zero Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 We just got back from a trip to the Michigan UP, Mackinac Island, etc. To my surprise, after packing a lot of gear, a fat dog, and 6 people into my 20 foot Toyota Minicruiser, I felt NO difference. Ran just the same and I often cruised at 65 MPH. NOT something I'd usually do, buy my 35 year old daughter was impatient and wanted to get to Mackinac Island. I will say it felt the brakes were working extra hard and the gas gauge moved extra fast. To the plus side - my grand-daughter loves the Toyota - especially climbing on the roof. We stopped at a McDondalds in the UP and when we came out - there were a bunch of Indian kids climbing all over our Toyota with two hanging from the ladder. NOT American Indians. Eastern Indians like from India? Parents just standing there while their kids climbed all over our RV and no effort to stop them. I told them to "get the h*ll off" and am lucky the cops did not come for me. It was a LONG day. I later found some stuff missing from our rear storage box - and yes - I suspect the Indians. I had my 36 year old son, 35 year old daughter, 12 year old son, 9 year old grand-daughter, wife, and 10 year old dog. Took the ferry to Mackinac Island and it was horrible. Stunk so bad of horse pee we could hardly breath. Note - I've been around horses my whole life, and am not super sensitive. The island was crowed like India. When we took the ferry home - we hid in back, on the lower deck to avoid people. Then, just before heading across the water - an EMT girl wheeled in a dead person and stuck it right next to me and my grand-daughter for the whole crossing. Kind of weird but the EMT girl was a good sport. I kept asking her stupid questions. I still want to know if dead tourists get a discount on the ferry ticket. The "stiff" is under the white sheet on the dead-person cart. I found it kind of amazing how many people bumped into that stiff and had no idea it was a dead tourist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totem Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 Ive had a few scares of missing gear in the toyhome. ultimately I always found whatever it was I had assumed was stolen in all but one case. The one item that was taken? a sledge hammer. I sometimes would take a sledge hammer and splitting maul spike on trips to split big pieces of wood that were cut but not split yet from home. Its possible it fell off the back of the cargo carrier but I doubt it as it was bungeed. I wonder if the dead stiff was someone that worked on the island or was it for sure a dead tourist? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back East Don Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 I was having a hard time trying to figure out the horse connection so I quickly googled it. Now it makes sense. Seems the main method of transportation on the small island. I've had a similar reaction at another heavily visited tourist place I just know you'd love, Central Park in NY. When I first started dating my wife, she really wanted to go to NY City. So we went and did all the things young couples do. Take in a show. stroll around Times Square, visit FAO Schwarz and of course the evening horse drawn ride through Central Park. On our 25th I planned a return. Now I've been traveling to NY for a long time including my last job where I was assigned to support the companies engineering office on Lexington in midtown. Going to the park however with the heat and all the horses at the lower entrance was tough to endure. I also find Times Sq a full assault on the olfactories. I had an uncle who bred race horses and another with Morgans and Belgians. I even built my home across the street from an organic dairy farm. Seems to me most farmers and ranchers do a better job with more animals than these livery stables do. Glad you and yours survived the trip. From the title, wasn't sure what to expect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 21, 2016 Author Share Posted July 21, 2016 28 minutes ago, Back East Don said: NY City. Funny you mention the City. Mackinac Island smelled like a subway car in NYC in the 50s. If anyone remembers what they used to smell like back then - that is how the entire island smelled (at least where I went). Not sure what was causing it. Yes, I know - there are horses all over. But it's always been like that. In fact, my wife used to work there. I never experienced it smelling so bad. Totem - I asked that poor EMT girl who the stiff was - but she said she was not allowed to give out any info. I asked her several times - was it a local or a tourist - but she would not tell me. When we first arrived at the island, there was a huge fat guy laying belly-up in the back of a horse-wagon. At the time we were joking that he looked dead. Now we're kind of wondering if it WAS him. It was a first for me. Kind or surreal. Some kids were tossing a ball back and forth and it bounced off the stiff many times. Oh well. I guess if you have a dead person - how do you get it to mainland? The ferry, just like anything else. I was just surprised they had no "special cargo" department. The dead guy (or girl) kept bouncing into me - I was inches away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totem Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 1 hour ago, jdemaris said: Funny you mention the City. Mackinac Island smelled like a subway car in NYC in the 50s. If anyone remembers what they used to smell like back then - that is how the entire island smelled (at least where I went). Not sure what was causing it. Yes, I know - there are horses all over. But it's always been like that. In fact, my wife used to work there. I never experienced it smelling so bad. Totem - I asked that poor EMT girl who the stiff was - but she said she was not allowed to give out any info. I asked her several times - was it a local or a tourist - but she would not tell me. When we first arrived at the island, there was a huge fat guy laying belly-up in the back of a horse-wagon. At the time we were joking that he looked dead. Now we're kind of wondering if it WAS him. It was a first for me. Kind or surreal. Some kids were tossing a ball back and forth and it bounced off the stiff many times. Oh well. I guess if you have a dead person - how do you get it to mainland? The ferry, just like anything else. I was just surprised they had no "special cargo" department. The dead guy (or girl) kept bouncing into me - I was inches away. imagine everyones surprise if he had risen and stood up to say... "No, I'm good now..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.