9-27-2021 Fort Wayne, IN

Just across the way from our
camp, the St. Joseph River

We had a slight change of plans.  Our next campground was 45 minutes from my nephew Tony and Micki’s home so we searched for something closer.  We were lucky!  One site was available at Johnny Appleseed Park, just minutes away, and we can see the St. Joseph River from our windows.  It’s a very pretty, manicured park and is named after John Chapman, better known as “Johnny Appleseed.”

 

Johnny Appleseed, born in 1774, was God-fearing, kind, generous, an avid naturalist and enterprising.  He loved planting seeds and growing things, especially creating orchards and especially apple trees.  Moving westward, he purchased property and began planting seeds and creating nurseries.  Johnny considered apples the most nutritious of foods and as the pioneers began to flow westward, he sold his seedlings for 3 cents each or 6.5 cents if he was doing the planting.  Johnny Appleseed is credited with introducing apple orchards to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana.  He died in 1845 and is buried on what used to be the Archer Farm and is now Archer Park, adjacent to Johnny Appleseed Park.  Rest in peace childhood friend Johnny Appleseed.

Johnny Appleseed's grave

Appropriately surrounded by fruit
trees, this is John Cochran's grave

Once again, we spent quality time with my Kraus family.  It’s never long enough, of course.  Our visit to my brother Bill’s home in Milwaukee was an afternoon, evening and breakfast.  This visit to Fort Wayne was even shorter, just a late lunch with Tony, Micki, Beep and Dixie.  We try to maximize our time together and I will take whatever I can get.

Me and big brother Bill

Rob, Lindy, Micki, Tony
big brother Beep, Dixie

Good advise from the
Leinie Brewery!

 

Our next destination is Indianapolis, which was the whole point of this trip all along.  Number One Son, Rick, qualified months ago to race on the Indy road track with the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) and at that time, spouse said, “I HAVE TO SEE THIS!”  Thus began the planning and scheduling.  So here we are, halfway across the USA as scheduled, parked just outside the fence at turn one of the Indy 500 oval at Wilcox RV Park for the next 6 days.  Rick gets practice and qualifying for a few days.  His race is Friday at 8:10AM.

 

Meanwhile, Noobee and the Jeepster have been through the mill on this trip.  They are filthy with mud, road grime and dead bugs.  We learned of a truck wash called the Blue Beacon near to our destination.  We don’t even have to disconnect the Jeep.  They wash the whole set-up, Jeep and all, including an up-spray to clean the undercarriage for $83US.  After what we’ve traveled through so far, what’s one more hurricane?!  We are now sparkling clean.  Is this too cool or what?!

9-24-2021 Ann Arbor, MI

 

Toonie time at the KOA on
Greenfield Lake

It’s hard to know just exactly where we are.  The name of our park is KOA Ann Arbor/Detroit.  The address is Ypsilanti or Ann Arbor, depending on who you ask.  In any case, we found our spot, even though the office was closed, there was no staff in sight, it was raining, cloudy, muddy and nasty.  It has been raining nearly steadily since we boarded the SS Badger on September 20^th.  All last night it sounded like marbles falling on the roof.  But today, Friday, it finally broke and we got blue sky and sunshine, at last!  We emerged to find that our site is just feet from pretty Greenfield Lake where ducks, geese and swans swim.  An absolutely fantastic, serene and tranquil park.  What a lucky find!

Serenity on Greenfield Lake

 

Our attractions for today are the Ford F 150 Factory (where our BFT was built) and The Henry Ford Museum.  Photography was only allowed in certain places and none whatsoever in their apparently top-secret factory.  One of the first places to which we were taken on the tour was a glass room up top where we could get an aerial view of the factory, or at least part of it. 

Ten and a half acres of green roof

The “green roof” on the buildings is a 10.5 acre garden of sedum, a succulent plant that can absorb millions of gallons of water.  This layer keeps the factory up to 10 degrees cooler in the summer and 10 degrees warmer in the winter.  One whole section of the factory will begin production of electric vehicles in about a month.  

Paint fume recovery stacks

The many stacks we saw capture paint fumes (instead of blowing them into the air) and they are processed  to help power the paint factory.  The entire complex, more than 2,000 acres, was purchased by Henry in 1915 for $12M ($325M today).  It was marshland but Henry, a visionary, thought he could make it usable.  Today’s factories are standing on the wooden pilings he used to stabilize the land.

 

Continuing on, we were herded up to a deck around the perimeter of the final assembly line where we could look down to watch.  It was fascinating.  Everything is fully-automated and each truck is on its own “skillet” where it can be raised and lowered, depending on what the assembler needs to do his particular job.  Robots are everywhere and two of these monsters await each truck as it comes around on its skillet and stops.  The robots each have a windshield in their claws and they articulate and install the glass in seconds using a series of lasers.  It is hypnotic, almost bizarre, to watch.  The factory is bright, clean and state-of-the-art.  Henry Ford was always innovating and was unhappy with the fact that it took 12 hours to build a Model A.  He visited other factories and saw the moving production line and decided to copy this model thinking, “Why have the mechanic move to the work?  Why not have the work move to the mechanic?”  Well, he succeeded with this innovation, creating the moving line (at Ford) and brought the assembly of a Model A down to 93 minutes.  The factory we observed today exceeds Henry’s wildest dreams, I am quite sure.  Today, one shift turns out 12,500 F150s per day.

 

After the factory tour, we had tickets to visit The Henry Ford Museum.  An astounding collection of artifacts is housed in this facility.  In many cases, I will let the pictures speak for themselves.  This is another place that would cause old Henry to beam and burst with pride.  It is so immaculate and richly done that it is reminiscent of the White House.  This is a breathtaking experience, not to be missed.

Stagecoach - original

Look familiar?

This DC-3 was built in 1939.  It
logged 84,875 hours and flew
12 million miles.  It was donated to
the museum by North Central Airlines.
My sister Bootsie might have been
a stew on this airplane!

Do you think Henry's wife drove a
Ford?  Wrong!  She drove this 1914 Detroit
Electric car.  Women liked these.  They 
didn't require a crank to start them
and had no transmission that they
had to try to shift.

Noobee's predecessor?

The Allegheny locomotive, the second
built in Ohio.  This beast weighs
1,202,000 lb.  It could haul 160 coal 
cars weighing 27 million lb.
Can you believe they scrapped all but
this one?!  To get it into the museum,
they had to take the doors off the 
building.

Abe Lincoln was murdered
while sitting in this rocking chair
at the Ford Theater.

1970 VW Bus.  Another predecessor
of Noobee

1927 Model A, cost $630

1903 Model A

A "Gem" Grain Grader from 1899.
It sorted seeds for planting or to sell.
This model was advertised in a
1916 catalogue for $9.50.

What else?  The gorgeous 1956 T-Bird!

 

1958 Edsel.  

Just your everyday-need flywheel.
How did they make this thing?!
And how did they get it into
the museum?!

The limo JFK was riding in when he
was murdered.

Henry's "kitchen sink engine" that he
clamped to the kitchen sink.  His wife
Clara pumped gas into the intake valve
while Henry wired the spark plug to an
overhead light.  It coughed to life.
This is what Henry was doing on
Christmas Eve, 1893.

Not such a proud moment in the
legacy of our USA.  But a part
of our history, nonetheless. 

The Henry Ford Museum

Beautiful entryway!  Is this
the White House?!

Snow plow.  This much snow?
Nope.  I'm outta here!

Built in 1831.  The DeWitt Clinton 
stagecoach train using real stagecoach bodies
for the cars.  First working steam 
locomotive in NY state, traveling 17 mi.

When he was 19, a neighbor asked
Henry if he could get this steam engine
working.  Of course, he did.
And the rest is history.

Insulation braiding machine from 1885
with 16 spools of thread.  This machine
wove threads around
electric wires that were already covered
with rubber giving them an added layer
of insulation.

We all know what this is!

We wrapped up our day with a cocktail at sunset on the lake shore and watched the beautiful birds float by.  It is now Saturday morning and can you guess? It’s raining.  We packed up and are heading for Fort Wayne and once again, we get some Kraus family time. 

Serene Greenfield Lake in Detroit or
Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti... 

9-23-2021 Essexville, MI

The black and white picture in the last
t-log was the Pere Marquette.  This is the
SS Badger.

Essexville is a bit east of Bay City, Michigan and Finn Road Park was a very nice find.  There is a lot of grass and a thick woods surrounds the park.  Unfortunately, it is raining, raining and raining.  The winds are strong with gusts up to 40 mph.  It rained throughout the night our first night at camp.  The second night, we thought the wind might blow a window out of Noobee and coming through the woods, it sounded like a locomotive was bearing down on us.  Holy buckets.  The park is covered with leaves and branches this morning and it continues to rain.  Yesterday, we stopped down by the boat dock and two local fishermen told us that the bay is 3 feet higher today than it was just a couple days ago.

 

The Real Seafood Company
Bay City, Michigan

Birthday Boy - This is what 74 looks like!

Still, it didn’t get our spirits down.  Rob’s birthday was yesterday and today is the first day of his ¾ of a century on planet Earth.  His restaurant of choice for a celebration last evening was the Real Seafood Company, a beautiful mostly-glass supper club that sits right on the shore of Lake Huron in Bay City.  After a cocktail in the wonderful bar, we were seated upstairs safe and dry behind the glass and watched the angry weather and waves crash onto the riverwalk and decks.

Would you like to be sitting on
this park bench right now?

 

Today we are scheduled to arrive at the KOA park in Ypsilanti, a city west of Detroit.  It is a quick 120 mile drive but a different route sprung into our eyepans as we stared at the map:  The scenic drive up around the thumb of Michigan along the shore.  There were reports of flooding, 14-20 foot swells on Lake Huron and it continues to rain.  Even our two local young adventurous fishermen advised against driving this route.  Rob contacted MDOT and their concerns weren’t too dire.  I left the call up to my beloved and after much deliberation, he said, “Let’s go for it!”  I was so glad!  We packed up and battened down the hatches in a downpour and we are on the not-so-dusty trail.  There are tiny patches of blue sky up ahead.  Could that be a promise?

 

We know what happened at our camp last night but what in the world happened to all of Michigan’s lower peninsula?!  My God!  We were detoured twice due to fallen trees.  There were branches and limbs strewn everywhere, uprooted trees, big trees split right down the middle, whole villages with no power (No seafood lunch anywhere for Lindy and Rob.) and Lake Huron was a stirred-up, brown, angry mess.  Don’t misunderstand.  It was a real one-time experience driving around the lower peninsula thumb.  We really wanted to do this.  And I even got a chance to dip my fingers into the waters of another of the Great Lakes so I can say, “I been in there.”  (One to go:  Lake Erie.)  But the drive could have been much more beautiful on a clear, sunny day.  I’m sure those living in the homes along the shore are nervous.  We saw waves breaking on the grass in their yards.  Like the unforgiving oceans, I have a healthy respect for the Great Lakes.  They tend to do unsportsman-like things such as snap ships in half.  That’s not very nice. 

 

Our home for the night is the KOA in Ann Arbor.  We are forced onto a couple of freeways to get here.  What a fuckin’ zoo.  It’s times like this, driving in the big city, that reinforce my eternal gratitude that we live in our tiny little town.  We are now cozied in with a cocktail and a warm fire to wait out this mess.  They promised it will be over soon.  (Why is it OK if weathermen get it wrong all the time but all the rest of us don’t dare make a mistake?)

Some folks think this is fun.

We think this is more like it.

9-20-2021 Wisconsin to Michigan

 9-19-2021  I’m back!

 

Quality time with loved ones for a few days.  No time for stories.  We’re worn out and happy.  Tomorrow we face a dilemma.  We are scheduled to arrive in Manitowoc, WI to cross Lake Michigan on the SS Badger.  The weather is coming up.  Rain storms are predicted.  Will they sail?  Don’t rightly know but if they sail in a thunder storm on Lake Michigan, I’m on it.  This will be my first time crossing the lake in cloudy, rainy weather.  If they don’t sail, many plans go on the ash heap.  We’ll go with, “Sail.”

 

Today, Monday, we are on the road early.  We are required to be at the ship’s loading dock at least one hour early, for one thing.  But on the way, there is another bucket list item that I had to check off:  A visit to see the largest flagpole and free-flying flag in the world.  This giant is on the property of the Acuity Insurance Corporation in Sheboygan, WI, which touts itself as the “Home of the World’s Tallest Symbol of Freedom.”  Here are some stats:  The flagpole is 400 feet tall, 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty.  The flag itself weighs 250 pounds and it takes a crew of 5 to raise and lower the flag so that it never touches the ground.  The base of the pole is secured by 144 bolts and 700 cubic yards, 2, 835,000 lbs., of concrete.  The surrounding top layer in the shape of a teardrop is inlaid bricks, 750 of which are engraved with the names of Sheboygan County veterans who have made the ultimate sacrifice in our wars.  You see, this flagpole is not simply a tourist destination, it is a Veterans Memorial.  Worthy of our time and a whisper, “Thank you, Troops.”

Teardrop-shaped pavers

Rob at the flagpole's base

That little white dot
at the base of the flagpole 
is me, Lindy!

 

The SS Badger is many decades old beginning its service in 1953.  It is the last large coal-burning steam ship in the United States.  The greenies wanted to kill the boat because it ran on coal.  They lost.  It was listed as a National Historic Landmark 2009.  In 1996, the Badger’s propulsion system was designated a mechanical engineering landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.  The diameter of the propellers is 13’ 10.”  Each engine is worth 4,000 horsepower and 167,000 pound-feet of torque and so the ship can reach a speedy 20 mph!  The old ship was rescued and restored and put back into service in 1991.  It can carry 620 passengers and 180 vehicles (including semis and those the size of Noobee).  Originally, it was designed to carry 34 railcars and in 1903, it transported 75,000 railcars across Lake Michigan.

On approach to the Badger 9-20-2021

    

 

I just couldn’t believe we were watching Noobee boarding a monster ship.  It was so exciting I nearly had a heart attack.  Then the Jeepster followed close behind.  Their accommodations are almost nicer than those for the humans!  After we watched our two buddies get boarded, we went up top to the human decks where we had a lunch of beer, a brat and a pizza.  Later, a couple more beers on the deck.  Earlier, the day started out cold and rainy as far as Sheboygan.  Then the rain subsided to just a mist.  Finally, in Manitowoc, the rain quit but the black clouds still threatened.  On board, it was beyond windy and cold but we spent the whole 4-hour cruise on the front deck.  It was glorious!  I even got a big smile and a wave from the Captain from the bridge!  The swells weren’t too bad and the water, my God, it is so deep blue!  You could see forever and all you see is water, no land in sight, as if you were on the ocean.  Slowly, eventually, the cloud cover burned off.  As promised by the rainbow we docked at Ludington in the sunshine!  I hooted and cheered as Noobee and the Jeepster emerged dry, safe and happy from their nest in the hold.  What an incredible experience!

Noobee onboard

Jeepster boarding

 

Yo!  Captain!

Keeping an eye out

On the deck of the bow

Ah, a rainbow!

Rob on the portside walkway

On approach to Ludington, MI

Two miles later, we are parked comfortably at the absolutely gorgeous Poncho’s RV Park.  We lost an hour and so parked and hooked up to our camp in the dark.  Not so common for us.  Time for a quick toonie to celebrate a phenomenal day.  I am after-glowing so bright it’ll keep Rob awake.    Good night, Friends!

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