Pinehaven - Farmersville, Ohio: Michigan Vacation

Saturday, July 17, 2021

Michigan Vacation - Day 4 (July 13, 2021)

This is an important day for me: it's my 72nd birthday.

And so our final night in Bear Lake was rainy. In fact it poured and stormed during the night. It sounded like our motel room had been moved to beneath a waterfall. By morning it was still raining, though not hard. We headed to the Lakeside Cafe for a birthday breakfast.

Have you ever seen a prettier omelette? I'm not sure how they gave it so much loft. One friend said it's simply whipped. I ordered a cheese omelette, wheat toast and hash browns. Tom bought this for my birthday. Thanks, Tom!

I shot this panorama at the public access point near the Dayton Club. Click on it for the full resolution photo.

It certainly wasn't a pretty morning. Fog was everywhere but at least the rain had stopped. So we headed to Manistee's First Street Beach.

This lighthouse is at the end of a long concrete pier.

The pier isn't very wide and not in the greatest shape. The sides angle down and the metal posts in the center offer trip hazards. But there's a sign warning walkers ahead of time. Every so often there was a metal ladder attached to the side.

This shot is looking back towards the shore. It was so foggy we couldn't begin to see the land. Back nearer the beach there were several groups of people fishing off the side.

We stayed at the Budget Host Alpine Motor Lodge just south of Bear Lake on US-31. The owners were very friendly and the room was clean. Pricing (with tax) was just under $150/night for two,

By afternoon the sun was breaking through and we headed to Pierport to enjoy some time on the beach. Other than a few nearby homes, there's nothing left but the beach. But Pierport has an interesting history, Click here to read about it.

Last stop: fill-up at Blarney Castle for the long drive home. Gas was $3.089/gallon.

That evening I was advised of the conjunction of Mars and Venus. The planets were to be visible at about 5 o'clock compared to the moon. It was a little early and the moon was already low in the west. I decided to wait a while and try again ... and also walk down to US-31 and north of the Alpine where I had a better view to the west.

And so here it is. Venus is down near the power line. I suppose it was still too bright to see Mars at all.

I had to laugh about a decal attached to the mirror at the Alpine. We had warning that fish were not allowed in the rooms (and probably not dog, either), nor was smoking or marijuana allowed. No problem! All we wanted to do was rest, sleep or take a shower when we were there.