breakfast -- spinach, mushroom and cheese omelet

OMG -- NOT AGAIN!

If you recall the past few summers, these blogs contained a running account of tire related issues... from the @$%^%$^ suburban spare tire storage, to getting two flats at one time, to the 7" thingamajig  that caused another flat...

WELLLLLLL

Yup, it happened again!

The Tire Monitor light came on and I got out to check --- found a half flat tire. But we were prepared with "Fix a Flat" -- sprayed the stuff into the tire and sat back... damn, the stuff works. Drove back to town, and the pressure was good, and no further leaking. Added air (too late to get to a shop), and headed back to the campground, hoping the seal would hold over night, and it did! Like I said, the Fix a Flat is good. 

Got up in the morning, headed to the local tire shop and got it repaired.... 3 siding nails (from a nail string) were embedded in the tire.  We picked them up at the Fly Shop that morning; the Fly Shop is under construction.

So, I hope to never write about tires again! 

First Stop -- Grayling

Greetings from Grayling Michigan. Note: Grayling is a type of fish.

Grayling is in North Central Michigan about 3 hours from Detroit....  so in a way, we will be beginning and ending this trip in Detroit.

We departed "the cottage" in Connecticut and took our time to get here.  One night in a B&B in Dubois, Pennsylvania (is that do-boys or du-bwah?) and then one night in a B&B in Pontiac, Michigan. A few hours from drive from Pontiac and we arrived in Graying and set out to find a campground.

Needless to say, we try to balance campground selection: a nice spot, preferably with 4G access (which we can use for phone and internet). The first selection, about 25 minutes from town, was nice, but with little to no access, so we set off exploring a number of options and ended up 10 minutes outside of town in a nice site, with full 4G access. Close to Shirley's Diner and on the Manistee River across from Shel Haven, a kayak and canoe rental spot.

Shirley's is run by ... you guessed it ... Shirley, who helps you understand the menu, what's going on and why her breads and home cooking are the best.

Alicia said "Shel Haven has a Sh**load of boats". We then corrected that to a "BOATLOAD"

Now in fine Acadia National Park style, the first job was to tend to the fire. So, collected wood, set the fire, and made The Ever Beautiful Alicia (TEBA) very happy.

Okay, so now off to the local new brewpub... the Dead Bear (not the Dead Beer). The place was recently opened by Travis and his wife with a little help from Father in Law. Travis has been a home brewer and FIL really liked his beer. So, they got things started and it works. Seems to work well as the place was full of young guys... and with "high and tights".  Camp Grayling, a large National Guard facility, is 3 miles out of town.... and guys like beer. We had a selection but passed on the beer made with pigs' heads -- yup Pig Porter. 

Other beers had maple syrup, raspberries or serrano peppers, etc. To which I offer my comment: "Keep your weird stuff out of my beer!" No I do not want an orange slice with my wheat beer.

Starting position

As noted, this is not the Kentucky Derby, but there is a starting gate... the driveway in Saco, Maine.

Two different looks...... what it takes to live for 7 months and what it takes to live for 5 months.
We will be living out of the Suburban for the next 5 months. Relax... this is easy, we've done it before.

All the stuff for 5 months...

All the stuff for the other 7 months...

Big difference?? Well, we do not carry art with us on the summer trip!

... and they're off

It's not the running of the Kentucky Derby, but, if you are counting, it's the 5th season for Kevin and Alicia's tour of the western US.  - wait, it may be the 6th (?)  ...whatever...

Hopefully you can follow along with us as we report from the road.  This time, we will be adding to the blog and posting to FB. We need to do that since not everyone has a FB account --- TRUE!

Make it easy and remember to add notification on the blog.

And the name of the blog is Ending in Detroit --since, in fact, the tour WILL be ending in Detroit. And by odd circumstances, it may seem that it is beginning there too, as our first stop this year is Michigan! --- GASP, that's not in the western US!

This trip will be a lot like others in that we will be staying at B&B, camping, using OPH (other people's home -- housesitting), staying with friends, AIRBNB, etc. -- a smorgasbord of living arrangements.   ----  smorgasbord -- what a word!  I also may use "gobsmacked" now and then.

Today we left Saco ( but will be returning again for another winter) -- just hope that the house is still there upon our arrival.

First stop --- "the Cottage"  -- (unfortunately, we will miss the annual Acadia National Park gathering)... Popovers are on us!