Northcentral US with the Stocks 2012

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My DH makes etouffee with crawfish.  I use to turn my nose up but now it's one of my favorite dishes and I have to beg him to make it.  :)
 
Oct. 6 Day 45 Munising, Michigan

Wind and rain started last night and continued off and on throughout the day.  Occasional flakes fell but melted before hitting the ground.  But, it is COLD, with a low of 27? tonight, and the wind makes it even colder.  It was a perfect day to clean the coach and organize our itinerary and finances.

We ate our first pasties (I was told it is said with a "short a", that my mispronunciation with a "long a" is what strippers wear), and they were very good.  Tony's gets an "A".

Staying at Munising Tourist Park (city owned) Campground, $30, FHU, 50 amps
 
(I was told it is said with a "short a", that my mispronunciation with a "long a" is what strippers wear), and they were very good.

LOL Linda. I don't know about strippers' attire, but I tell folks to pronounce it as paasties, not paysties, and to shorten the double 'a'  ;D

If you see them, try Cornish pasties; They're quite different, and my favorite. Cornish tin miners came to work in California during the gold rush, and brought the recipe with them. Our daughter lives in 49er country, and she has a standing order for Cornish pasties every time she comes to visit. Not as good as the ones my aunt in Cornwall used to make though.
 
Thanks for the link Margi. I don't like swede (pronounced 'sweed'), so have never had that in my pasties.
 
Tom and Margi said:
I had never hear of swede, so had to look that up, too.  Is it just like a rutabega or something different?

Try a turnip, it will be what is normally used.  Rutabegaa are also used but my grandmother would only use turnips.
 
At the north end of the Mackinac Bridge between upper and Lower Michigan, by St. Ignace, there are a number of shops selling pasties.
 
Oct. 7 Day 46 Munising, Michigan

BRRR!  As I write this, it is less than 32?, and our heater has quit.  Dean did his best, but wasn't successful, so we will huddle in blankets tonight.  I am ready to head for Arizona with the snowbirds or the Gulf with the real birds!

We started our day with the 1:00 Shipwreck Cruise on the glass-bottom boat out of Munising on the "Miss Munising."  Cost was $54 for the two of us.  We sat inside, but hearty people braved the wind and cold on the deck.  Captain Joe and his aide, Robert, were excellent.  All the windows, on the deck and under the boat, were very clean.

The first shipwreck we visited was the "Bermuda".  It was built of white oak in 1860 at a cost of $15,000.  Ships like this  headed to Chicago from Duluth, where they would unload iron ingots that were then made into steel.  Men, women, and children would come with wheelbarrows to unload the iron ore, and they would be paid $1/day.

In 1870, the Bermuda's wood hull sprung a leak, so they came into the bay at Munising (there was no town here then).  They tied the ship up to trees, and the captain and his aide went to get help, leaving 3 sailors aboard.  When they returned, the ship was gone and the trees had been uprooted. Their ship had sunk in 70 feet of water, some distance from shore, and the sailors, who were sleeping aboard, perished. (pictures 1)  Picture 2 is of the masthole.    They used wooden nails called trunnels to put the board together because iron nails would rot the wood.  To install the nail, they would drill a hole; three men held the wooden nail while one man wielding a sledgehammer, drove it in.  (Picture 3)

Later, a salvage company, using winches and straps,  towed the ship into water only 27' deep and recovered the hi-grade iron ore that was aboard.  The iron ore was worth $17,000.  In today's dollars, that is $26,000,000.  They have found a ship made of white pine that sank in 1700 and still looks good, so this ship built of white oak will be around for many, many centuries.

Lake Superior is constantly in flux.  Erosion can be a powerful force.  A man had a cabin on Grand Isle, an island off the shore of Munising, and when he returned one summer, he found it hanging out 10 feet over the water.  He put boards under it, winched it back 30', and built this seawall.  (Picture 4)  Michiganders have a tremendous will!

As Captain Joe steered toward the lighthouse, he told me that they get 180" to 240" of snow, and that he used to remove snow as his winter job.  He hated it, and he sold all his equipment last year.  They usually have snow every day from Dec. 10 to January 30, plus additional days before and after.  He needed 20 days of snow to pay his expenses, like insurance.  Last year, they only had 8 days of snow.  It was like he had a crystal ball that allowed him to get out and not have a financial disaster.

Our next site was the East Grand Channel Lighthouse.  It operated from 1809-1913.  George Pryor ran the lighthouse for a long time, and he was paid $400/year + benefits.  The benefits were 4 full cords of firewood. (Picture 5)  He and his wife raised several children here.  Talk about hardy!

We motored out to the wreck of the Helter.  The Helter was carrying 1million board feet of lumber on its deck and had a hold full of table salt.  Its 16-man crew was trying to navigate the channel in a storm, seeking shelter in the bay.  It hit a reef, and its 36-year-old wood didn't hold together.  All of the sailors were rescued by another ship.  In 1939, they decided it was a navigation hazard and a bad omen for sailors coming into the harbor.  They exploded it.  In the debris field, we were able to see the captain's bathtub and toilet.  The anchor was 4' x 8' and weighed 2500 pounds. (Picture 6)

In another area, we could see where the MMDuke hit the same reef, and they unloaded some of their iron ore over the side to lighten the load.  It's blue balls now.

When I called to make the arrangements, they told me we would be seeing Pictured Rocks.  The captain merely pointed them out from afar, and there is another tour that goes out to them.  Unfortunately, today was their last day, so we won't see the Pictured Rocks up close.

On the way back in, we saw more pretty colors (Picture 7).

We picked up chicken and beef pasties at Muldoon's, just a block away.  A few months ago, there was a competition between all the restaurants who make pasties in the UP.  Muldoon's won 1st place, so we bought chicken and beef pasties, as well as their famous gravy.

We drove into Marquette to see Presque Isle Park, which was very pretty.  We got to see North Michigan University, where several of my colleagues got their degrees.  I really liked their igloo-shaped sports arena.

Staying at Munising Tourist Park (city owned) Campground, $30, FHU, 50 amps
 

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Tom said:
LOL Linda. I don't know about strippers' attire, but I tell folks to pronounce it as paasties, not paysties, and to shorten the double 'a'  ;D

If you see them, try Cornish pasties; They're quite different, and my favorite. Cornish tin miners came to work in California during the gold rush, and brought the recipe with them. Our daughter lives in 49er country, and she has a standing order for Cornish pasties every time she comes to visit. Not as good as the ones my aunt in Cornwall used to make though.

We were told these were Cornish pasties.  The miners here mined iron, but they came from Cornwall, and brought the pasties in their lunchpails.  Apparently, they really caught on with everyone.  I taught with several UPers, and they all LOVED pasties.  We are able to get them at a pasty shop in Los Alamitos, just minutes from my home, but I haven't ever stopped and bought any.
 
BernieD said:
At the north end of the Mackinac Bridge between upper and Lower Michigan, by St. Ignace, there are a number of shops selling pasties.

AAH, but which one is best?  Each place thinks theirs is the best.  It reminds me of the clam chowder in Oregon, all of which is great, but every place wants to be THE BEST!  Thanks, though, for the tip.  We may add to our pa-a-a-a-sty collection.
 
Oct. 9 Day 47 Newberry, Michigan

Dean got up early and fixed the heater, but he doesn't know how he did it or what was wrong.  We got parked at our new site before 1:00 and took off for our adventure.

Today's log is dedicated to the brave men and women of the Coast Guard.  I am so inspired by their courage and the stories I heard today.

The Shipwreck Museum in Paradise is at the tip of Whitefish Point.  Admission for both of us was $20.  It is a museum dedicated to those who lost their lives and the Coast Guardsmen who tried to save them.  It is divided into 4 buildings-the history of shipwrecks, the lighthouse, the gift shop, and the Coast Guard surfboat museum.

The shipwreck building had stories of many shipwrecks and their relics, such as dishes, boiler, nameplates. It starts with the history of a Frenchman who first explored the area, before the people we've heard of, and how the Huron tribe turned on him, killed him, and ATE him!  They had the big lens that warned sailors of White Shoal.  It had a clockwork mechanism like a grandfather clock which was regulated by a pendulum dropping 44' through a tube into the heart of the tower.  Every 2 hours and 18 minutes throughout the night, the light-keeper had to wind the mechanism.  The bell from the famed wreck Edmund Fitzgerald which sank in the 70's was brought up at the request of the families of those who perished.  The wreck is in the Canadian portion of the Lake Superior has been designated a National Graveyard, and no one is allowed to go near it.

The Whitefish Lighthouse (Picture 1) is being restored.  It is usually available for tours, but more and more, we are finding that we are at the end of the season and things are closed totally, or at least are open for fewer days and have shorter hours.  The light in the lighthouse is still used.  It is lit by an LED light that is expected to work for over 20 years and is monitored from the Coast Guard station in Sault Ste. Marie.

We wondered what a surfboat was, and my son-in-law is a Coast Guardsman, so we wandered inside this building (Picture 2). Other visitors were confused by this, too.  This is a replica.  A docent inside told us that the "Shipwreck Coast" from Munising to Whitefish Point was 80 miles of chaos where over 300 whips went down.

The Coast Guard started as the U. S. Lifesaving Service.  It later combined with the Revenue Cutter Service, which was our nation's first tax collectors.  The Coast Guard is the longest continuous service because the Army and Navy disbanded after the Revolutionary War.

The U. S. Lifesaving Service established a boathouse every 10-12 miles around the shoreline of the Lake Superior.  It was chaotic because there were 10,000 to 20,000 ships traversing it every year, so there was lots of congestion.  There were no rules or laws.  The navigational aids were non-existent or rudimentary.  Sailors were blinded at night by fog and smoke.  The sands shift in the lake, but where there is a sandbar one day, there is none the next, but a new one has formed somewhere else.  Therefore, navigational maps were worthless.  They just couldn't chart these waters.

The first thing we saw was a surfboat replica which cost $85,000..  The originals, built in 1889, weighing 1300 pounds, cost $275.  They were made of white cedar plank and had copper nails, bronze oarlocks, a brass foghorn, a sea-brake, a spruce mast, 1 sail, and a grappling hook.  The surfboat was rowed by 8 oarsmen with 12-foot ash oars, and the Keeper stood at the stern, gripping a 16-foot steering oar.  With their backs to the dangers lurking ahead, the surfmen, wearing state-of-the-art lifevests, watched the keeper and did what he said.  The surfboat did have great handling advantages when it was near wrecks.  It had "scuppers" which allowed water that sloshed inside to exit, so it was self-bailing.  It had an air chamber under the deck which made is more stable.  This enabled the crew to take off the stranded crew.

The Coast Guardsmen were called "Storm Warriors."  They paid for their own uniforms and earned $1.33/day minus the $0.40 for meals.  In the early years, they had no pensions.  Later, they did receive a tiny pension.

There were 62 stations on the Great Lakes.  A wooden watch tower was built at each station, which gave the lifesavers an unobstructed view of the lake.  They watched for ships in trouble and recorded passing vessel traffic.  Each night and on thick weather days, two men would set out in opposite directions, until they met patrols from the adjacent stations.  Brass tokens were exchanged to verify to the Keepers that the surfmen had performed their duty.  Surfmen carried a patrol lantern and a pouch containing cotton flares.  if a wreck was discovered or a vessel was too close to shore, a red flare was lit to warn them off or assure the victim(s) that help as on the way.

The Keeper made the decision on how to proceed with the rescue.  Sometimes they couldn't take out the surfboat, so they used the Beach Apparatus  (Pictures 4 & 5).  Eight men wearing harnesses would push or pull this huge cart to the shoreline near where the ship was in trouble as quickly as possible.  Sometimes they would have to do this through miles of soft sand with rain, snow, hail, sleet or sharp sand, which would cut their faces..  Once on scene, the Keeper loaded, aimed, and fired the Lyle gun, sending a projectile with tethered shot line streaming over the stranded vessel.  Attached was a whip-line and tally-board stenciled with instructions in English and French directing survivors how to secure the lines for rescue.  A large 1" diameter hawser rope was then pulled to the wreck and tied to a mast as high above deck as possible.  By means of a pulley system and traveling block riding the hawser, the breeches buoy was hauled back and forth, recovering one survivor at a time.  (Pictures 6 & 7)

They told many stories, but this was the best.  In November, 1886, the Keeper of the Portage Canal Life Saving Station received an emergency telegram from Marquette saying that two big ships, the steamer Robert Wallace and schooner David Wallace, had stranded and were in great danger--110 miles away!  The keeper loaded the station's lifeboat and his crew on an Ontonogan RR train, and made the run through a raging blizzard in only 3 hours.  The lifeboat was transported by wagon to the wreck scene, and after several failed attempts in tremendous seas, the Keeper and his crew saved all 24 people aboard the two vessels.  11 months later, the same keeper repeated the same railroad journey to rescue 10 people aboard a stranded schooner.  A few years later, he died.  When a Lifesaver dies, his pension dies with him.  Surviving family received nothing.  He is buried in an unmarked grave in Eagle Harbor Cemetery.  Surviving children were unable to afford a headstone.

The Whitefish Bird Observatory, a watchtower undergoing reconstruction, is next to this flagpole.  The wind was about 30 mph, and those flags sounded like a whip cracking. (Picture 8)

Even though it was getting dark, we pushed on to our next stop.  We were rewarded by the colors of the Tahquamenon Falls State Park.  Their trees were brilliant and shone brightly--even through raindrops!  I was shivering by the time we reached the Lower Falls, (Picture 10) about 1/4 mile trail of cold and wind.  It didn't seem to bother the grey heron sitting at the base of the falls fishing.  (Picture 11)  It was getting darker, colder, and windier, but we made the trek 5 miles down the road to the Upper Falls (Picture 12), where they also had beautiful trees and what would have been a beautiful 1/4-mile trail if the weather were better.

Staying at Clementz's  Northcountry Campground--FHU, 50 amps, $26
 

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Hi Linda & Dean,
    Your post about Whitefish Point is fabulous and I learned so much from it! Your photos are great, as well. Thanks for sharing your wonderful adventures.
                                                                                            Happy Trails,
                                                                                                        Bonnie
 
We also loved Whitefish Point but, Linda, I have to say your description was excellent.  You got a lot in that I just plain don't remember seeing!  Kudos.  Also enjoying your pretty trees.

ArdraF
 
We're back for good!  (I HOPE!)  As soon as we got rid of the virus, our battery popped out of the computer.  The computer still worked because we had electricity, but the edges from the battery door threatened to scratch our desk.  No Apple Store within 200+ miles still, so we persevered.  Now, problem solved, CROSSING MY FINGERS!  It was inspirational to read such nice replies from friends.  What a nice way to get back in the groove!
 
Glad that you made it back without any major problems. I have enjoyed following along on your trip to The Northcentral US
 
Oct. 10 Day 49 Lansing, Michigan

We arrived at the Capitol and walked thru a dimly lit hallway entrance on the Lower Level that reminded me of a dungeon.  The next tour was at 12:30.  We watched an interesting film while waiting.  At 12:30 we discovered there was a large bus tour, so we decided to wait and go at 1:00.  Bad decision!  At the 1:00 tour, we were joined by 31 third-graders, and the docent gave us a very simplified tour targeted at 8-year-olds. Most of what I write, I learned reading pamphlets.

Each capitol we've visited has its own uniqueness, and Dean says Lansing is "The Best Restored Capitol."  When Michigan was admitted to the Union in 1837, Detroit was the first capitol, with an expiration date of 1847.  There was a lot of debate because each legislator wanted it to be in his district.  A speculator talked the governor and legislators into naming Lansing Township, while horrified observers, noting that not even a village existed, called it a "howling wilderness."  They threw up a quick temporary capitol, and it was called "Michigan, Michigan."  (I have to wonder what may have caused such a irrational decision--political corruption???)  It has served as Michigan's capital since 1847, but didn't become a city until 1859.  They had to wait for the Civil War to end before they could build a better capitol.

In 1872, they started making plans for the capitol.  They chose the best materials for the best price, and showed no favoritism to Michigan materials.  The final cost was $1.4 million, which was relatively very inexpensive.  It was completed in 1879.  The exterior is made of Ohio sandstone.  "Most of the Capitol's woodwork is inexpensive Michigan pine carefully hand painted (not stained!) to mimic costly walnut.  Called 'wood graining', this technique involves applying seven layers of paint, all by hand.  Every line of grain is carefully hand painted--even the pores in the wood."  (Picture 1)  Sometimes they mimicked maple.

None of the hall's "marble" columns were actually marble.  "Hand painted to fool the eye, the columns are cast iron, the pilasters are plaster."    They painted plaster over bricks so the columns look like marble.  They were able to make these "faux" materials for a fraction of the cost of real marble, walnut and maple.

Over the years, the population grew, so they took those rooms with 20' high ceilings, and divided the floors into two 10' high floors, doubling the square footage.  By putting in these half floors or "overfloors", they covered up the architecture and painted over decor.

When the building turned 100 years old in 1979, it was obvious that it needed attention.  It had been overtaxed, and really needed attention.  Plans were made to restore the Senate lobby, and it turned out so well that they decided to restore the whole building in 1987.  It would only cost 1/3 as much as building a whole new capitol.  Restorers discovered that no two rooms were painted the same.  "Over nine acres of hand-painted surfaces were carefully restored to look exactly as they did originally."  (Picture 2) They took out the over-flooring and restored the dramatic 20' high ceilings.  They installed new heating, cooling and safety systems and modernized all the functioning parts while restoring the decorative parts. 

Many of the original materials were gone, so they used reproductions to replace lost antiques.  Some original furnishings were returned.  (Picture 3)

The original roof was made of tin and leaked.  The architect had envisioned the capital having a copper roof, and it finally got one.

Our tour started on the ground floor.  It was designed to be storerooms and an armory, so it is plain and unadorned.  During the restoration, I'm sure they were tempted to decorate it, but they accurately returned it to its original appearance.  They did make a few changes.  The lighting fixtures are electric rather than gas.  Gray tile that would last was substituted for original strip pine flooring.  And, conspicuously absent are the hundreds of spittoons once found throughout the Capitol. 

Throughout the Capitol, the walls, ceilings, and floors are built of solid brick. At the time this was built, most buildings were built of wood.  This is one of the few capitols we've visited that never burned.

We took the elevator to the First Floor.  At one time, all branches of the state government, including the supreme court, legislature, governor, were all housed here.  But, now it's offices for the legislative leaders, the ceremonial office of the governor, lieutenant governor, and the legislature still meets here.

We looked up 160 feet to an opening at the top of the inner dome. (Picture 4)  The tip top represents the starry sky.  Dean says the white is clouds, but I'm not so sure.  Just below the eye are eight paintings of muses, sources of inspiration,  that were painted on canvas and glued directly to the inner dome.  The artist's name, Tommaso Juglaris, was forgotten for over 100 years until it was rediscovered in 1992 because of the restoration.  They not only did a physical restoration, but they also restored some of Michigan's history.

Michigan is really proud that they sent over half of the military-age males in the state to save the Union and abolish slavery.  They have 160 replicas of the battle flags that were carried by those troops. (Picture 5)  The real ones are housed in the Michigan Historical Museum. 

I saw two chandeliers that I really enjoyed.  They are both were originally gas and have been electrified, computerized, and restored.  The one outside the governor's office is elegant.  (Picture 6)  The other has was a magnificent cast metal chandelier, which features a beautiful elk and shield design. (Picture 7)  "It was recently discovered that they were actually cast from a mixture of several OTHER metals"  (brass and zinc, but no copper). In most capitols, these would be carved; these were made of stamped steel.  This is evidence of how practical they were.

Both chambers of the legislature meet officially on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays for 9 months a year.  They earn $89,000/year.  The representatives are limited to 6 total years, and the governor and senators are limited to 8 years.

The House of Representatives Chamber seats Democrats on the left and Republicans on the right.  As of now, there are 64 Republicans and 46 Democrats.  They use a voting board to record votes.  "Original 1878 desks were refinished."  However, in an apparent contradiction, they don't replace chairs until they wear out.  You can see the mismatch. (Picture 8) They copied the authentic period design for the carpet.  The ceilings in both houses used to have ruby-and-white hand-etched glass panes representing each state.  "These were replaced in the House by plastic and in the Senate by plywood."  When they  did the restoration, they put in replicas featuring the coats of arms of all 50 states.  They also got rid of the dull eggshell white and re-painted it in terra cotta and teals.  "In both chambers the solid walnut members' desks...originally cost the enormous sum of $13.65 each!  They have done much of the restoration based on photographs since the original chandeliers and carpeting were thrown out over the years.  In fact, now all of the lights are computerized to dim somewhat at 6:00 PM and really dim at midnight in order to save money.  Total cost of the restoration was $58 million.

There are 38 members of the Senate Chamber.  The President of the Senate is the lieutenant governor.  The Senate Chamber, which was painted eggshell white, has been repainted in the original vibrant blues and silvers.  (Picture 9)

The old Supreme Court Chamber is now used by the Senate Appropriations Committee for hearings and meetings.

On the second floor, we saw the Gallery of Governors (most recent 14 governors) in the Rotunda.  GOVERNORS PAY FOR THEIR OWN PORTRAITS!  They give these portraits to the state when they leave office.  When they "age out", their portrait is put on one of the many bare walls in the Capitol.  I really liked this portrait of Governor John Swainson.  It looks like the painting is damaged.  However, it was painted this was on purpose.  He was only 35 when he became governor, and he left office when he was 37.  "The painting's unfinished appearance was intended to symbolize Swainson's then-unfinished career."  I had to find out about this, since I knew that the governors here have 4-year terms.  I learned that they had 2-year terms until 1966. 

Nest to Gov. Swainson is the portrait of George Romney.  He looks just like Mitt.

The Governor's Office and Parlor are here. (Picture 11)  He uses it for press conferences, bill-signing ceremonies, and special occasions.  His real office is with the legislators in the big building next door.

The current governor, Rick Snyder, is really popular because he and his Republican really severely modified the "helmet law."  You don't have to wear a helmet when riding a motorcycle if you are 21 years old or more, have completed a motorcycle safety class, and have $20,000 medical insurance. 

Their first female governor was Snyder's predecessor.  Governor Granholm's name brought reactions which peaked my curiosity.  I could feel an undercurrent.  So, when we had lunch at Bob Evan's, I talked with people there, also.  I then read her biography on the Internet.  It sounds to me like she did a great job.  There is a lot of resentment because "she is a Californian".  She grew up in California, but came to Michigan when she graduated from Harvard Law School and married her Michigan-born husband.  She has lived here all her adult life.  She and her husband got offers to teach at UC Berkeley when she lost the election, and they accepted professorships there.  Why shouldn't they?  Our waitress said with disdain, "She was a Democrat, wasn't she?  And she was from California."  If my small sample of 6 is any measure, the Democrats are going to have a tough road to hoe this election in Michigan.  (I am politically unbiased this year--I don't like either one of them!)

I love the idea of spending "the people's money" wisely.  But, I hate the idea of faux anything in government.  Picture 12 is of a "faux copper" (stamped steel) light, which is quite pretty.  Why pretend?  Just leave it the color of steel, and be honest.  The faux marble really doesn't work.  For one thing, chips in paint happen as people use the capitol.  However, even if it were newly painted, there's no way it looks like marble or granite--only to a blind man.  Of all places where honesty is necessary, government and marriage are at the top.  I commend their thriftiness, and I think they should have been proud of it.  Politics and trickery are a terrible combination and definitely not the example they should have set for future legislators.

Staying at Lansing Cottonwood Campground, $64/2 nights with Good Sam, 50 amps, FHU, non-working WiFi, but available at office, nice people, free fishing
 

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Oct. 11 Day 50 Monroe, Michigan  (outside Detroit)

There aren't many places to stay around Detroit.  This is the closest with the "mostest".  We made the easy 110-mile drive, quickly set up camp, and headed to the Apple store, which was about 60 mile drive to Troy, to either get a new battery or a new computer.  Those who know Dean know what we got.  Dean is really pleased with his new toy.  However, we couldn't bring it home because they had to transfer everything off the old one.  Oh, we also bought the battery ($129) because Dean rightly thought that our daughter could use the old computer in her classroom.

By the time we got out of the Apple Store 2 hours later, we decided it was time for lunch.  The "Genius" recommended a mall restaurant that was new to us, J. Alexander.  We looked at our watches, and it was 5:00, and we decided to have "lunner."  We both REALLY enjoyed our meals, and the service was great.  It wasn't cheap, but it was so good!  I was so impressed that I asked if there were others, and I got a list of their locations, which I will add to my States file.  I've only done that for 2 other restaurants.

We then went to Windsor, Canada, through the tunnel.  It was a real maze.  We have been to most of the Harrah's properties, so we wanted to visit Windsor Caesar.  Both of us had wonderful luck at the blackjack table.  We enjoyed meeting the people from Ontario, also, and we have added a Windsor attraction to places we will visit.

Staying at Sterling State Park--$132 + $29 for an annual pass (or $8/day)  FHU, 50 amps, great satellite reception, paved roads and pads, grass, fire pits, right on Lake Erie, some smell from nearby smokestack, very accommodating rangers
 

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