June 2013 MICHIGAN Sault Ste. Marie 4 - Walk It Off

Today I'm a lone cat for the morning. I rolled out of bed at 7:30am to prep for the 27th Annual International Bridge Walk. Showered and caught a quick buffet breakfast at the hotel restaurant. Even though it was free, it did not please. Then drove over to Lake Superior State University (LSSU) Norris Physical Education Center parking lot, the gathering spot for the Bridge Walk.

The Bridge Walk is also a once a year event. It is a picturesque 2.8 mile walk across the International Bridge between Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, USA, and Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario, Canada. You get a fantastic view of all the canals and locks as you look east down the St. Mary's River. This bridge was open to vehicle traffic starting in 1962. Prior to that time you had to cross the St. Mary's River by ferry to get to or from Canada.

The day started at 8:30am with bicyclers leaving first. At 9am, we heard a few speeches from the mayor and other officials. Then the local Sweet Adelines sang the anthems of both countries. At 9:30am the walkers started their journey. Even though the walk is from the USA side to the Canadian side, many people come cross the bridge from Canada to join in the walk. You can kinda tell who they are. 

Here's a photo of the people in back of me as we started down the hill from the parking lot toward the bridge entrance. And there were maybe half again as many in front of me. My guess, maybe 700 walkers total. Some with dogs, some in wheelchairs or with walkers or baby strollers. Some in funny outfits. Some carrying flags of varying persuasions. There was a large Japanese contingent all in red t-shirts. Even the Wacky Wings chicken guy and his girlfriend joined the walk.

Over the last year, in our extensive road travels through 34 states, Mike and I have seen signs that advised major interstate highways either "begin" or "end here." I-40 comes to mind. Today I saw the end of I-75. Mike and I have taken every portion of that highway many times--from somewhere in Michigan all the way down to Florida. So fun to see the northern end of that one, too. It ends at the south end of the International bridge. You can also see the toll rates, but today it was free for walkers to cross.

Soon after you get on the bridge you see this huge rusted structure to your left. I learned later that this and other nearby structures and rail beds are part of the historic International Railroad Bridge. Its initial construction date is 1887 and it is made of up several sections.

What is particular interesting is that each of the three most common movable bridge types is represented here to make the whole. It was built in various parts to allow it to be temporarily divided to let ships pass through, if they are too high to fit under this bridge. One website I found, said it is still open to rail traffic, but it sure looked abandoned to me. More info at:  www.historicbridges.org/truss/ibrailswing/

To your right you see the American locks and canals and the beautiful greenways between. Unfortunately during the entire event there was not one boat or ship that passed through the locks. Bummer, but still a thrill!

This bridge is a two lane, double "humper" and in the next shot we are approaching the middle between the humps. You can see the border between Canada and the U.S. by the country flags just ahead. Look hard. They are where the green meets the gray area in the background.

After the American locks you come to a rapids area of the river on the right. It must not be too deep as you can see about 4 or 5 tiny fisherman in waders enjoying the day while they are trying to catch their dinner.

The next shot is of a huge bird flying along and carrying a branch. This was a fantastic shot for me. I belong to a photo club and our assignment this month was to photograph something that flies. It did not actually have to be flying, but my personal goal was to get the shot of something in flight. This was Saturday and our meeting was Tuesday. I was a very happy photographer at that moment. I just wish I could have identified the bird, but it was quite a way off (took this with the telephoto lens) and flying away from me. I still love the shot and I was the only one in our club lucky enough to get a photo of a bird in-flight.

This next shot is taken near the peak of the second "hump". Here we overlook wetlands and board walks allowing one to get an up-close look at the nature in the area. After that we come to the Canadian lock. It was completed in 1895 and is smaller than its American sisters. There is a lovely park that runs along both sides the canal. The last shot is of the whole bridge from the Canadian side.

At the end of the bridge you are welcomed by a sign in English and in French. And, of course, you encounter Canadian customs. We all had to bring our passports to "get into" Canada. You could have them place a Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario, Canada, stamp in your passport, too, if you wanted. I wanted.

I'm not going to display pictures of the next hour and a half. We had to wait for a bus to carry us back over the bridge to our starting point. This took about a 1/2 hour longer than our casual walk across the whole bridge. The main attraction here was people watching and, if I'd known we had this much time, I would have run over to the casino for a little Poker Slots. It was just across the parking lot. 

On the bus I chatted with three LSSU students about their courses in water ecology, bird conservation, and robotics. We also talked about 3-D printing and they told me about a duck that, due to a birth defect, was outfitted with a 3-D produced artificial foot. An aside: On my fave Sunday Morning program this week, there was a piece about this duck and its foot. Very cool!!


There was a quick off/on the bus stop at U.S. Customs (again showing our passport). The customs building had a state-of-the-art green (and yellow) roof. Not sure what was growing on it, but it was lovely. When I finally got back to the hotel about 1:30pm, I was definitely ready for lunch.

June 2013 MICHIGAN Sault Ste. Marie 3 - More on Engineer's Day

After a quick trolley ride about a mile east down the main drag, we were dropped off at the historic Cloverland Electric Cooperative Hydroelectric Plant. At the time the plant was completed in 1902, it was the second largest hydro facility next to Niagara Falls. The building is 1/4-mile long and 80-feet wide and has 74 horizontal shaft turbines which generate electricity from the fast flowing St. Mary's Canal, an off-shoot of the St. Mary's River dredged to accommodate the power plant. The power generated supplies 1/5 of that needed for the eastern Upper Peninsula.

A quick lesson on how the plant works -- Each of the 74 turbines has four runners (blades) that drive the 60-cycle generators. The water flows 5-7 mph down the power canal and drops though gates in the turbines to make them spin (like a child's pinwheel in the wind). The turbine turns the rotor and this turning creates electricity. For more information on Cloverland's history and process, see: http://www.cloverland.com/Files/our_history.pdf

Mike and I have been so intrigued by this building over the years and it was a real treat to go inside. We got to walk about half way down the 1/4 mile  length of the building. Along the way were various demonstrations, treats, and displays. One turbine had all of its parts identified and a little description of how things work. Cousin Don was also a wealth of information. He answered every one of my questions about capacity, history, process, etc.

One demo showed the electric usage between a traditional incandescent bulb compared to the new CFLs. The meter demonstrated that the new style uses about half the energy (and lasts MUCH longer). They also talked about the quality being much improved over the original Chinese-made stock that was so available. So when I get home I am going to switch out all our incandescents. There is also a very much improved dimmer bulb. Strange looking with little "fins" all the way around it.

The last thing here was that Lake Superior State University houses their Aquatic Research Lab here. They specialize in fresh water research, ecology, hatchery operations, and fish culture. On display was a huge sturgeon and some salmon minnows they are studying. They release about 25,000 Atlantic salmon into the St. Mary's River each year.

By that time we were all a bit hungry, so we headed across the street to The Antlers. We started off with a deep fried dill pickle appetizer. I've tried this appetizer many places and these were the best I've ever had. They were waffle sliced and dipped in a cornmeal batter. Crisp and not oily. Everyone at the table enjoyed these.

My entree was a white fish po' boy. It was good, but more than I could possibly eat. Others had a burger or some variation of Lake Superior fish. A tradition here is when a new person comes into the place, there is a LOUD ringing of bells and whistles. They actually give a verbal warning at each table, so people don't panic thinking it is an emergency. At least they didn't come to our table and point us out as being the culprits of the racket.

The name of the place definitely stems from the decor. There are MANY antlers from many types of animals displayed in every nook and cranny. Also, taxidermied animals of every sort from moose to a huge wolverine (University of Michigan's mascot - Go Blue) to a lion family to a polar bear to an anaconda (per cousin Doug). It was amazing, like being in a natural history museum.

At this point we had full bellies and needed a nap, so we headed back to our hotel and their car. On the way we stopped at the craft fair and checked out several historical homes of prominent persons of the area like Father Baraga (the Snowshoe Priest and first bishop of the U.P. back in 1830). We also stopped at Island Books and Crafts and Mike bought "Yooper Bars." This is a fun guide book to 109 great bars in the U.P. It even has an area to stamp when you go into a bar, like a passport. It offers the bar's best food suggestions, their signature drink, and other "useful" information.

Last stop a sit down in the hotel lobby to discuss Saturday's plans. Here's our cousins, including Madison in her the rooster hat.

The rest of the evening was spent relaxing, eating fudge, and a cocktail at Moloney's Alley (page 40 of the Yooper bar book). No dinner needed. Still full from our late lunch. A little stroll along the main street stores. A fine end to a jam-packed and wonderful day.

June 2013 MICHIGAN Sault Ste. Marie 2 - You Don't have to be an Engineer

... to enjoy Engineer's Day in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan (also known as The Soo). This is a very special day for SSM and the Soo Locks. Lock construction began in 1850 and the gate system transports pleasure boats on up to 1,000-foot long freighters from the upper St. Mary's River to the lower St. Mary's River (or vice versa), which has a 21 foot drop in water level. At the west end of the river is Lake Superior and at the east end is Lake Huron.

Engineer's Day celebrates the engineers who built the Locks, along with the men and women of the past and present who maintain them. For current day security reasons, you normally have to watch the locks in action from behind a strong steel fence. But one day each year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hosts an open house, where visitors may walk across the lock walls. For a demo of how the locks work, see: huron.lre.usace.army.mil/soo/alock.html‎   or   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ow9DDqj-Hio

Mike's dad graduated from the Merchant Marine Academy in New London, Connecticut and then worked on the ship Ralph H. Watson. It was built in 1938 and ended its career at sea in 1989, being sold for scrap in Turkey, of all places. Mike's dad was away from home a lot as his ship traveled the Great Lakes.

Mike remembers when his dad's ship traversed through the locks, his mom would haul him under arm across the lock walls to the particular lock where the ship would pass. Being a toddler, he remembers being scared to death looking down into the deep black waters, but he was really happy to see his dad wave from on board ship. So this day was a particular thrill for him.

One other Ralph H. Watson story. In 1978 Northwest Airline pilots went on strike, and Mike and I were both laid off. We needed a cheap vacation so we planned a camping trip in the U.P. We stopped in the Soo to watch the ships go by and coming through the locks was the Ralph H. Watson. Mike flipped out and hollered, "That's my dad's ship." His dad had passed a few years earlier, but I think it was a sign from him telling Mike "everything is ok" and "you married a great gal." Haha.

Two more short stories about that trip. We stopped for a cocktail in a little bar named Shute's Saloon in Calumet, Michigan (on the far northwest side of the U.P.). One very cool thing about this place is the Tiffany-like canopy that hangs over the bar. They say it is one of only two or three left in the world. Anyway, as we were drinking the volunteer fire alarm went off and everyone in the bar scattered to help. The bartender said get what you want and leave the money in the till. Pretty trusting and we did the right thing. We drank, paid, and left before they got back.

The other story is that we spent one night camping in our tent, also near Calumet at the state park. It was VERY cold that night. We huddled in sleeping bags but still way too cold for me. The next morning we heard on the car radio that "Calumet was the coldest spot in the nation" that night. Not the ideal camping situation, but we can laugh about it now.

Oh, well, back to today's events. Cousins Don and Chris and their two grand-daughters, Emily and Madison, met us at 10am at the hotel and we set off on a very full and exciting day. First stop was the walk across the locks. We actually got to cross and return over two sets of locks and the greenways in between. And we got to wander around two historic administration buildings which are still in use to manage the lock system and all its traffic.

The Davis building is almost untouched since it was built in 1914. We came across a display listing the Chief Lockmasters over the years. We had heard that Mike's Aunt Carol's dad had been a Chief Lockmaster here, so we started looking for his photo. We found photos of most of the Lockmasters over the years, but not his. We looked harder and found his name listed as an early Lockmasters with no photo. Yes, here was his name--George E. Fenwick (27 August 1950 to 21 April 1959).

In other spot, we found info about the building of each lock and Cousin Don said he had worked for a bit on the Poe Lock, the largest of the four on the American side. We took his photo by the display.

Throughout the day, in the background you heard others telling tales about what they had experienced or heard or seen over the years. It was all very interesting and a lot to take in, but alas we had to continue with the other events of the day.

There were a LOT of National Guard personnel in camo around for security, including a Super GI Joe. If anything happened to the locks, it would be a blow to our economy and day-to-day life.

So along with that was a display of various and interesting military work vehicles and paraphernalia. We saw a demo of a bomb de-detonator, a blow-up desert housing tent, a huge "portable" tool shop, drills, hoists, etc. These were some very big-boy toys.

While there, the two gals tried out some "competitions." Emily (on right above) ran into a girlfriend and challenged her to an arm-to-arm combat. I think it was a tie. Madison decided to try the obstacle course, which she finished in record time.

For the next stop, we took the trolley down to Cloverland Electric Coop.

June 2013 MICHIGAN Sault Ste. Marie 1 - On our Way to Yooper Heaven

We left home at 9:11am. At 9:38, we were already talking about how much we missed Bella, our cat.

At If you haven't been tagging along with us on this blog, you may not know that Mike was born in Sault Sainte Marie (SSM), Michigan. It is in the Upper Peninsula or the U.P. and that makes him an official Yooper (pronounced You-per). Anyway, last November we attended Cousin Chuck's birthday party up here and found out about SSM's Engineer's Day. We are headed Up North again today to check that out. Drove about 342 miles from home to SSM.

We had lunch at the south end of Houghton Lake at the Long Branch Saloon. It didn't look like much from the outside, but inside was nice, clean, and Up North-y with log cabin decor. Not many in the saloon at 1pm and that usually gives us another little scare, but the food (almost all meat-y) was very good. I had a special request quesadilla with mushrooms instead of meat and Mike had a 1/2 pound burger and fries (too big to finish). Mike was happy to get a Fat Tire (beer) here.


It is always a thrill to drive across the five mile, very high Mackinaw Bridge and today was no exception. Not sunny, but not raining (or snowing). Count your blessings where you can. 

We checked in about 4pm at the Ojibway Ramada, right in downtown SSM and in the middle of all the Engineer's Day action. Had a king bed in a decent room. No lock view though.

After getting settled in, we called Cousins Chuck and Dianne. Chuck is retired now, but is still famous in these parts for being a fantastic girls volleyball coach, leading the local high school team to many championships. Dianne was school librarian and a charmer herself.

On the way to their place in Brimley (about 16 miles), we drove through several violent rain squalls with heavy lightening. We had to get gas, as we were traveling on fumes and I was really clenching my teeth over the possibility of lightning hitting the gas station and blowing us all to pieces. But as you can tell, we're still here. Thank goodness. 

We met about 5pm at C&D's home for a fresh and fabulous walleye fish fry. The fish were not too long out of the cold waters of Lake Superior just down the road a bit. Green salad with soooo many good topping options, a low fat zucchini alfredo (what a way to use zuchs!!), and homemade baked beans. Cousins Don and Chris were there also, bringing the best potato salad I've ever had. C&D's son Doug was there, too, and his son Jaren.

After dinner, we caught up on the latest and Dianne presented two scrumptious homemade pies--one lemon meringue and one with wild-picked blueberries in a custardy, creamy whip. Mike went for the first and I went for the second. I'm a big crust fan and this was some of the best I've tasted. Great job, Dianne.

We continued chatting til almost 9pm. Then we followed Don and Chris to their house to pick up some literature for Engineer's Day activities and a little more chat. They loaned us a book about the history of the area. We made plans to meet them and their two grand-daughters the next day to join in our Engineer's Day fun.

Last stop was the fudge shop. We bought two 1/2 pounders and got one free--chocolate with walnuts, peanut butter, and butter pecan. All soooo tasty.

June 2013 MICHIGAN Grand Rapids - A Quickie in GR

Today I had a 8:30am date with the Genius Bar at the Apple Store in Woodland Mall. It was a free mini iCloud class. I just can't get all my devices to sync and was hoping this would clear up "the cloud" in my brain.

Class started before the store open, so there were no distractions. I gleaned a lot of info such as how to locate my phone if it gets lost or stolen and about iPhoto and photo streaming, but not what I needed for syncing. Guess I will have to pay the big bucks for private lessons to get this all straightened out.

After my class, Mike and strolled the mall looking for a padded carrying case for my iPad. No luck finding one I liked. Shopped a bit at William-Sonoma and bought porcini mushroom infused salt. This is one of my faves and I especially like it on buttered popcorn. We window shopped the rest of the way around the mall and stopped for a few minutes to watch the kids' play area. It is kind of like "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" on the breakfast table with giant strips of bacon, a huge stacks of pancakes, fried eggs, a banana, sausage links, and cereal bowl with blue berries, that kids climb around. It's pretty hilarious.


This awakened our appetite, so we headed to the East Hills district of Grand Rapids. GPS was our guide and it took us along Fulton Street where we discovered the Fulton Street Artisans and Farmers Market. We made a quick U-ey and ventured through. Lots of fresh local fruits, veggies, honey, bakery goods, and crafts. After buying an almond log and some greens, we moved on to our actual brunch.

Our original destination had been Marie Catrib's on Diamond Street, but we learned Marie had died just two days earlier. We figured the place would be closed in mourning and it looked dark when we arrived. Marie was born in Lebanon (she was one day younger than me) and had an illustrious career in the food industry including studies at the New England Culinary Institute and a stint at the Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina.

She finally settled in Grand Rapids and became a pillar of the community in gourmet skills and in spirit. My favorite breakfast dish at Marie's is the Baker's Bowl, a puffed pastry, egg, and cheese dish. There is also a little deli market within the cafe which features Lebanese and other foods. Marie, wearing her little Amish-looking cap, will be missed.   www.mariecatribs.com

As a back-up we decided to try a nearby place called Gaia that friends Ron and Dixie had talked about. The entrance was a bit tricky, but once in it was a wonderful veggie alternative. I had the Jim White (black beans, brown rice, fried eggs, romaine, tomatoes, fresh avocado and scallions served with a flour tortilla) and Mike had buckwheat pancakes. We also had fresh squeezed OJ. It was half the price and sweeter than any we have had a Food Dance.

Service was a bit slow, but the food was delish. We will definitely go back and do recommend this place for breakfast or brunch to our veggie (or non-veggie) friends.   www.facebook.com/GaiaCafeGR

After a hardy breakfast we needed to walk off some cals, so we took a stroll down Cherry Street. This street has several more interesting restaurants and historical buildings, including Brewery Vivant (which looks like it was converted from an old church or at least a great replication).

We walked past a lovely white-columned building with engraving that said it was the D.A. Blodgett Home for Children (erected in 1908). Pretty fancy for its time. I looked this up later and it was established as a place for children made homeless by epidemics such as typhus and diptheria. Their services continue today.

June 2013 MICHIGAN Kalamazoo - Zapata's Final Rest

Today was a very somber, yet happy, day. It was a community memorial and dedication service for Kalamazoo Public Safety Officer Eric Zapata. Eric served ten years as a PSO and was killed in action on April 18, 2011, at age 35. This occurred while he was assisting another officer under heavy gunfire in the City of Kalamazoo. He was the second police officer killed in Kalamazoo County since 1867. He was a father of three.

The bronze memorial was created by Brent Harris of the Alchemist Foundry. The sculpture is placed near the north end of Kalamazoo Mall (a pedestrian mall in downtown Kalamazoo). It was placed there to ensure we never forget the sacrifice that PSO Zapata gave to his community and to honor all uniformed heroes who serve the public.

The sculpture and the landscaping are positioned in a way to allow the statue to "keep watch" on the City. In essence, PSO Zapata will still be part of the public safety team keeping the downtown area a safe and secure environment for us all.

Kalamazoo Public Safety Chief Jeffrey Hadley spoke at the dedication, as well as Brent Harris (the sculpture) and Eric's mom. She was especially touching in her remarks, but made us all laugh when she said, "Eric always wanted to be taller!" You can see why as she stands next to the bust in a photo below.

Brent also gave her a small replica of the bust to keep in her home. She broke down at that moment, but recovered graciously.

Let us fondly remember and honor Eric Zapata

and his family. 

I did not know Eric personally,

but I walk past this spot almost every day and think of Eric.

May 2013 MICHIGAN Laingsburg - Garage Sale

Last weekend we celebrated my brother and his wife's birthdays in Traverse City. We had a blast. During that time we heard of my brother's yard sale happening on May 11. We decided to check it out, as well as their almost-done-brand-new-kitchen rehab.

I love garage sales--going to them and having them. In California, my good friend Lisa and I would often hit Highway One for "saling" as we called it. First working our way north on the in-land side of the road from Half Moon Bay to Montara and then back down the coast side of the road. That made it an easy off / on travel route. If we were really ambitious, we would do the same going south on Highway One as far down as Pescadero, but that was not usually as fruitful for finding treasures.

Once a year (for many a year) we would have a big garage sale, usually at our house as it was closer to the Highway. Lisa would drag her stuff down from the hills of El Granada and we would set up camp for an all day Saturday and til noon Sunday sale. Once we were set up, Mike would keep us supplied (or was it plied) with morning mimosas and burritos from Three Amigos for lunch. Deals definitely got better as the day proceeded and we "loosen up."

We usually had some pretty good stuff and would make hundred dollars each. Some of that, however, was always spent purchasing each other's stuff!!! It is crazy what people buy--leftover swatches from a linoleum rehab, combination locks with out the combo, broken fishing tackle, nail polish, etc. Neither Lisa nor I had kids, but we could always find some little toy-ish thing for a kid to take for free, especially if their parents bought something.

Our friends would all stop by to say "Hi." Sometimes they bought stuff, but it was usually more of a visit. Jon and Lora always added to the fun. Above is Jon wearing a gladiator costume that I bought for a play at the This Side of the Hill Players Theatre. See a commode for sale in the background and IT SOLD! One time Mike shared an extra keg of his home brew named "Abigail Ale IPA." Sales were especially good that year.

Now that we live in downtown, we are not really set up for yard sales. We tried a group condo parking lot sale the first two years after we moved to Kalamazoo. Each condo owner used their assigned parking spot to display their treasures, but very little traffic rushed in. As we live adjacent to the city festival site, the next year we tried having the event on a festival date. We figured more folks would be in our "neighborhood" due to the festival, but not much luck there either. After that we gave up. A good visit with our neighbors, but few precious pennies to be made.


Back to today. We got to Laingsburg (northeast of Lansing, MI) about 1pm and my, oh, my, there was a lot of stuff. Their entire double-wide garage was loaded to the brim with goodies, plus outside tables and driveway were filled as well. There was everything from china tea cups to vintage comics, jewelry, art work, holiday decor, electronics, all those gadgets you buy but rarely use after the initial excitement wears off, pottery, old kitchen cabinets, you name it.

We didn't need much, but did spy one item I "stole" from my bro. It was a vintage Life Magazine from Bob's birthday week. I always said if someone saw something at one of my garage sales that they had given us, they could have it back for free. I was going with that "guideline" here for a gift I had given my bro years ago.

The other cool part about having a garage sale is the people watching. Here is a gramma-daughter-son trio checking out the wares. Gramma was dressed to the hilt in "red hat lady" attire and wicked witch of the west socks.       
Quite a combo.


Bob and Lo showed off their new kitchen. It is fabulous. Dark wood cabinets, fanciest fridge I've ever seen with every imaginable option, sink overlooking the lake (instead of a blank wall), new stove top, half-wall counter seating between the kitchen and dining room, and other unique features. Verrrrry nice.

It started getting a little misty and traffic was less then impressive, so we closed up shop and headed to Lansing and the Coral Gables Restaurant. Our nephew Kendall (Bob and Lo's son) works there as a sous chef.

When I was a teen, Coral Gables was more of a nightclub atmosphere hot spot. Entertainers of our "yoot" played there, like Stevie Wonder and the Supremes. I always wanted to go there, but it was not on my parents' list of things I could do. Oh, well, here at last, but now it is a regular ol' restaurant / bar kind of place.

Kendall ducked out to say "Hi" and visit for a minute, but had to get back to work. We had a good meal and continued our great chit-chat. Went our separate ways after that, each to our own homes. It was a relaxing and fun day. Thanks, Bob and Lo.