5/30 - Niagara Falls - Day Two - Part One

After the boat ride!

The Falls with Maid of the Mist

Under the Falls

Ferris Wheel we rode! Air conditioned!

View from inside Ferris Wheel.

If you've wanted to leave a comment, but it was blocked, try again! I changed the settings so comments are easy to leave! Thanks for letting me know Stephanie!

Stephanie also sent two links about the line from the 3 Stooges:

http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/slowly.html

http://www.mentalfloss.com/trivia/facts/2007/05/21/slowly-i-turned-step-by-step-inch-by-inch/

This morning we headed out for the Falls. WOW! WOW! WOW! Dr. Hawkins, you recently made a comment that John heard a voice like many waters and that Niagara would be pretty loud. You were SO right! You can hear the Falls long before you see them.

Here's where the day gets interesting:

Took photos of all the Falls from the Canadian side. You can actually feel the mist from one viewpoint.

Took the elevator to the tunnels beneath the falls and stood behind the falls. In a yellow slicker!

Gets better!

RODE THE MAID OF THE MIST BELOW THE FALLS! I didn't get sick on the boat either! LOL It was a little like standing in a hurricane with a jet taking off. LOUD and WET! Glad I got my hair cut before I left. It's truly wash and wear hair!

Rode the Ferris Wheel over the Falls. I know....you can believe it! Me either. I didn't scream....much!

We stopped for lunch before heading back. Tonight we have dinner in the Skylon Tower and you have to ride the "bug" to get up there. The restaurant also revolves. If you look closely at the tower picture, you'll see a little yellow thing on the side. That's the bug!

Quick nap before leaving again!

More later!

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/29 - Niagara Falls!!! Slowly I turned...step by step....inch by inch....

Lake Huron! (4th Lake!)

OK, if you're as old as me, you'll realize that the title is a reference to a Three Stooges routine. It's stuck in my head (like the Gordon Lightfoot song!) and I can't think of the rest of it!

We pulled out at 9:00 a.m. and it's sunny and cool and we didn't see/hear the bear! So far we've traveled 3,094.7 miles. We're on km here so I'm not sure how many km's that is!

We now know what the bug suits are for....mosquitoes! They are everywhere! Open the door and they fly right in! Guess they were looking for a meal.

We stopped in Parry Sound to buy fuel. Most of the stations here are full service. We bought 62 litres at $1.069 per litre. A nice young lady pumped the gas and had been to Alabama and the south. She understood why we were cold and everyone else was running around in shorts and sandals.

David picked up a little trinket at Parry Sound. See the picture above.

Found out our deer whistles work! They're mounted on the front of the truck and only the deer can hear them. If the truck is moving at least 30 mph, it whistles and is supposed to keep the deer from running into the road. We saw two large deer on the side of the road and one stopped and looked. The other was running toward us, stopped and put up her nose then turned and ran back into the woods. The only other animal we saw was a turtle!

We're having trouble with the transmission and it's getting worse. It's shifting funny in 3rd and won't go into overdrive. We've checked with our mechanic at home and he recommended we find someone in Buffalo on Thursday (back in the States). It's possible it's an electrical problem with the transmission.

Thanks Anita for helping us make our calls! Much appreciated!

We cooked out and enjoyed dinner on the picnic table. Grilled chicken soaked in Moore's Marinade! YUM!

Watched the season finale of HOUSE and headed to bed! Off to the falls tomorrow and dinner at the Skylon Restaurant. Thanks for telling us about it, Paul!

One more lake to visit - Erie!

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/28 - Loon's Landing!

Usual start to the morning - cool, windy, but not raining! The trip to our campground is not an all day drive, but we headed out as son as possible. That was after the shower incident!

For some reason the latch on the shower door has decided to be "cranky." You can't get out of the shower. Someone has to push the "tab" on the release from the outside in order to get someone out of the shower. That water is so cold up here that it takes awhile for the water heater to even get it warm. Making coffee is an experience according to David. It takes forever to get the water hot to make coffee.

Anyway, David told me to set the timer for 10 minutes after he got out so the water would reheat (all six gallons) and I'd get a warm shower. I set the timer and got in. Little did I know that he'd taken Chrissy out and was talking to one of the neighbors! I finished my shower and asked him to let me out. NO ANSWER! Fortunately the shower has a seat inside. So I sat down and waited. After about 20 minutes David walked back in. Then he realized he'd left me in the shower! Wasn't too funny at the time, but it is now! Just wait....PAYBACK!

Lot of road construction going on here. Sometimes we drive a good distance without having to stop for awhile and then we drive, pull up and stop, drive, pull up and stop......you know the drill.

Nothing exciting on the road and that's the problem. I thought we'd have a nice drive along the lake and stop to visit little quaint towns. Only problem is there aren't many roads that go along the lake! We're actually in the mountains and forests and seeing signs to watch for Moose! Seems to be a problem here, but we haven't seen any of them. Some of the mountains actually run into the lakes. I guess I was thinking the shoreline would be similar to that of the coastline of Maine. We were surprised!

We got to Loon's Landing after a wrong turn in Alban, ON. We drove and drove and drove into the next town! We did a U-Turn at an intersection in one town and headed back. We'd passed Lemieux's Fresh Meat and Food so we stopped there for a few groceries and directions. They actually had BUG SUITS on sale.

We were the only people in the store speaking English - the rest were speaking French. Most of the signs and food were in French. While checking out, David asked for directions to Loon's Landing Campground. Suddenly there were six people all speaking French trying to give us directions. It was hysterical. Finally one guy who goes camping a lot spoke English and gave us great directions. It was worth the stop.

The campground was about 10 minutes away and on the French River. Gorgeous place. Since it's still cool here, most places haven't really opened for the summer season or are just getting underway. That was the case here. The mother and daughter who own the place, apologized for all the dandelions. It looked as if she hadn't cut the grass, but you could tell it had been cut if you looked closely. Dandelions were everywhere!

We got set up and started dinner. The daughter and mother came back up to see if we needed anything and they brought a surprise. They have a 1 year old male mini-dachshund named Milo. He and Chrissy barked and growled at each other for a bit and then decided to play. They were both on leashes so it was a bit hectic keeping them separated. We decided to take them off leash for a bit and that's when the fun started.

Chrissy was chasing Milo all over the place. Even though he's also a mini, he's larger than Chrissy. He's longer and has longer, heftier legs. He was no match for Chrissy, though. She chased him and played with him for a good 20 minutes. Then they both got tired and took a nap in the grass under the RV. I laughed so hard at the two of them. My camera was in the truck and didn't get any pictures of them!

The owner reminded us not to leave our trash out on the table as they have a bear in the camp. BEAR? I'm not setting foot outside again! LOL

Early evening with one tv channel. Little reading and off to bed.

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/27 - Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario and US

American Courage just entering the lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

We slept in and left Wawa late for us! 11:00 a.m. It's was in the 40's with a wind chill probably in the 30's. It's sunny after raining during the night.

We had about 150 miles to drive to it didn't take long to get to Sault Ste. Marie. It's a nice KOA and they have wi-fi that reaches the camper, so I'm catching up the blog!

We're having trouble with the transmission in the truck. It's shifting rough and won't shift into overdrive, so we're headed to a nearby Wal-Mart for transmission fluid as it's a little low. We decided to head across the border to the US side and check out the locks at the seaport. Wal-Mart will be there when we come back.

We crossed back into the US at 3:23 p.m. and paid our $2.00 toll on the Michigan side of the bridge. A few questions at the border and off we go!

We saw signs directing us to the locks so that's where we went. David had on a Georgia Tech Alumni longsleeve t-shirt. The guard at the park looked at his shirt and said he had a daughter living in the Atlanta area, but couldn't recall where she lived. We noticed a HUGE ship coming through the lock, so we went to the viewing area. The ship was the American Courage. It was 638 feet long and 68 feet wide. We watched as they pulled into the lock and tied off while the doors on the locks were opened and closed. In less than an hour, the ship sailed off into Lake Huron (our 3rd Great Lake on this trip!). It was interesting to watch and best of all, it was free! It was raining a little, but we were underneath an elevated covered walkway.

As we went to walk across the street for postcards (no, I haven't mailed any yet), the guard we saw coming in asked us to wait. He called his wife to find out where their daughter lived. Turns out she's in Tucker, GA, not far from our daughter in Lilburn, GA.

Into the store and my new obsession was prominently displayed - The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Ever since we visited the lighthouse at Split Rock, Gordon Lightfoot's song was stuck in my head. The gift shop at the lighthouse had a book about the wreck, so we got it. Interesting read! It was written by one of the captains who was on the lake that night. We'd been to several of the ports where the "Fitz" had sailed to and from. Now that I've got the song stuck in your head, go to I-Tunes and download it. I did.....and it's still stuck in my head.

The gift shop had cards, books, shirts, etc. with the "Fitz" on it. Fortunately, I only bought the postcard of it. I did buy a sweatshirt that said Sault Ste. Marie. I'm cold! LOL

We bought gas on the US side at $3.519 per gallon and bought 20.127 gallons. We also decided to stop at Wal-Mart on the US side. We purchased a calling card so we could call the mechanic we use to ask about the truck. We figured 300 minutes would be sufficient. We don't have cell phone service on the US side either, so we headed back to do laundry and make phone calls.

We paid our $2.00 toll on the Michigan side heading into Canada and after a few questions at the border, we're back in Canada. Stopped for dinner and then back here in the rain - again!

I was catching the blog up when David popped his head in the door and asked if I'd come help fold the laundry. So I headed out in the rain to help. I gave David the phone number for the mechanic and he tried to call. The 300 minutes was not enough. The call never connected and the card issuer took out 240 minutes to connect the call! Unreal!

We put the laundry up, watched some TV, read, and headed off for bed. Long drive tomorrow to French River, ON.

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/26 - Wawa! No, it's not a do-wap song!

Wawa, ON goose. Notice the Canadian flag - it's windy today!

Explanation of rock man!

Rock man!

Off to Wawa, Ontario. Cool, wet, windy -- the weather continues!

We don't have far to drive today, so we left a little later than usual. Stopped for gas outside Wawa - $110.04! Canadian dollars, but it was $1.19 a litre and we bought 91.75 litres.

We learned before we left Terrace Bay that the Bjorgum's were staying in the same campground tonight as we are. They pulled in a couple of hours after we arrived here.

David and I decided to head out to town to find the 3 geese. It seems that Wawa means "wild geese" in a native tongue. The townspeople have built three LARGE geese and placed them around town. The picture you see is the main one overlooking the lake/river/highway area. One was at a general store and another at a local motel.

We stopped at the general store and discovered what the rock man was. All along the lake are huge rock outcroppings. On top of these rocks are more rocks piled up - some with arches and some just stacked. Inside the general store, they had small versions for sale and had the explanation of what we'd been seeing. They had a larger one built outside the store. Thanks, Bill, for telling us to be on the lookout for them.

Off to the grocery store. I have on my coat because I'm cold. Everyone in the store is wearing shorts and crocs/sandals. I look out of place, but I'm warm! LOL It's always fun to look at the groceries in stores outside our home area, but some of these were in French. We wanted a gallon on milk, but they don't sell gallons! We settled for a 2 litre carton of milk. We did find fresh corn and bought Canadian potatoes.

Back to the campground and we arranged to have dinner with our new camping friends. I fixed fried corn and David grilled pork chops. Nancy provided something to drink, 3 bean salad, melon, and dessert. It was great eating outside - til the bugs arrived. We gave it up after awhile. Thanks Nancy and Arlyn for a great evening. Hope to see you down the road!

Late evening and off to bed!

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/25 - Oh Canada! Eh?

It's in the 40's, but the wind chill is down in the 30's. At least the sun is out. We don't know for sure if Minnesota's state flower is the dandelion, but they are everywhere! LOL Brilliant yellow against new green grass. It's early spring here as they trees are just beginning to bloom and some to bud out. Allergies!

Stopped for gas just before the border - $3.299 per gallon and 13.469 gallons. Litre price was $.979. Sounds good until you remember there are 3.8 litres to a gallon!

Crossed into Canada at 12:25 a.m. (Eastern time). Handed over our passports (including Chrissy's paperwork) and then the questions. No problem with any of them - except one. "Do you have any potatoes?" We said yes and the border patrolman asked us to drop them in the dumpster on our way into Canada. Seems you can't take them in! David looked into the dumpster and noted there were a lot more potatoes there!

I'd made a mistake in our routing and forgot to include an extra night going along Lake Superior. Since we couldn't go to Isle Royale, this worked out in finding a place to stay halfway between where we started at Grand Portage and Wawa, Ontario. We found a campground at Terrace Bay, ON. There's another Airstream below us, so David's checking it out. Nancy and Arlyn Bjorgum from Minnesota are one the road in an Airstream very much like ours.

During the trip to the campground, we were (and still are) on Highway 17 following Lake Superior. Part of the route is also called the Terry Fox Courage Highway. Terry was a young man who lost his leg to cancer and decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. During the run, his cancer returned and he was forced to stop the run neaby to the place this memorial is located. For more on Terry's story, go to http://www.terryfoxrun.org/english/home/default.asp?s=1.

There is a train track located near the campground. Heard the train go back when we were setting up, but didn't hear it after that! I was tired and slept well. Sill cold! Wearing my coat most of the time. Quick dinner, TV on 2 channels, and off to bed!

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

5/24 - Grand Portage, MN

David and Jenny by the woodstove at Split Rock Lighthouse

Split Rock Lighthouse

Two Harbors Lighthouse

Lake Superior!

We left the campground at 7:52 a.m. Long day's drive for David. It's raining (again!). Steph reminded me that I had named this trip Water World so it's my fault! Temp is in the '50's. I don't know if I'll ever be warm again!

Gas - $3.269 a gallon and 15.72 gallons. Across the street was the Little Dog Car and Pet Wash. You can wash your car or your dog!

Back on the road and it's really raining! See another sign for a lighthouse, so we head down that road. There is a charge to visit this one and since it's raining, all I want to do is take a picture, but can't do that without paying. Glad we stopped because it turned out great!

We ended up getting a private tour that included sounding the foghorns. They were really loud! Originally designed to carry 5-7 miles out, they only sound 1/10th of their original volume. I asked if they hired deaf people to sound the horn, but they didn't know. They did say it had to be sounded every 20 seconds for hours at a time when it was in use.

The docent inside the lighthouse pulled out the engineering manuals from the early 1900's for David to look at. We climbed to the top (33 steps) and looked around. I noticed there were shades on the glass. When we got back down, I learned the shades were needed in case the lens had to be cleaned during the day. The lens works like a magnifying glass and the lightkeeper pulled the shades to keep the light from focusing on him.

More rain and still more rain! We got to the campground and quickly set up. Didn't disconnect the truck so we could pull out early for our trip to Isle Royale National Park. Only problem is, the weather has been so bad, the ferry won't be running until the weekend. We can't go then, so we decide to head on to Canada on the next day.

Quiet evening and soon ready for bed. One TV channel....

See ya down the road!

Jenny :)

At Two Harbors we saw a sign for a lighthouse, so we headed that direction. The lighthouse is now a bed and breakfast!