Fourth of July Week 2024 - Day 6

 Finally the 4th! I'm still getting used to the idea of not all being together at Gull Lake, but we did have a great day. It started early, because some people wanted to get up for the sunrise. Those people were able to fall right back to sleep...but not all of us. It wasn't much of a sunrise because it was very foggy, but seeing the sun slowly break through the mist was lovely.

I got in a quick solo walk before everyone was up, got a few groceries, then we were off on our Soo Locks boat tour! The weather was perfect and the passengers were in a holiday mood. Eddie and Mary got to go through the locks for the first time and everyone learned a lot.

We spent the afternoon at Sherman Park - we hadn't been in many years but it's a great place to go swimming, or as the kids told me, playing Ninja Warrior. After the park, we headed into town for the parade. It was our first evening parade, which was kind of nice! We ate hot dogs with all the best sides, the kids did poppers and sparklers, and then we got to watch another dazzling fireworks display. Happy 4th of July!

Setting out

Swimming with freighters

Waiting...and waiting...for the parade to start

Sparklers!

Fourth of July Week 2024 - Day 5

 We were all over today to ! We tried to get up extra early-ish, and packed up to go on the road. After much discussion and debate, our first stop was Dancing Crane for sustenance, then Upper and Lower Falls at Tahquamenon Falls (we'd never been to Lower Falls together, Bark Dock beach, Iroquois Point, and Monocle Lake. We decided on ice cream before supper because it was a long day! 

It was raining when we woke up, and although it sprinkled on and off, by the time we got to the beach it was sunny and warm. Nellie and Annie did all the driving, partly because it's a fun drive, and partly so that someone could sit in back to manage the conflict. 😬 I think we'll sleep well tonight!

Fourth of July Week - Day 4

Annie and I ran together at LSSU as early as we could get out, though I was kind of hoping she'd decide to sleep in because my legs are REAL sore after yesterday's hiking. Then Ethan arrived! When asked what he wanted to do while he was in the Soo, he said he wanted to do all the things we like to do. So we ate lunch, played in the lawn, walked downtown to watch boats in the locks, visited our favorite shops, got coffee and pasties, watched Full House, got dinner at Clyde's Drive-In, and skipped rocks at Rotary Park.

Love this view!

Ethan bought some sour cream and onion CRICKETS. DJ ate most of the bag. 

Fourth of July Week - Day 3

We set out to explore more of our beautiful state today and had some adventures at Pictured Rocks! It was a longish drive that required a lot of patience from everyone (pause here - it also required that the van become a dictatorship in which I could choose all music and DVDs and assign seats for the rest of the trip) but worth it for the amazing sights and new experiences!

We went on two hikes, one to Miners Falls and one from Miners Castle to Miners Beach. We ate our picnic lunch in between. Both were beautiful, but the second one was definitely more challenging. I re-discovered that downhill can be significantly more difficult than uphill. My legs might never be the same.

It's Canada Day! So John, Sally, and Sue came over with dinner and we watched fireworks over the river courtesy of our northern neighbors. It was a wonderful display; first time I've made it back in 12 years!

Sooo excited to head out on a day trip (maybe)

Annie loves driving!

Beautiful, sunny hike to Miners Falls!

So it was expressly "not encouraged" by the Park Service to leave the boardwalk, but we got a much better view of the falls...

DJ had no interest in potentially breaking any rules.

Miners Castle

It was a tough hike but this one loved it. After expressing some feelings...

Miners River is bright orange!

And finally, the beach.