On Weds, May 10, we drove into Chicago and found a surface lot on the north side of the downtown area. First stop, after walking around the downtown area around Wacker Drive for a little bit, was the Willis Tower (originally known as the Sears Tower). We rode up to the Chicago Skydeck (observation deck) on the 103rd floor - 1,353 feet above the sidewalk. Great views! We were lucky and got there when it was still pretty clear but an hour or so later, when we left, a weather front moved in reducing the visibility. Some years ago, they built some glass "boxes" which protrude about 4-1/4 feet out from the building so you can stand out there and look straight down at the sidewalk - if you dare! Pretty funny watching people take their first step out onto the "Ledge" as it's called.
After the Willis Tower, we walked the several blocks down to Grant Park and the Buckingham Fountain. Within a few minutes, the rain started up so it was time to get an Uber back to our car to grab jackets and an umbrella. Then, we found a Chicago-style (deep dish) pizza place for lunch before heading out - tried to beat rush hour but it seemed like it had already started by 3pm.
We drove to Indiana and stayed the night at South Bend. The next morning, before heading north to Michigan, we took a quick drive onto the campus at Notre Dame. There's construction going on around the stadium but I did manage to get eyes on "Touchdown Jesus" overlooking the football field.
Next up was a long drive up through Michigan to the lower end of Saginaw Bay where we stayed at Bay City. Nice little town. Our hotel was right along the east riverfront (Bay City is split by the Saginaw River) in the downtown area so we were able to walk to a restaurant rather than having to drive. After we ate, we walked down to their riverfront park and spoke to an older gentleman who was a life-long resident of Bay City. According to him, the legend of Paul Bunyan actually got started in Bay City. (Have to check that out sometime.) Anyway, for a town of it's size, Bay City had one of the most impressive streets leading into (out of) town - Center Ave. It had a couple blocks full of big, old, well-maintained homes that would do any city proud. Some of the nicest architecture we'd seen since San Francisco.
So, next day, Friday, May 12th, we continued our Great Lakes Circle Tour, driving the "thumb" of Michigan from Bay City north to Port Austin then south to Port Huron. We made a few stops along the way but the longest was at Port Austin where we had lunch. Port Austin had a nice beach/marina. The whole area is a vacation spot for summer time tourism.
Dolores and I both thought that Lake Huron looked nicer and more inviting than what we'd seen driving around Lakes Superior & Michigan.
On Saturday, we left Lake Huron behind, driving through Detroit on the way to Ohio where we picked up where drove our final leg of the Great Lakes Circle Tour. The route ran right along Lake Erie for much of the way and there are some extremely nice houses & mansions along the lakeshore.
That's all for now ..... Dan
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