After a long, leisurely morning followed by a late hearty breakfast, I succeeded in getting a partial satellite signal so we can at least record some of our favorite summer television shows.

We drove across the Mackinaw Bridge to St. Ignace, Michigan—except for ferry transportation to Mackinac Island, there’s not much to do in St. Ignace. The state park offered a nice vista of the Mackinaw Bridge, and there were hotels, shops, and restaurants on the waterfront, but not too many people. It appears that the primary appeal of this area (St. Ignace and Mackinaw City) is for access to Mackinac Island. Of course, there are attendant facilities such as hotels, shops, and restaurants, but…

Driving back across the bridge—$4 toll each way—we stopped briefly at the RV park, loaded the car with laundry, soap, and quarters, and Kay took off for Cheboygan to do laundry and buy Sudafed at the nearest Walmart. (Different states, and even different counties within states, treat the sale of Sudafed differently.) In Cheboygan, it can be bought over the counter, but through the pharmacist. Kay’s doctor recommended that she take the Z-pacs, Sudafed, and Tylenol to fight this CRUD thing. Meanwhile, I donned a daypack and began what was to be a 16+ mile bicycle ride from the RV park to Cheboygan. One thing great about most of the places we’ve visited this trip is the availability of hiking and biking trails, and this area has the Northern Michigan Rail Trail which runs along the upper shoreline of Lake Huron. The trail was mostly level, with a smooth small crushed limestone surface. At Cheboygan, I exited the trail and called Kay to get directions, twice, before finally hooking up with her at the laundry near Walmart. The average speed of just over 10 mph was slow, but sure beats walking.

Afterwards, we drove the short distance to Mackinaw City, and walked around the various shops which hawked T-shirts, fudge, caramel corn, and Mackinac Island souvenirs.

Tomorrow, we go to Mackinac Island; consequently, we spent the rest of the evening packing lunch and riding gear for the all day trip.