Gnaw Bone to Michigan

Sunday June 28, 2015

We were able to get up and packed this morning but it took a while.  Jen decided she was going to try and put the roof bag inside the truck.  It didn’t work out.  Good effort though.  By the time we checked out it was already 11:00 AM so, unfortunately we didn’t have time to go ziplining.  We’ll have to do it at Gulf State Park sometime or at Adventures Unlimited, which has more zips for the money anyway.  

After visiting Nashville, Indiana, the previous night, we wanted to go back and check out the Big Woods Brewery and Pizza joint, among other stores nearby.  Nashville is a really quaint little town.  Jen said she could have spent a lot of time (and money) there.  We did notice a lot of motorcycles and leather shops.  Just neatly manicured yards, businesses, and dining facilities, the Brown county Art Gallery, all within about a six block radius.  Not touristy or anything, just a neat place to hang out.

After pizza, coffee and homemade root beer floats, it was off to our next destination. I decided to take the back roads to Indianapolis before getting on the interstate northbound.  This was not a great decision as we weren’t supposed to take the interstate northbound, so we drove around Indianapolis and finally found a road (under heavy construction)—State Road 31 N for the next 150 miles.  Luckily it was a freeway with some, but not an over abundant amount of stoplights. 

After being in the car close to three hours, I had previously planned and figured a stop in South Bend, Indiana to visit the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Notre Dame Campus would be a good idea.  I really don’t have any words to describe this place other than absolutely breath taking.  As soon as we got there and opened the door, a well of emotions opened up in me.  The architecture, the holiness of the place made me realize how important my life was, those who we have lost over the past year, and how beautiful and cherished my family is.  I found a pew and prayed for a while, for my family to heal, for God to keep blessing me with everything I have and to watch over us on this trip and in our future.  Both kids wrote in the prayer books that are in front of statues in the church.  I didn’t read them but it was awesome to see them writing their prayers in the books.

We left the Basilica refreshed and ready to make the next leg of the trip to Van Buren State Park in South Haven, Michigan.  It was only an hour away. As soon as we got there and the bikes came off the back, we pitched our tent in about 10 minutes and rode to Lake Michigan less than a mile away.  The bike trails here are plentiful and there is a lot of bike traffic.  Something I like. A lot.  There are apparently rip currents in the lake.  They have red, yellow, and green flag warnings like we do but the water is FRESH.  Garrett went waist deep in the cold water but didn’t get much further.  An interesting thing on the lake is all the river stone that dots the area where the water meets the sand.  Garrett decided to throw rocks from the shore and attempt to hit the swim area markers.  It was safe as no one was swimming.  He finally hit the sign after about a half hour of trying.  Guess the competition of Avery throwing too helped his aim out a little bit. 

I even had to try because we couldn’t leave until someone hit the sign.  My shoulder hurt a bit after about 10 minutes of attempting to hit it!  An interesting note is that it doesn’t get dark until around oh, 10:15PM here.  Even though we’re on eastern time, it just seems weird but pretty cool nonetheless.  By the time we had done the bike riding and running around the awesome large park with over 200 sites, we were done and settled down for the evening in front of the fire.