We were up early today for showers and cereal and were leaving at 8:45a to hoof it up the hill to the backside of the fort.
Each day, one person gets to fire the opening cannon at the fort. I've tried several times to get a spot that worked for our travel plans and its never worked. But believe it or not, when I called just last Thursday, our preferred day was open. Yay!
We met the staff at 9:15 am. The young man that led us gave us a brief history of the cannon Tyler would be firing. He went over the liability waiver and safety briefing and then got to the logistics. The trumpet started to play, he gave Tyler the agreed upon ready sign and "FIRE!"
It was so cool to be a part of! Afterwards, we looked around the fort for a bit and then headed back to the boat. We took a brief stop at the first church on the island and looked at the incredibly old stain glass windows. Then I ran to Doud's Grocery Store for a few items and then back to the boat.
Once aboard we got busy with prepping to head out. Our check out time is 11:00 am. Just before we headed out, we saw some visitors in the water - 4 otters. It was fun to watch and listen to them play in the water behind our slip.
We pulled out by 11:00a. We have 12 miles to go but technically aren't supposed to arrive for 2 hours. So we set our speed at 10 mph and just slowly made our way across to Mackinaw City. The lake was super calm yet again with very little wind.
We stopped to fuel up and pump out and then made our way to slip A10 around 12:30p.
I ordered lunch from BC Pizza and while the boys finished setting up our water and electrical, Sammy and I took the scooters to town to pick it up. We ate lunch and played a game of Ticket to Ride.
Then the kids took the scooters to find Tyler some ice cream. Scott and I were gonna walk to Starbucks but found some bikes that are available to rent from the marina. I was grateful for some wheels but have never rode a tricycle before and I was surprised how difficult they are to ride. LOL. Anyway, in spite of our how silly we looked, we pressed on and met the kids at Starbucks.
Then it was back to the boat for a relaxing afternoon. We had ravioli lasagna for supper onboard and then decided to go play a round of mini-golf.
Tyler needed to head back for work so he and Sammy took the scooters to make good time. Scott and I walked over to the postoffice to deliver some outgoing mail. Then walked back. Sammy worked on her audition choreography while I worked on church stuff. After Tyler finished work, we listened to Sammy's latest script and then headed to bed.
It was a wonderful day!
