2021 Northern Adventure Day 3 - Revised

[The added and more significantly revised portions are in italics.]

The 3rd day of the "Northern Adventure" was when planned activities were to "ramp up".  There's a certain feeling of freedom once you are "too far from home to make it back in one day", i.e., there is no turning around unless things are really bad on the home front.  Otherwise, those "holding down the fort" would have to be resourceful without our help.

After the fortunately minor transmission issues in Sharon, OH (just north of Cincinnati), when we pulled away from the AAA garage about Noon, August 12th was "that day" when we felt "really free" from home's responsibilities.    

Not to over-dramatize, but as we are not "spring chickens" ourselves, in-home caring 24/7 for an aging relative with mild to moderate dementia (my 91-year-old mother-in-law) is quite taxing.  

Add to that the adventures of having three indoor dogs (two rescues and the dog I inherited when my daughter's family moved to Phoenix in mid-2015), home life can be tedious, but not boring.  (But it's much better than living alone.)  I am just glad that we don't have to travel with a dog.  (I grew up with dogs and cats, but when we vacationed, they stayed at home, with neighbors checking up on them.) 

With a few exceptions for Northeastern trips (beyond the Mason-Dixon Line) in 1977, 1981, 1983, 2009, 2010, and 2019; since my parent's 1973 Western Vacation, the vast majority of my road trips have been westward from my native Atlanta, Georgia area.  (I lived in El Paso from early-1977 to early-1991, thus the travel patterns were reversed.)  If all goes according to plan, this was to be the most extensive northern Midwest travels I have experienced. 

[Due to the schedule alterations of the "Cincinnati adventures", as the day progressed and my wife's back was hurting from riding without regular stops, the Lima, Ohio KOA destination was scrapped.  As we swung west to avoid the afternoon traffic of Detroit and Flint, it became evident that the planned Lake Erie stop in Monroe, MI would not work, either.]    

The plan was, after leaving the Lake Erie shoreline, to angle westward to U.S. Hwy 23 (which also passes through my hometown, outside of Atlanta) and then north to Frankenmuth for lunch at the Bavarian Inn (where I lunched 40 years ago). 

In 1981, my "new" Datsun pickup - with a camper shell - was a cheap way for a bachelor to travel.  With beer can collecting being a part of my life since 1974, I went to Frankenmuth to visit the G. Heileman and Geyer Brothers breweries.  

After G. Heileman closed, the site was demolished and became the River Place Shops.  However, what was Geyer Brothers in 1981 - with some changes - became the current Frankenmuth Brewing Company around 10 (+/-) years ago.  

From there, the original plan was to continue north to Roscommon, Michigan for the night.  Tomorrow's original plans included visiting Hartwick Pines State Park, one of Michigan's last stands of old-growth pine forest before proceeding to Traverse City.

Figure 1.

Figure 2.  Our van was a little too tall to safely fit in the underground parking garage, thus I had to use public parking across the street.  Not an issue, except when traffic was more active (I'm not as spry as I once was).

[We didn't originally plan to stay at the Marv Herzog Hotel (named after a locally famous polka band leader).  Ideally to save money a campsite would be preferable, but as it was mid-August, keeping the van comfortably cool at night and thereby conducive to sleeping was something we hadn't yet properly addressed.  Also, as my wife's back was hurting, though it was a little pricey, we preferred the comfort and amenities.  If we make it back there, if the budget allows, we will consider staying there again.

After settling in, the hotel was really nice and the staff was very helpful, though some of the amenities may have been scaled back because of the Pandemic.  In addition to the morning continental breakfast, in the later afternoon, they had a spread of luncheon meats, veggies, and dips. 

I wanted to get to the brewery on that Thursday night before it got horribly crowded.  The hotel staff was getting ready to close up the food spread, and I couldn't do the hotel buffet and the brewery at the same time.  They actually had some bottles of beer for sale along with the free buffet, but none of which were from the Frankenmuth brewery (and I was on a mission!).

One of the ladies at the front desk made up a couple of plates of food and delivered them to our room while I was at the brewery.  What a pleasant surprise!]  

Figure 3.  Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus) in the center of the photograph.

On the way out, I purchased a mixed six-pack of bottles (five Oktoberfest and one Bavarian Lager) and a t-shirt to commemorate the occasion.  Part 1 of the Frankenmuth Revisitation was complete.