The Journey Home.
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| Irish Lass begins her long winter nap. |
We are home. Bags
and bins are unpacked. The laundry is
done. The bed is made. The newspaper is
restarted. The mail is un-forwarded. The
fridge and pantry are restocked. Admiral
Maggie has rolled (and other things) in her yard. We are home.
Our journey from Michigan took on a little different
character than our previous cross-country treks. We left Holland. MI with COVID tests pending
and both feeling a bit under the weather.
We targeted Madison, WI for our first night. Little did we know that it was the weekend of the Wisconsin vs Michigan football game.
As in $375 for a room at Holiday Inn Express or Super 8, which was SO
not going to happen. We stretched a few
extra miles to near Lodi, WI for a mere $180 at a very isolated Quality Inn. Sheesh.
About 3:00 am Central, the email arrived from CVS with our
test results. Wade = Negative.
Kathleen = Positive. (Huh?) Given that we both had symptoms, we decided
to assume Wade’s test was a false negative.
But what to do? Our symptoms were
mild and its not like we were gonna quarantine for 10 days a motel room in
Lodi-Freaking-Wisconsin. (Or anywhere else. for that matter.) So we checked our supply of hand sanitizer
and disinfectant wipes, masked up,
grabbed our grab-and-go motel breakfast, gassed up the Armada, and headed West.
We had planned to devote a few days to exploring the
Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota, but now THAT was pretty much sounded, shall we say, ill-advised. We set
our sights on Mitchell, SD. Our days
fell into the pattern of cautious use of rest areas, sumptuous means at fast-food drive-thru’s, and avoided motel
lobbies. (If you want to feel like an outsider, just wear a mask in South Dakota. Sheesh.)
The rented Nissan Armada served us, well… adequately…… reminding us why
domestic manufacturers “own” the large SUV space. The ride was rough, the fuel economy poor
(17 mpg), the adaptive (i.e. “nanny”) cruise control a PITA, and Admiral Maggie
DID NOT like the console in the back seat.
Gimme a Suburban any day. Sheesh.
Beyond Mitchell, we did take a brief detour for the Badlands National Park
Loop Drive, which allowed us to get a taste of these unique geological formations
without leaving the car. ( Drive-Thru National Parks #IsThisWhatWeHaveComeTo?)
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| Dakota Badlands: Aptly named |
Electing to skip the long westbound loop of I-90 thru Gillette, WY, we turned north toward Belle Fourche, SD (famed as the cattle drive destination in John Wayne’s “The Cowboys” and not much else.) where we picked up US-212 cutting northwest into Montana. Crossing the grasslands of SW South Dakota we kept looking in vain beyond every hill for thundering herds of buffalo. We marveled at the apparent commitment of the locals to our National Steel Reserve, generously allocating precious grazing land for the storage of derelict vehicles. (It is indeed comforting to know that, in time of national emergency, there is enough metal here to be recycled into our next Gerald R Ford-class aircraft carrier. Sheesh.) Rejoining I-90 near the Custer Battlefield, we pressed on to Billings, MT.
To us, Billings has always been just oil refineries, gas
stations, and maybe lunch. A place for
a quick stop, and back on the road. After
our overnight stay, we think Billings is just oil refineries, gas stations, and maybe
lunch. Our room was small and noisy,
our meal was mediocre and rushed, and our attitude was tired and crabby. Next time we will stretch and get to Bozeman.
Sheesh. Let’s move on.
Six and a half hours of driving across MT and ID (We do love those MT speed limits.) brought us to our own driveway. And went into isolation mode for our COVID symptoms.
The efforts of the friends who watched our home paid off, and
all we really had to do was make the bed, reset the thermostat, and re-light
the water heater. The Armada unloaded twice
as fast as it filled up and we began the
lengthy unpacking and laundry cycle. A quick
trip to the airport got us a no-contact rental return. Commodore Kathleen arranged a similar grocery
pickup. And Admiral Maggie enjoyed “visiting”
HER OWN BACKYARD! (A LOT!) And fortunately,
we returned with enough wine and Scotch to see us thru the isolation
period. (Yay!)
Faced with the dichotomy of mild symptoms and a negative test in MI, Wade hustled down to our
neighborhood Walgreens for a re-test, which came back positive. (Duh!)
Somewhat anti-climatic after being 8 days since onset of symptoms, but good to close the loop
(no pun intended). We did our math and gauged Wade and two days behind Kathleen
in the symptoms cycle, so we extended his isolation period accordingly.
As you read this, we are nearly a month home and feeling fine,
except for perhaps some diminished sense of smell we notice when cooking. But nothing extra Magic Powder (i.e.
Garlic Pepper) from Bushell's country store (Diamond Lake, WA) won’t fix.
Recap and Recollections
- Miles traveled: 2,325 (+/-)
- Diesel Fuel consumed: OMG!
- Lowest Fuel Price $2.99/gal
- Highest Fuel Price: $3.48/gal
- Locks Transited: 39
- States Visited – by water: 9
- States Visited – total: 21
- Canals and Rivers cruised: 11
- Great Lakes visited: 4
- Ports of Call: 53
- Docktails Consumed: OMG!
- Children Married: 1
- Dinner/overnight guests aboard: 18
- Friends Made: Hundreds!
- Memories Collected: Thousands!
But wait! There’s MORE!
Our 2021 cruise covered only about 45% of the Great Loop. Sometime in mid-summer of 2022, we will
reclaim Irish Lass from storage, reprovision her, and set sail once more. First to complete our exploration of Lake
Michigan (and, perhaps, Lake Superior?).
Then it’s “down the rivers” to
the Gulf of Mexico, some winter boating in Florida (the Bahamas, maybe?), and up
the east coast to cross our wake (and earn our Gold Looper status) at our starting point in Virginia Beach. So,
STAY TUNED!
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| Admiral Maggie says, "Just wait 'till next year!" |
Thank you all for following us. Watch for updates in the spring, as we bengin preparatiosn for the 2022 cruise on the Great Loop!
