We had bid Sally adieu last night after dinner, but Joe was stopping by the motel this morning to drop off some maps and info before we left. Prior to his arrival, we got the bikes loaded and had a cup of coffee.
We said good-bye to our friend and personal tour guide before heading to the office to check out. By 10:00 a.m. we were on our way south. Our route home took us through the rural, farming towns of Hillman, Hawks, Mio and Rose City before picking up Interstate 75 about 10 miles north of where we left it on our ride up to Rogers City five days ago.
A ten mile stretch of construction on I-75 added about 45 minutes in the blazing sun, but when we got moving again, it was all good.
Seventy five miles further down the interstate, we exited toward the town of Frankenmuth. Michigan's "Little Bavaria", it was schnitzel from end to end. At the far end of town was Bronner's Christmas Wonderland. Several football fields long, I was sure it contained millions of Christmas decorations. More than you could ever want in holiday cheer: Ornaments, garland, lights, Santas, sleighs, trees and more. Everything from the exquisitely beautiful, to the downright tacky. They even had a Hanukkah Christmas ornament!After making a few small purchases, we rode over to the Bavarian Inn Restaurant for an early dinner. Judy had the German sampler with pretzels and cheese dip, potato pancakes and ham and cabbage balls. I went with their "famous" fried chicken served with potatoes and stuffing. Both were excellent selections. We were rather full afterward, but shared a mini slice of the Apple Almond Cheesecake. OUTSTANDING!
On the road again, we first decided that we would ride until about 9:00 p.m. before looking for a hotel. Then after calculating a bit more, we realized that riding until 9:00 would put us near Youngstown, Ohio, only about two hours from home. At that point we agreed to ride through to the finish.
As the sun set, it cooled off considerably and we stopped to put on jackets and gloves. Nearing the end of the Ohio turnpike, we were greeted by not one, but two separate fireworks displays off to our right, about ten miles apart.
Shortly before midnight, we pulled into the garage. Home again with memories to add to our collection. We are truly blessed to be able to do what we do.
Again, I can not thank Sally and Joe Cercone enough for encouraging us to visit Northern Michigan and the U.P., and for being such wonderful hosts and tour guides.
If you haven't made plans to visit that area, you should! Visit these sights for more information:
http://www.us23heritageroute.org/
http://www.rogerscity.com/
http://www.presqueislecounty.org/
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