Day 26: Indiana Dunes National Park (Eric)

Day 26 (June 24, 2021): Our next destination was a visit to Indiana Dunes National Park. This was just recently made a national park in 2019, and while not one of the more majestic parks as far as scenery goes, it was still a fun place to visit when the weather cooperates. Unfortunately, we were only there for a day, and it rained almost the entire time we were there. 

It still didn’t stop us from checking out the state beach park which is inside the national park (I know that sounds strange). This is a very nice beach park on the shore of Lake Michigan. We probably would have spent more time here, but we had Bitey with us as we hadn’t checked into the hotel yet. Also, the lifeguards closed down the beach for swimming due to the weather. It was still cool to see, and it seemed that Bitey enjoyed his first trip to a beach. 

After checking into our hotel in Portage, Indiana, we dropped off Bitey and returned to the park. The rain had stopped for a little, and we decided to hike the three-dune challenge which is also in the state park part of Indiana Dunes. This is a relatively short, but strenuous hike up three different dunes. While we have been more active during this trip, this hike was still difficult. Jenny and I both found ourselves huffing and puffing as we climbed up the dunes. At some point, it also started to rain again. Despite all of this, it was still a fun experience with beautiful scenery and views of the lake. 

Next, we completed a scenic drive along the lakeshore. This was interesting to see as this is another national park with private residences scattered around parts of the park. There were some really nice homes in the area, but it was a little bit of a disconnect when one of the reasons for going to a national park is to experience natural beauty. Still, we enjoyed seeing this part of the park. 

We also headed over to West Beach which is part of the national park. The rain was still coming down, but we walked down to the beach and briefly explored some of the area around the beach. In addition to the beach, there are some additional dunes and bogs. This would have been nicer if the weather was cooperating, but we still had fun, and it certainly kept the crowds away. 

After exploring the park, we drove to the nearby town of Gary, Indiana to eat at the Miller Pizza Company. It was a fun little pizza place with good food and friendly staff. It was a nice way to end the day. 

Day 22-25: West Bloomfield MI (Eric)

Day 22-25 (June 20-23, 2021): The drive to West Bloomfield was a little longer than we wanted to complete in a day, so we had a one-night stopover in Dunkirk, New York, a small town on the coast of Lake Erie. The town ended up being more fun than we expected as we found a lakefront restaurant that had live music. We had some decent food and hung out to listen to the music for a little while and admired the views of the lake. 

The visit to West Bloomfield and my brother’s family was relaxing and a lot of fun.

The last time we visited the area was in 2017, and we spent a wonderful time with the entire family, took some pictures at a local park called Marshbank Park, and even watched the Astros take on the Detroit Tigers. 

This visit was a little different as Alesia was in California visiting her grandparents, my mom and stepdad. It was unfortunate not to be able to see her as she just graduated high school. During the day, my brother had to work, Fumiyo was tutoring online Japanese students, Arvid was building a database as a job for Michigan State, and Tyler went to tennis camp. They’re a busy family which actually ended up being for the best as we needed some time to get some school work done, rest a little, and do some laundry. I know, not very glamorous as far as travel adventures go, but it was another nice break from the go-go-go of the previous weeks. In the evenings, we did get together for dinners, going out for Mexican one night, Tyler cooked a wonderful curry dish the next night, and we brought over takeout Chinese on our last night. We also played some fun games, Chinese checkers, Five Crowns, and a game called Telestrations (imagine the game telephone blended with Pictionary). This was all great fun. It was great to catch up with the family (except of course Alesia). We in fact had so much fun that I forgot to take a picture of all of us to post on this blog. In fact, the only picture I took while in West Bloomfield was a selfie of Jenny and me at the same Marshbank Park we visited four years ago. 

Despite the lack of photographic documentation of the visit, it was definitely a highlight of our travels to catch-up with my brother and his family after the craziness of this past year. 

Day 19-21: Burlington VT (Eric)

Day 19-21 (June 17-19, 2021): From Lincoln, New Hampshire our next destination was Burlington, Vermont, a quaint little city on the shores of Lake Champlain. One of the things that Jenny and I embrace about travel is being open to new places and experiences. We both frequently make the comment about how places exceed our expectations. The Burlington area definitely matches this description. The joy we find in exploring our unknown surroundings is why we keep traveling when the opportunity arises. While the world is still dealing with the pandemic, it has been nice to see some places returning to almost a sense of normalcy. 

Vermont is an interesting state to drive through as the state only has a population of a little over 600,000. It is mostly rolling green hills and mountains (the mountain range in Vermont is appropriately named the Green Mountains) mixed in with a few quaint towns and farms. 

Once we arrived in Burlington, we checked into our hotel which had an amazing view of Lake Champlain. The picture below is Bitey enjoying the view. The lake is in the background. 

 After settling in, we decided to take a walk to Church Street which is a pedestrian only area with restaurants and shops. We found Leunig’s Bistro which had good food and outdoor seating. It was a fun place to people watch as Church Street is a busy street, and if you’re not aware a college town, the home of the University of Vermont. It made for an eclectic mix of people and outfits as Burlington seems to be a progressive city. Vermont is also home to Bernie Sanders and Ben and Jerry’s which should also give you a feel for the place. It’s like the Berkeley of the East. 

Pictures of Church Street…

Pictures from inside the Ben and Jerry’s store on Church Street…




After leaving this area, we walked down to the lakefront. This is also a lively area with a cool mix of people and scenery. There were street performers and a wonderful view of the Adirondack Mountains of New York across the lake. 

After exploring for a bit, we ate dinner at The Skinny Pancake, a Vermont chain that serves crepes. It was good food and a nice way to end another awesome day. 

The next day involved a visit to the Stowe area. On our way to the town, we stopped by Cold Hollow Cider Mill to grab some apple cider donuts and some breakfast sandwiches. This is a cool place, and Jenny was even able to sample some cider even though it was still morning. Vermont clearly has more progressive alcohol laws than Texas. Overall, this is a cool little stop, but we noticed there are a bunch of roadside farms and shops all over the state, and it would probably take you several days to stop at everyone of them. 

Stowe is a small but cute town, and it is a great jumping-off point to explore the Green Mountains and some of the rivers, waterfalls and forests in the area. We spent a little time exploring the town before heading out to nature. 

The area surrounding Stowe has some short, not terribly strenuous hikes to some beautiful waterfalls. The forests are lush and green and definitely worth exploring. 

After hiking, we took a scenic drive up a pass through the Green Mountains. While we didn’t stop, there’s plenty of hiking trails in this area as well. Before leaving the area, we decided to explore one final destination, the Von Trapp Family Lodge. If you’ve seen The Sound of Music then you’re familiar with the story of the Von Trapp’s escape from Nazi occupied Austria during World War II. What you may not know is that some of the family eventually settled in Vermont and have been operating a beautiful lodge which definitely shows the Austrian influence. We stopped there to explore the grounds and eat at the beer garden which had pretty good food. Overall, the experience did remind us of our own trip to Austria a few years ago. If you’re in the area and a fan of the musical or Austria, the lodge is worth a visit. 

This was our last stop for the day, and we headed back to Burlington. 

The next day after twenty days of traveling, we decided we could use a relaxing day, so we found North Beach State Park just a few minutes away from our hotel to have a day of lying on the beach and wading into the chilly waters of Lake Champlain to cool off when it got hot. We ate lunch at the beach where they not only have a snack bar but tables and chairs where you can sit and be served. It was nice to have a little down time. 

After a relaxing day at the beach park, Jenny had planned a fun outing for the evening, a sunset cruise on Lake Champlain. She also had preordered a yummy picnic basket for us to enjoy while we cruised around the lake taking in the scenery and watching the sunset. It was a wonderful experience, and while it wasn’t our anniversary yet, it definitely felt like a pre-anniversary celebration. 

After the cruise, we decided to walk up to Church Street to see the area at night, and it was definitely a festive environment as not only were the usual college and bar crowds out and about, but the city had also planned a Juneteenth celebration. It was a vibrant atmosphere that was cool to see. We also wanted to treat ourselves to Ben and Jerry’s one last time before leaving this remarkable city to head to my brother’s home in West Bloomfield, a suburb of Detroit. 

Before I end this post, here’s a few cute pictures of Bitey…