On this past Saturday we returned home from a whirlwind trip north to visit my mom. It was a good week away from work, even if all the driving was tiresome. We left after lunch on Tuesday and drove to Manistique, MI where we stayed at the Comfort Inn. Sadly, I forgot my swimming trunks so I couldn’t take advantage of the hot tub, which I would have enjoyed because I didn’t get much sleep the night prior.
Wednesday morning we drove the rest of the way to Menominee, MI where my mom lives. After lunch we drove to Norway to see the old homestead. After a drive around to see what had changed, we drove back to Menominee and had supper at Perkins.
Thursday we drove to Green Bay, WI and got a treat for lunch because we found a Schlotzsky’s which is a unique deli place with a baked sourdough bread. You find them out west in Colorado and the nearest one to us was in Birch Run, so we haven’t been to Schlotzsky’s in a long time. I told Ruth that Green Bay would be perfect if there was a Chick-fil-a.
After lunch we stopped at Walmart for shopping, then drove around downtown Green Bay before making our way to the holy land – Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers. Visiting the stadium during the off-season is not the same as during the season, but was still exciting. The stadium is open 365 days a year, and there are tours on the half hour. I did not know about the tour, so I was expecting to go through the Packer Hall of Fame. We took in the tour, which Ruth and my mom enjoyed as well as me.
We got to sit in one of the box seats and look down on the stadium, which is a classic bowl with bench seating covered in aluminum. If you want to sit between the 20 yard lines you are going to pay $72 for a cold aluminum seat mashed against one of your soon to be closest friends. If the game is in December that may not be a bad thing. The tour does not go into the locker room, but you do get to go through the tunnel that the Packers use to get on to the field. If you have a chance I do recommend the tour.
On Friday we started our drive back home, leaving at 10 AM and made it to Gaylord, and stayed at the Holiday Inn Express. We drove the rest of the way home on Saturday.
It is definitely construction season in Michigan, and by all indications it is a big season indeed. Driving north on I-75 includes a detour off to I-675 to go through Saginaw and bypass the Zilwaukee Bridge, on which the north bound lanes are closed for construction until Labor Day. (It was to open on the fourth of July, but M-DOT just announced it will remain closed through the summer.) The north bound side of the Mackinac Bridge is also closed, with all traffic diverted on the southbound side. When you drive north you go on top the steel grating. As if that isn’t enough bridge construction, the Cut River Bridge is also closed, and a detour takes you through some wood country to bypass the river. I found this detour to be a nice break through some beautiful woods.
Notes From The Cave 