September 15, 2017. Ludington, MI

First we planned on leaving Saturday morning very early. Then we decided that would make for a very very long day of driving from Grosse Ile, MI to Lake Itasca, MN. So we thought we would leave mid-day Friday, stay at Ludington and take the ferry to Wisconsin Saturday morning.  Then we got notice that the Grosse Ile Free Bridge was going to close at 9 AM this morning and stay closed until 3 PM.

So we met at 8 AM and left home at 8:30. We took our time driving to Ludington, stopping at Muskegon for lunch.  The first restaurant we chose was too tiny to accommodate us, and had no place to park the truck and trailer. So we found another, on a wide street with ample free parking.

Tipsy Toad Tavern had something for everyone and we had a great lunch.

There is an Irish Music festival going on in Muskegon this weekend, so we were fortunate to get easy parking. There was a sign a block away advertising parking for $5. This man with the pony cart was taking people on rides on the city streets.

While at lunch I sent a text message to my friend Christy, who lives near Ludington. She and her husband Tim were at their new restaurant just 5 miles from our destination, so Bill and I and Doris and Dianne took a detour, while Fred, Diana, Tom and Dennis went to Ludington State Park to hike.

After visiting with Christy and Tim and touring their diner (set to open on Monday), we drove to Summer's Inn. They offer free wine tasting, so Dianne and I sampled a couple of wines, and then purchased a glass to take to the Scrabble table. Sue was very accommodating.

We played four games on the screened in porch, up until it was time to go to dinner.

We followed Sue's recommendation and went to PM Steamers for dinner. It was a positive experience all the way around. After dinner we drove to the ferry dock to check it out so we'll be prepared when we return here with the trailer in the morning. Thus begins another adventure!