7/15/2021
I arrived on vacation two days early. I had nothing booked until Saturday in Interlochen MI.
I spent my Tuesday buying food and prepping. Wednesday came and my only task was to relax. I had a hard time with it. I was antsy and getting depressed. Was I going to find a place? I’ve been searching online for months and with everything booked it’s hard and m.y favorite sites are the ones you pull into. No reservations needed. Thursday came, I grabbed my last minute items like ice and a tarp. I needed a tarp. I took off to Ludington. My favorite city. I stopped at my favorite campground. I knew it was going to be full but I had to make sure. Buttersville campground. Full. I asked for some non-reservation sites and the current ranger gave me two places. My gut and mind told me to go for the first one. Cartier. I tried to call ahead of time but no answer. So I headed that way. When I arrived the gentleman was very nice and he had a ton of rustic campsites available. Including one ☝️ small electric site left. I paid the extra cash and got that one.
The campground was very cute and everything I would expect a campground to be. I was pleased with my choice. My brain was scattered from the stress of both my jobs. Even though I had a few days off prior, my mind was not fully on vacation yet. I was not relaxed. I set up a tent. Constantly pacing in where to put my phone, where to put my keys, where to put anything really. Of course I lost my keys!! I’ve only been there an hour. I’ve only traveled to the bathroom, and made my trip up again for the search of the missing keys. It left me puzzled when they did not appear. I went back, calmly, more confused than anything. I tore apart my jeep and tent. Nothing. I walked frazzled to the main office asking if anyone had turned in missing keys recently; since I’ve seen about 5 or more kids pass through the bathhouse since I’ve arrived. Yet again, nothing. I went back into the tent, moved my stuff once more and there they lay. Embarrassed; is what slightly angered me. More or less I knew I needed to decompress and fast. So after I found the keys, my first trip I went to hike to lighthouse Au Sable.
The trail was easy, quaint and not many bugs if any. The views at Ludington are endless. I walked along the shore and walked a few dunes. I returned around 6 for dinner and man, cooking on my new fancy camper grill is my favorite thing.
When it came to food, I brought sweet potatoes versus regular because they’re full of sugar and I feel they're healthier and more filling than a standard potato. I brought a ton of vegetables with me, onions (two types) tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms, carrots and some canned beans, salsa, dips like hummus and pineapple corn salsa.
I found when it came to vegetables, carrots did not hold up. I took one out of the bag and had to toss the rest later on. My red leaf lettuce held well in a container, and not in my cooler. In fact none of my veggies I kept in the cooler except my kale and mushrooms or once they were cut. Kale lasted until day 4 before I had to toss. I ate all but half a green pepper by day four before I had to toss.
When making a fire for the first night I was struggling for I had no paper. Haha. The camper across from me saw my struggle and grabbed some tongs, grabbed a piece of white burning wood and brought it to me. Another camper offered me paper. My neighbors were lovely and I enjoyed camping next to elder people. I even held an older man's dog for him because he just arrived, needed to use the John, but had no idea where to put his dog after he walked up there. Seeing him confused I offered my assistance. We talked all the way back to the site. He was also a new neighbor. We’ll say after that, he tied Teddy, his 1 year old black lab, up to the Picnic table when he left for the bathhouse next time. I enjoyed watching all the campground kids go over to his site and play with his dog while they pestered him with a trillion questions and stories.
