Summer 2019!

I hope this new blog entry finds you happy and well and enjoying life and your summer! I have been relaxing and enjoying my time with family on my little hiatus. I spent a month at the beach in Gulf Shores during April.

My granddaughter Kylei came for spring break. We had a great time going to the beach, playing bingo at Florabama, shopping and her catching her first “hot roll”! I enjoy the time I have with the grandkids but it is always way too short!

While in Gulf Shores I met up with my friend Mary, who just bought a place there. I hope to hang out with her more this fall and winter for some more adventures and line dancing.

I also made some new friends from Mississippi and Alabama! What a great bunch of ladies to hang out with. They are just as crazy and spontaneous as I am!

We also met Lulu, Lisa’s sweet lil puppy.

From left to right is Amy, Lisa, Mary, me and Alison!!

In May I headed north and spent a week in Tennessee at my sister’s place, I call it Kidd’s Kampground. It is actually my official place of residence. I am thankful for Kat & Bud’s hospitality and the time I spent hanging out and hiking with my baby sister at Burgess Falls.

I also had a great time with this cool dude! He would come out to the camper and watch movies and we would share snacks. He is my great nephew Jasper and I sure do miss him.

I really enjoyed my time in Tennessee before heading to Ohio for more family time.

My grandson, Cole, graduated high school this year. I was there for the ceremony and then at a graduation party the following weekend. They just grow up way too fast.

While at my daughters I was thrilled to watch my youngest grandchild, Allison, play softball. I went to all of her games during my stay. This was her first year to play and she did really well. Her team won the season and the Championship Tournament.

I especially enjoyed my time pitching to her and playing catch in the back yard.

I wasn’t able to see all my grandkids but I was able to spend time with my great grandson, Jameson. He came to stay for the better part of a week to give his grandparents (my son Corey & wife Shannon) a much needed break.

What a handfull but a good handful! He loved playing in the water at the Heller’s pond and the petting zoo at Ft. Wayne Childrens Zoo.

The temperatures in Northwest Ohio have been perfect except for an abundance of precipitation. It’s the first week of June and many of the fields have not been planted and probably won’t be, which means higher prices at the market for us!

I have several plans on my agenda for the summer! First is to spend time with the family and second is to meet back up with my buddy Tracy and spend about six weeks with her. But first, a few days at Pokagon State Park in Angola, Indiana.

With all the rain, the mosquitos were just horrible. We did however manage to get some hiking in. We hiked from the campsite to Hell’s Point one of the days and yes, the bugs made it hell!

We also spent a day in Shipshewania, Indiana at the big flea market there every Tuesday and Wednesday and had a wonderful Amish lunch at the Blue Gate after.

I just love the way the sun comes through the trees in the early morning light.

Pokagon State Park has a really nice nature center where you can watch birds, chipmonks and squirrels.

After a four day stay, we left Pokagon State Park for a trip to East Harbor State Park in Marblehead, Ohio on the shores of Lake Erie.

This was a trip back in time for me as my family use to spend weekends in this area. I have great memories of those times!

Day trip! Catching the early morning ferry from Marblehead to Kellys Island.

First stop on the Island, Inscription Rock.

As we drive around the Island admiring the beautiful cottages over looking the shoreline, the people are starting to move around more. I am sure in a few short hours the Island will be full of visitors on their bikes and golf carts!

Next stop on the Island was the Glacial Grooves. These remnants of the glaciers movement through the great lakes region is amazing. I can remember just a small part of the grooves were here thirty or so years ago and we could climb on them. Today more of the grooves have been exposed and there is a very nice fenced in pathway around the grooves to preserve them for years to come.

Across the street is the Kellys Island State Park. It has a nice new check in building and a couple yurts. I remember swimming on the beach there when I was a kid and as a young adult.

As we drove around the Island we discovered the trail to one of the rock quarries. There was a nice hiking trail and a group of boys were jumping off the cliffs and swimming out to the middle island.

This quarry was nice but it wasn’t the one we went to as kids. With some help from a friendly family, they pointed me in the right direction.

At this quarry the cliffs were much higher as I remember and back then my brother jumped off into the icy cold water. Look at that beautiful blue water! This quarry now has a fence around it and trespassers are not allowed.

We had a snack at the beach on the south side of the Island. From here you could see Cedar Point and the Marblehead Lighthouse. Harlie and Frannie didn’t seem to mind that the beach was rocks and not sand.

I really wanted to see the house we would stay in when visiting the Island. Tracy didn’t seem to mind driving me around until I found it, and finally I did!

Kellys Island has some new and interesting places but it still remains quaint and laid back unlike its neighboring island of Put-N-Bay.

We board the ferry and head back to the mainland and camp. Before we do though, we drive down to see the beach. Oh what a surprise to see there was no beach, just the stairway leading down to it. The lake and bays were very high with water due to all the rain and storms for the past few months.

The last two items on the agenda are finding a good place for some walleye and then visit the Marblehead Lighthouse.

Found the best walleye in Port Clinton at Jolly Rogers! Makes my mouth water thinking about it!

The Marblehead Lighthouse is the oldest lighthouse in continuous operation on the Great Lakes. Built in 1821 in eight weeks time it stands 65 feet tall and is 25 feet in diameter at the base and 12 at the top. In 2018 the lamp was changed to an LED light and is visible for eleven nautical miles.

Of course we had to go to the top!

This is the Port Clinton Light Station, moved from its original site it has been restored and remains the last remaining timber-framed lighthouse on Lake Erie.

It’s been fun catching up with everyone and as always I look forward to your comments.

Next, my camping buddy, Tracy and I will head to the Finger Lakes region of New York for some wine, festivals, hiking and waterfalls!

See you soon!