In July 2024 I did a solo road trip to Michigan and Indiana to visit family members. Fortunately, a long overdue return trip in June 2026 wasn’t a solo trip! 😊
We drove a little over 400 miles the first day, passing through “wild and wonderful” West Virginia before stopping for the night in Marysville, Ohio.
On June 10th we continued on to Indiana, and after lunch at a diner in the small town of Nappanee…
…we arrived at our first destination in Michigan. One of Lenny’s good friends and his wife graciously shared their beautiful home with us, and the view of the St. Joseph River from their backyard was stunning!
The next morning I had so much fun sitting out on the patio, watching and photographing birds and other wildlife.
I think it was at this point that I wondered if they’d notice if I simply moved in for the summer! 😉
This little critter is a male “Dusky Dancer” damselfly. It seemed as curious about me as I was about it. Lookit those eyes!! 😯
I also enjoyed watching a female Hummingbird who was a frequent visitor at the feeder.
For lunch, we went to an eclectic Japanese/Mexican restaurant. Really good food, and even better company!
After lunch we were treated to a tour of the Notre Dame University campus near South Bend, Indiana.
I’d never heard of “Touchdown Jesus” before, but there he was, right across from the end zone of the 80,000+ seat football stadium!
The Golden Dome building (also known as the Main Building) is topped with a 4000-lb, 19-ft tall statue of Mary. (By the way, “Notre Dame” means “Our Lady” and refers to Mary, mother of Jesus). This stately building houses administrative offices, classrooms, and meeting rooms.
The Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes at Notre Dame University was built in 1896. It is a one-seventh-scale replica of the famous shrine in France.
Our next stop on the campus was the beautiful Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
Shortly after returning to Michigan that afternoon, Lenny and I drove back across the border into Indiana so he could show me some special places from his teenage years.
And after that, we visited the town of Goshen, Indiana. What’s in Goshen, you might ask? Why, Fabric Utopia, of course! I’d discovered this large fabric store years ago on Etsy–and I’d ordered from them several times–so I was looking forward to visiting, in person. Unfortunately, the air conditioning wasn’t working well (at all!) in the huge warehouse, so I didn’t stay too long–but I did buy some cute, cat-themed fabric while I was there. 😊
Back in Michigan, we spent another evening enjoying the river and wildlife…
…until a tornado warning had us hanging out in the basement playing trivia games! Things were ultimately fine where we were, but there were multiples tornadoes reported that night. Ah, late spring in the Midwest!
The next day, Friday, June 12th, we traveled further up the road to our second destination in Michigan. There we got together with some more special people! There were lots of smiles and hugs all around–as well as a wee bit of arm wrestling! 💖
A little later in the day it was beach time! ❤️
Saturday June 13th offered pretty weather, too, and we visited a different beach! While there, my camera picked up rather large structures across the lake. They seemed too big to be buildings in Chicago–approximately 55 miles away–but I don’t know what else we might have been seeing from that vantage point. Michigan City Pierhead, maybe?
It was less windy than the day before, and there were more boats out on the lake.
That evening I realized that some things are just kind of different in Michigan; their squirrels are black, and their ice cream is blue…. 😉
The next day, June 14th, it was much, much cooler than it had been the previous two days. We visited the downtown area (wearing flannel shirts and sweaters!), made some new friends (ha) and ate lunch at the very popular Silver Beach Pizza.
It’s always a pleasure to see this gorgeous carousel. While the horses and other creatures on the ride are not original to the 1910 carousel, the history of this location is pretty interesting.
Later that afternoon we all went to another beach on Lake Michigan. By then it was overcast and quite cool, and red flag warnings were posted.
Ah, but so much distance, and so little time for catching up between visits! I’m very, very thankful that we had the opportunity to make the trip this year! ❤️
On Monday June 15th, we left Michigan and drove towards Lafayette, Indiana. Our route took us near Delphi, Indiana, and we passed by the Abby and Libby Memorial Park….
In 2021 and 2022 I camped at Prophetstown State Park near Battleground, Indiana, and I enjoyed revisiting the campground and seeing some of the exhibits again on this trip.
I saw–and heard–a beautiful Western Meadowlark at the park, but my camera had a hard time focusing on the bird.
That evening we met up with several of my family members at one of our favorite restaurants in Lafayette. While it was a quick, one-evening visit, it was so good to see those who could make it, and we missed those who couldn’t be there. ❤️
The next day, Tuesday, June 16th, we started for home, stopping for the night just east of Charleston, West Virginia.
The Kanawha River was right behind our hotel…
…and a pretty sunset closed out the day.
We made it back to Virginia–safe, but tired–early the next afternoon. No rest for the weary, however, as there were still some things that needed to be done….
If you read my last blog post, you might recall that I sold my Jeep to the guy who towed it–and my trailer–back to my house after an unexpectedly challenging camping trip. Right after selling the Jeep, I’d gotten a rental car ($$$$), but I turned it in the day before we left on this trip. As I still hadn’t found a car I wanted to buy, I’d reserved yet another rental ($$$$) and needed to pick it up that afternoon.
Before going to the rental company, however, we went back to a dealership where I’d TWICE looked at a used car that I liked–but didn’t really love. It was still available, and while I couldn’t make myself say that I loved it this time, either, I finally realized that I kind of needed it.
And thus, the trip to Michigan and Indiana ultimately ended with me driving home in a new-to-me vehicle, which was absolutely an end-of-vacation FIRST–and hopefully LAST!
By the way, the color of the car is called “Baja Storm,” but it sure looks a lot like “Seal Point Siamese” to me. What do YOU think?! 😉
Until next time,
Sharon