Our Westerly direction led us to Newberry, Michigan. It is the Moose capital of Michigan. Matt and I were looking for a moose and only came up with Mr. No Antlers Paint me Green with Envy.

The wind swept us into the Gateway Motel. I paid the man and we were out of the wind. It was a quaint room with thrift store wall decor, books, a heater and a hot shower ! Well worth the money spent to get out of the weather and a good nights sleep.

After we got settled in, I rode down to the local IGA and scouted out some decent deals on meat and other staples…read butter, cheese, milk and eggs lol. I rolled back to the motel dropped off the goods and walked up to Dollar General for the rest of my pantry haul. Dinner tonight was absolutely delicious adobe burritos. Another staple from our mail drop box. Thank you Betty!

The next day As Matt and I rode toward our next destination, Bass Lake Campground, I found a road treasure. Matt was just mentioning he needed a light weight camp jacket. Well there along the side of the highway was a new Simms fishing fleece lined jacket in a 2XL.

We made our way to the small town of McMillan where we stopped at a gas station that lured us in with fresh coffee and donuts. Neither of which existed at our time of arrival so we settled for a refreshing Dr. Pepper. We plopped down in the shade of the gas pump island curb and took a break for a bit. A lady named Terri Brown and her sidekick Jersey finished pumping their fuel and pulled up. She was very interested in our tour and we had a good conversation with her. She feels us alot of local advice as she was originally from McMillan. Before she left, she handed Matt a $100 bill. Matt had just shared with her how kind people have been in Michigan and told her the story of the hotel room off Lake Michigan. Truly we did not anticipate her generosity and Matt tried to give it back but she refused. People have been so kind in Michigan. We asked for her picture for the blog, but would only allow Jersey to represent. He is a cutie patootie.

Before we left the gas station, a group of side by sides rolled up and gave us their best version of directions to Bass Lake campground. We heeded their advice and made a right onto a paved county road. The pavement was the best we had been on all day. Earlier Highway 28 has deteriorated to 8″ of rideable paved shoulder with 16″ of rumble strip. At the time we were glad to get off Highway 28. This was short lived when the pavement ended in a few miles and the real off road adventures began.

Side by sides, trucks, and RV’s passed us on this dirt road. 2 vehicles slowed down out of the 30 that flew by us dusting us out. At one point as I pushed my bike up the hill in the sand, I was asked to move aside by the passenger of the truck so they could get on their way. I mouthed something colorful and dumped my bike on the road. After I spit out the grit in my mouth, I picked up my bike and continued to push it up the hill. We eventually pushed our bikes into Bass Lake Campground! A camper who had pulled in at the same time we pushed in, came by and asked us where we were headed. His father Larry, joined in on the conversation and gave us his best riding directions to get to pavement. My response was a bit off the cuff but honest. “I think the best way to get to pavement is in the back of a pickup truck.” He thought for a second and responded with an offer to take us to pavement the next morning! Wahoo!!

After we found a good campsite , we hung our hammocks and made dinner ala carte. We went for a walk to the lake in the early evening. Matt and I found Larry’s grandchildren fishing at the lake. The young man who was 6, asked Matt if he could bait his hook with a worm. Matt of course helped him out.

We left from the lake and headed back to camp. Called it an early evening and relaxed in the hammocks until dawn.

The next morning was a brisk 40 something degrees. Matt got up and made coffee and we were ready to go by 8am. Larry took us into Grand Marais. Matt was unloading the bikes and gear andI ran to the convenience store to break the $100. When I came back Larry had already left even though Matt had told him I would be right back. The abundance of kindness shown every single day just amazes me.

We stopped in at The Breakaway restaurant and fueled up on coffee and breakfast. Next stop was the beach of Lake Superior! Just a quick ride down the hill. Pavement sure feels nice under our bike tires lol.

We made a quick detour to beautiful Sable Falls.

We rode along the National Lakeshore at a good clip. We stopped along the roadside, found a boulder to sit on and had a much needed snack. Smoked oysters, cheese and hard boiled eggs did the trick. We pedaled in and out of Munising to the City Tourist Campground before early evening. We set up camp, showered, chatted with another camper. Her name was Lauren. Her and her husband were retired school teachers from Illinois. They had completed Ragbrai earlier in the year. Great conversations!

Matt and I cleaned up camp and retired to the tent. It had been a long day of mostly peaceful riding. We were spent.

Early in the morning, I purchased my plane tickets to get back to Tallahassee for my infusion and work. I fly back October 12th out of Spokane and return on the 20th. Matt and I both agree we have got to get an earlier start each morning. For the next 35 days we must average 50 miles a day to get to Spokane on time. Fingers crossed 🤞and tailwinds🌬 and prayers 🙏sunshine 🌞 and positive thoughts🙂 are needed and appreciated greatly. Send them up and our way!

The next morning we left a little late but had things we needed to take care of before we set off for our Warmshowers host David’s house in Ishpeming, Michigan.

This caught my attention as we left out of Munising.

We rode along the highway with a great shoulder most of the way. When we made it to Marquette, the real climbs of the day began. Eventually we made it to David’s house. Thankful to be there, but we felt bad we arrived just before 7pm. We pushed and tried hard to stay on schedule all day, but we did have a late start. Communication with our host was key. When we arrived, dinner was made and we ate on the deck overlooking the water. Soon afterwards, I grabbed a shower, started and finished laundry and went to bed. Another good day of riding and a very kind Warmshowers host named David and his Dad. The next morning we got up and after a cup of coffee rolled out in a Westerly direction. I backtracked a few miles and made a quick stop at the local grocery store where I resupplied on ice, meat and cheese, just in case there wasn’t another store selling fresh meat on our path today. Matt stopped at the Yooper tourist trap. We then met up at the BP for a cold coffee to go. Todays riding would be on Highway 41 and 28. It was a great road with a good shoulder and not a ton of traffic.

Matt and I took a late break at Tioga Creek roadside park. We had put in close to 40 miles and the park was perfect for stealth camping. We stopped riding at 3:30pm and called it a day. After a rest in the shade on the soft grass, we both started back to writing our updates for our blogs. I prepped and cooked dinner while Matt gathered and filtered water. Tonight I will try filtered tannic creek water for the first time. Cheers!

Matt and I cleaned up after dinner. He hung the hammocks while I cleared the picnic table. We are trying to be stealthy, but are not always successful lol. Tonights stealth camp includes sounds of Tioga Creek flowing gently nearby, off in the distance the occasional car traveling down Highway 28 and moonbeams shining brightly in the clear night sky. Rest well and good night.