Swanson's Travel History (1993-1996)
Introduction
This is part of the Swansons' travel narrative
history. This section covers our travels together during
the years:
1996
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1995
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1994
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1993
1996
Well, 1996 couldn't match 1995, but we worked on it anyway.
Our boating adventure for the year did not cover the entire Great Lakes, but included two weeks on the North Channel in late August. Now, August is not considered to be the best time, but July had been the pits, and most of the "serious cruisers" had left by August 1st. We had wonderful weather, and many famous North Channel places almost to ourselves. Not to mention the great Canadian ice cream. We spent a night at The Pool at the end of Bay Fine, and only had to share it with about 6 other boats. Our night at Fox Island was punctuated by strong winds and a loon, that swam round and round our boat and voiced its haunting call nearly all night. Our favorite anchorage was Beardrop near the Whalesback Channel. We picked wild blueberries on the rocky shore and then enjoyed blueberry pancakes for breakfast. We will return.
1995
In February, we took advantage of some really cheap airline tickets and traveled for 16 days in The Netherlands and Belgium. We went everywhere on trains, and most of our entertainment and meals took place in bars. Bob, at least, was trying to taste at least one each of all 300 different kinds of beer brewed in Belgium (he did not succeed, but not for trying). The food was fantastic, even in bars, and the beer was wonderful. The people in Flanders were especially kind to us, since we could not speak Flemish. It rained and rained.
Starting June 1st, we traveled for 45 days crewing on the recreational tugboat Big Toot, passing through 1,500 miles of the Great Lakes and its environs. It may sound trite, but this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Thirty days of our 45-day trip took place in the province of Ontario, and we found the people in Canada to be wonderful, friendly, and helpful. The food was great, especially the ice cream! We could write a book about this trip (and we are).
If the tugboat trip were not enough, just before Labor Day, we cruised in our own boat on a 2-week trip through the Great Lakes, to the old Eire Canal in New York state. Our trip ended in Ithaca, where the boat was put back onto its trailer. Later the trailer was hauled back to Michigan [definitely not a trip for the squeamish! We now have even more respect for long-haul truckers] The Erie Canal is to be recommended to anyone who wants to lower their blood pressure and just drift along. The people in the small towns in upstate New York were uniformly nice and helpful, and the scenery was remarkable. You can rent boats and cruise here, if you don't have a boat of your own, or it is inconvenient to bring it along.
1994
While really a family visit trip, we did spend 3 weeks driving through Florida and other parts of the South. Every Interstate exit had a different rib place (our personal best was at an offramp in Macon, GA). This trip was an opportunity to study the areas for possible future retirement. A lot of the trip, however, was time visiting with relatives.
[After we moved to Michigan, we visited several places in the state. This is in contrast to having done very little touring in Minnesota, during the 5 years we lived there. We traveled a great deal between LA and San Francisco, when we lived in California. We did manage to visit that area between those two large cities, unlike many folks who blow along I-5 and never get off except to empty out and fill up.]
1993
Between jobs and moving from Minnesota to Michigan, in May, we took perhaps the greatest vacation of our lives. We rented ("hired", as they say) a boat on the River Thames in England. We also have some photos on our Flickr account.
This is a wonderful way to see the countryside, as evidenced by the great numbers of locals who enjoy this type of vacation every year. The pace is slow (the boats can only make 4 miles per hour), and there is either a view (farms, churches, villages, stately homes) or a pub around every bend. While rainy, we found late May was showing her very best blooms. All the birds in the river seemed to have babies in tow, from the stately swans (royal property) to the smallest mudhen. This type of travel is definitely a blood-pressure lowerer, if there ever was one. Cheaper than renting a car and paying hotel (or B & B) bills, too. Fuel was very reasonable. We can recommend this trip for anyone, even novice boaters!
On our own new SeaRay boat, we took a trip through the Inland Waterway of Michigan. This is an area worth visiting by car as well. The lakes at the very tip of the Lower Peninsula (Crooked Lake, Burt Lake, Mullet Lake, Indian River, Cheboygan River) are beautiful. They are popular summer areas, and there is an increasing number of year-round residents.
We enjoyed a few days just before New Years in Toronto. We fell in
love with this city. Remember, this is a statement from two
confirmed country-dwellers.
The city is cosmopolitan, diverse, clean, and efficient. We
believe that we can make a valid comparison between Toronto
and New York City, and Toronto wins.
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