Retirement woes!

You hear stories like this! Retired happily one minute and garbage picking the next. All contributions gratefully accepted. Remember how we decided to share the helm and share the cooking. Well, one of us threw out some of the silverware specifically purchased for the boat. That one was trying to rectify the situation and the other one??? O, she'd be the one laughing and holding the camera!

This one's for Steve

Now here was a restraurant not only with great food, but with great taste in motorcycles.

This is the little tugs beard

Is this cute? Is it any wonder we bought a Nordic Tug? We both fell in love with this little boat at De Tour, Michigan

At De Tour

This is a little renovated tug, wooden hull taboot.

Ron caught me off guard

This was on our way back to the ferry and standing in front of that Grand Hotel again. Notice the cart and horse team all sculpted bushes? Hedges? What do I know? I thought the real ones was worth the trip!

Indian Tradition

This is the Arch. Indians believed this was the gateway to the world beyond. They came to Mackinac Island to bury their dead. Many of their ancestors are buried in secret places throughout the Island because when white man finds them, guess where they wind up? Yes, in a museum somewhere on display. Another interesting fact about this Island is that an entire graveyard was "relocated" because it happened to be sitting in a place that would be more profitable for tourist trade! Humm. Thanks anyway. I'll stay with the horses!

Second half of the Horse drawn tour

This was our second team of horses. This time three together. The one in the middle is the dominant horse. They are always harnessed in the same position. There are three vets on the Island to attend to almost 600 horses on Mackinac Island. The team is always kept together. They work four hours a day, four days a week. The other three they rest in pasture. It's a four month work season and then the horses are shipped out of state where they are cared for in a less harsh climate. The driver is responsible for the care of the team. Each day he/she must bath the horse before the day begins and then again after the shift. The horse is brushed and groomed each day. They are sprayed with fly repellent and the horseshoes are specially made to tolerate the paved roads. It is a polyurethane cast with the horseshoe encapsulated within this cast. It sort of acts like a sneaker to their feet. They are rested at specific locations even during the tour where, as you can see here, they are given water at each stop. Do you get the idea this might have been my favorite part of the Island?