First day on our UP adventure!

super cool truck!

huge and cool!!

Today, we just drove the 300 miles to St. Ignace, just over the bridge from the lower peninsula to the UP.  We hiked up to the top of Castle Rock (pretty tame, but pretty good view of two of the Great Lakes and the Straits).

We kept seeing all these really old, beautifully restored tractors everywhere.  Turns out there was a show nearby.  Then, we find out there's also a semi truck show in town, and there would be a truck/light parade later.  Cool!  We're there!  So, we rode our bikes back into town, back to the VFW that evening, for some refreshing beverages while waiting for the trucks to come.  First hint that we aren't at home anymore is when the fellow in the bar came up to us, laughing, and asked if we were the folks who had locked our bikes up outside?!  He said "NO ONE locks their bikes here in town!!"  We had a nice conversation - turns out he works for the USDA, and his job is to go around 'murdering ash trees' - trying to stop the ash borer from spreading.

So, we waited...and waited....and finally someone said the trucks aren't coming until 10:00 - they left St. Ignace, drove over the Mackinac (or is it ..aw?) Bridge, turned around, went in a big circle to north of St. Ignace and then back through town.  Well, let me tell you, we were really glad we waited.  Picture the Woodward Dream Cruise, with not so many spectators, but with over 100 HUGE trucks all spit shined, with fancy lights all over, and their air horns blaring, people cheering and waving.  What a hoot!  Here are 4 of the best shots I got tonight.  OK, somehow the pictures got in BEFORE my writing!  Oh well, they're there, anyway!