Silver Lake

We made it home last night... had a great time and came home totally exhausted. Craig and the kids were at the dunes everyday having a blast. I went to the dunes twice and then did other things as well. I found some really old historical barns that were filled with antiques. Both were over a hundred years old. One was a huge dairy barn and the other was small but adorable. It was so fun rummaging around them. I might do a posting of a few small things that I picked up.

I wanted to do some birding at the campground but that ended up being a joke. There is a really nice walking nature trail through the woods at the campground and I had visions of all kinds of wonderful birds that I hoped to see. One day while I was alone at the campground I set myself all up to go "birding". I put on camouflage clothes, sprayed myself with bug spray, grabbed my camera and binoculars and off I went. I found a stump to sit on and sat and waited..... nothing. I walked deeper until I came to a swampy area. The bugs paid no attention to the bug repellent that I had to put on and I think I must have donated 2 pints of blood to the occasion. Soon I found myself frantically trying to head back to the campsite. By the time I made it back I was sweating profusely and beet red in the face and frustrated. I collapsed onto the cot in the tent and aimed the fan right on me. That was the end of my birding. I think I'll just keep enjoying the birds in my back yard. I didn't come home totally birdless.... the sea gulls were very abundant at the dunes.
Caleb was very happy with the performance of his dune buggy. It never had one mechanical issue the whole 5 days in the dunes. That was a miracle.
Another fun trip to Silver Lake Sand Dunes! The name is confusing because it is actually on Lake Michigan.
I didn't do a very good job of taking photos. I am always nervous to have my camera out too much at the dunes or the campground because of all the sand. Josh and Allen (Caleb's friends) and Shane (Jordan's boyfriend) joined us for the week. A good time was had by all. I'm sure they are already planning another trip up before the summer is over.