Home Again From Our Canada to Maine To Canada Trip

 Home again, home again, jiggety jig... 

2,775 miles

We woke up the little Township Campground of Seney the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It was already 7:30 and we were surprised that we had slept in. But then we remembered also we are still on Eastern Time zone. So really by the time we get back later today and switch back to Central, it really meant we only slept until 6:30. LOL

We got all packed up and ready to leave and headed out to a beautiful blue sky and a few wispy clouds here and there. But the winds were going to be coming down from the Northwest and we were going to possibly have big thunderstorms later on by evening in Wisconsin. The temperatures were crazy in Wisconsin and the heat index had been up over 100 the day before. We were hoping that this front blowing in would bring some cooler weather as we worked our way back down towards home.

As we got near Manistique on US 2, we pulled over at the little wayside park that we had also utilized last month. It's got a beautiful sandy beach and picnic tables right up near the parking area. We whipped up some lunch and Steve took Binney for a little walk in the dog exercise location. 

This really was quite a view for the View!

At this wayside there is a cute little bubbling spring well that they have worked the piping into a protected enclosure. We didn't drink any of the water, but it's nice to have a source if you really need it.

Here it is bubbling and blurping and flowing over the edges. From there it flows down and across underneath the parking lot out right out into Lake Michigan. 

We popped back in and put away our dishes and it was time to head on towards home. Once we hit Escanaba, it's just like home stomping grounds. The stretch on M35 between Escanaba and Menominee, Michigan hosts five of our most favorite campgrounds. Four of them are right along on the waters of the Green Bay and the fifth one is off in the state forest by Cedar River.

We did one little pit stop in Marinette, Wisconsin to pick up a few more fresh groceries from our favorite store. Now we could head on to Oconto!!! 

There's no place like home... 

While driving, were very careful not to mention the word "Home" or "Front Porch" or "Backyard" or any of those other keywords that would get Binney all hyped up and upset. 

The only time we said the word "Home" is when we actually pulled into the driveway! Her ears perked up and she looked around. I lifted her out and set her down in our own driveway. She sniffed and sniffed and then looked up at me with what I swear was a huge GRIN on her face!! 

She walked on the sidewalk over to the pergola and stopped and looked around like "I can't believe this! I didn't think I was ever coming back here!"

I got her into the house, turned on our water (because we always turn it off when we leave for long periods of time in case of any broken pipes) and filled her doggie dish. She was soooooo happy!

We quickly unloaded what was left in our motorhome refrigerator and freezer. There wasn't too much left, as I had planned really well strategically with meals and meats from the freezer at home.

We also carried in the dirty laundry and Steve emptied the last of the fresh water out onto the driveway and into the grass. Out came the last few things from the cabinets and drawers that needed to be carried in.

Everything at home was just perfect. We turned all of our inside and outside security cameras from vacation mode and put them back to our normal settings. 

We harvested a bunch of the tomatoes out of the backyard. We had the neighbors picking them, as well as the grandkids, to keep up with the production all month. For lunch today we are having BLT sandwiches!

Our neighbor Adam had been taking care of our lawn for us while we were gone. Here he was finishing up one more time of cutting, even though we were already home. We told him not to worry, we would take care of it now. But he wanted to finish like he had agreed. What a nice guy! Felt kind of funny to have a "gardener" out there taking care of our yard when we were carrying things into the house. 

All in all, it was a wonderful trip. We reflect on the fact that it is not so much the destinations that we look forward to, it is the entire journey.

Our highlights were:

• Meeting up with my sister and brother-in-law en route across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan as they were heading home from doc appts in the Lower Peninsula.
• Crossing the Mackinac Bridge
• Finding our most favorite campsite in the Ossineke State Forest
• Meeting up with fellow RV bloggers Al and Kelly of the Bayfield Bunch at Pinery Provincial Park in Ontario Canada
• Seeing Niagara Falls from the Canadian side
• Meeting with Hilary of the Crazy as a Loom weaving studio in Eastern New York State
• Having lobster in Maine
• Staying on a couple islands in the middle of the St Lawrence Seaway
• Crossing over the border between the United States and Canada four times with absolutely no complications!! 

TOTAL MILES COVERED WERE 2,775

DIESEL FUEL $801.35

CAMPGROUND FEES $631.31 (most campground fees were at Canadian rate, but our credit card adjusts them to US rates, so about 30% less than that total)

BOONDOCKING AND MOOCH DOCKING FIVE NIGHTS

PROPANE $31.52

TOLLS $24

RESTAURANTS $86.83

FOOD I'm not going to really count food because most of it we brought with us. We strategically planned our freezer and packed things as tight as possible. We came home with three meals worth of meat from what we started with after 24 days. We did stop to purchase some fresh vegetables and milk and bread along the way. But we would have done that if we were staying at home too. 

And the memories.... PRICELESS!!