States: 26 Days: 172 Miles: 20,840
Well thank heavens for upstate New York and Michigan! As I drove out of New York City and New Jersey (on the worst roads I have encountered yet in the States), I could feel the weight lifting from my chest as I left behind the crowded cities and busy roads and headed up to the beautiful Finger Lakes region. My first stop was Watkins Glen, which was the perfect refresher of a small, doable-in-a-day, state park at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. After the last few days of rain, the sun had come out just in time for me to hike the trail, so I managed to get some beautiful pictures as well as top up my Vitamin D intake.
Aside (1): I am unsure whether it is just my stellar planning abilities (probably), but I have been so lucky with the weather. In the six plus months I’ve been here, there have only been one or two days where my activities were “rained off”. The first was in Utah when a heavy New Year snow stopped me from seeing Canyonlands and Arches (but that was more to do with the Government shutdown and not having staff to clear the roads, rather than the weather itself). The second was a rain deluge in Atlanta, when I had to call off my last museum visit of the day, due to being soaked to the bone on the walk there from the car park. The rest of the time, I have been just on the cusp of some terrible weather but have managed to somehow always be a day or two ahead of it, or, as in in the last few days, following just behind it across the country. Speaking of which, whilst I have always wanted to see a tornado in real life (thanks Twister), after recently researching what to do in the event of a tornado, I am very glad to have not encountered one (yet), especially as I will most likely be in the car, which, by all accounts is the most dangerous place to be in the event of a tornado. Let’s see how that goes.
My next stop was just south of Buffalo (via the beautiful Green Lake thanks to a tip from Mrs. T) at a place called Eternal Flame Falls. A small grotto behind a waterfall emits natural gas from the rock, creating an ‘eternal flame’ burning behind the veil of the waterfall. Not quite as impressive as the Chimera of Turkey, but more beautiful and mystical thanks to the waterfall and its isolated setting. Getting there was an adventure in itself, as the well-trodden path quickly disintegrated the closer you got to the river. This resulted in a lot of pausing and scoping of the landscape to estimate which part of the riverbank was the least likely to collapse underfoot. Luckily the river was only knee-deep, so the stakes weren’t that high. Half-way up the river, I came to small waterfall with the rest of the river blocked off by fallen trees and debris. I disappointedly contemplated whether this small waterfall was ‘it’ and perhaps the flame had gone out in the severe weather. There was no clear path past the debris and the rest of the river was blocked off from sight. In a quandary as to whether to persevere or turn back, I remembered the words of my amazing friend Palms; ‘When in doubt, move forward’. He also says, ‘When in doubt, eat’, which is another philosophy I have very much taken on board. My sense of adventure took over and I somehow managed to climb through the debris to the other side without falling in the river and only getting slightly muddied. My move forward paid off by being rewarded with the vision of the eternal flame as well as the feeling of being an adventurous child again, climbing trees in the back garden, and creating secret tunnels to visit the neighbours next door without the adults knowing (they always knew).
Aside (2): Speaking of my amazing friend Palms, as you know, I am Seizing My Space and living a dream of mine for these 12 months. I think everyone should be able to live their dream and would support anyone to do so, especially after being able to take hold of my own incredible opportunity this year. To this end, my amazing friend Palms has decided to live his dream and climb Mount Everest in April 2020! However, this is an expensive and dangerous pursuit, so to ensure he has the correct gear with which to live his dreams, he is offering sponsorship deals for his specialist gear and is also accepting individual donations. If you have the ability, please consider donating even a small amount to his cause, as you will be fulfilling the dream of a fantastic human being and helping him to return safely to his wife and two lovely children. Please take a minute to read his story here.
Stopping off briefly for lunch in Buffalo (yes, of course, I had the Buffalo Wings), I made my way up to Niagara. I know I’ve been to Niagara once before, but have no memory of the experience, so I was quite excited. It doesn’t disappoint at all; it is a spectacular sight, although I could do without all the people. I mean… who would have thought people would want to travel and see amazing sights… Since I was heading across to Detroit, the route via Canada was quicker, so I spent a day on the Canadian side to see the more spectacular views (but way more touristy town) before cutting across to Detroit and Ann Arbour, where I spent a few relaxing days with a friend I’d made in Austin, Texas, who happened to live in Ann Arbour. After Malta I hadn’t planned much more of the trip at all, other than Niagara, so the next couple of days were dedicated to washing clothes and planning the next few weeks of the trip (Rock ‘n’ Roll…). I hadn’t planned to spend much time in Michigan – the only things on my list were a few stops in Detroit and Pictured Rocks up in the Upper Peninsula. However, as both my friend in Ann Arbour and my new friends Deb and Todd were from the state, I was bombarded with ideas of places to visit and took them up on many of their suggestions. I’m very glad I did, as Michigan turned out to be one of my favourite states so far (although that may be more due to the hospitality of Deb and her friends at the end of the visit).
Pictured Rocks lakeshore was as beautiful as advertised and overall the local town, Munising, was by far one of the best places I have stayed in a long time. It wasn’t the first time that I’ve loved a place - believe me, there have been many wonderful, beautiful places in the last six months - but Munising was quite special, as everything seemed to come together at once. I stayed in a stunning and picturesque cottage on Lake Superior, full of beautiful wooden furniture and books and blankets, with a deck to enjoy the sunset (it reminded me of the lovely poem Looby-Lou wrote for me once about having a stunning and solitary place to read a book – this was it!). I ate at a fantastic restaurant that felt even more amazing given its remote location in a tiny town – one of the best steaks and one of the best Old Fashioneds I’ve ever had. The final cherry-on-the-top was the Crème Brûlée, which is one of the only desserts I will eat and secretly (shhh, don’t tell anyone), I have a mental list of the best Crème Brûlées in the world. This was number two (in my experience so far), second only to a rooftop café on the Djemaa el-Fna in Marrakech. On top of the amazing home comforts and outstanding food, I also managed to see some stunning scenery from the lake. All in all, a perfect and picturesque couple of days.
With a brief stop-off at Tahquamenon Falls, I made my way to Mackinac Island. I wasn’t going to, but Deb insisted! Mackinac is a beautiful, picturesque island famous for fudge (the real reason Deb sent me there!) and the fact that no vehicles are allowed on the island. Apart from, as I learned, when there is construction going on, in which case a trail of HGVs will follow you around the island. But it is still stunningly beautiful and offers yet another amazing view of one of the Great Lakes – Huron this time. The Great Lakes are apparently just as treacherous as the high seas (as demonstrated by the number of shipwrecks in the waters), but after having seen all of them, all I will remember is the beautiful colour and clarity, as if you were on a tropical beach. I’m just now realising how many times I’ve said ‘stunning’, ‘beautiful’, and ‘amazing’ so far in this blog. Must buy a thesaurus. But you also must visit Michigan.
My final stop in Michigan was to visit my friends Deb and Todd, who randomly started a conversation with me in Big-Nose Kate’s Saloon in Tombstone, Arizona (you may remember them from a previous blog). Deb had said to stop by if I was passing by her way and I’m so glad I did. In fact, I detoured especially. I have met a lot of people on this trip so far and most have been friendly and accommodating, but there is something that hits you when you meet someone truly different – someone that you just know is genuine and welcoming and interested. Deb is one of these people. There was something about her when I met her in Arizona that made me want to see her again and, as I said – I’m so glad I did.
I drove up to her house as she welcomed me at the door with a beaming smile and a hug. She showed me around and I instantly felt right at home. Eager to show me the best that Michigan had to offer and to show off the strange English lady that had rocked up at the door, Deb had invited a few friends round for pizza and pit fire. She reassured me that she didn’t want to overwhelm me on my first night, so she had only invited 15-20 people around (!?!?!?!?!). That’s more people than I’ve spoken to in six months! But they were all lovely, welcoming, friendly, and interested, just like Deb herself. I must say, I took the advantage of being in a real home to relax and recover from a lot of travelling. On day two, we went to see the Tulips in Holland and I got my Michigan Tattoo (and Deb got one of her own to celebrate “Thankfulness” – her personal mantra. Other than that, there was a lot of meeting people, some drinks, some food, a stretch limo, and some honest-to-god line dancing (watching of on my part). I wish I could have stayed longer and really regretted having to leave to continue the journey south, however; I will most definitely go back and I know I have made two lifelong friends.
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