July 29, 2012
Today we woke up in our hotel room in downtown Chicago,
Illinois and are now close to bed at our campground in Wayne Dunes State Park
in Michigan after a brief stop at the Indiana Sand Dunes National Shoreline in
Indiana. This makes it 3 states that we have been in today. We left Chicago
early this morning in order to make a stop at the Sand Dunes before finding a
campground in the wasteland that is Michigan State Parks. According to our
mapbook this is the only campground within a 200 mile, or so, radius. Luckily,
there was lots of space available, although the 15 minute line-up at the Park
Entrance (caused by daytime users) had us a bit worried.
Our campground is located in a big Oak forest just beside
some giant sand dunes. We got in late, and so will be visiting the Dunes
tomorrow morning for a look and, hopefully, a dip in Lake Michigan. The forest
is very nice, but there is lots of Poison Ivy that we have to avoid. As well,
this is by far the loudest forest we have been in; the sound of Cicadas is
overwhelming, nearly as loud as a hotel room in downtown Chicago.
Our brief stop at Mt. Baldy along the Indiana Dunes
shorelines was nice, but the place is completely ruined by the giant Nuclear
plant right next door, blocking the whole Northern vista. Mt. Baldy is a giant
sand dune on the North end of a long strip of Dunes at the coast of Lake
Michigan in Indiana. As of now the Eastern edge is about 3 metres from the edge
of the parking lot, but if recent trends keep up, it will be in the parking lot
within 5 years. The combination of wind and tourists is causing the dune to
move inland at a rate of about 5 feet per year. I’m not quite sure what will
happen when it hits the parking lot, as demand for the site and beach already
far exceeds the space in the lot.
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| View North from Mt. Baldy |
Leaving Chicago this morning was pretty straightforward.
There was no problem with the valet, aside from him not putting the engine
break on after bringing our car back out. The best time to drive in this city
of crazy drivers, and pedestrians, most definitely appears to be Sunday
morning. We encountered very little traffic and no pedestrians jay walking in
our short drive from downtown to the freeway. As a sports fan I was excited to
pass Solider Field (home of the Bears) and Comiskey Park (home of the White
Sox) on the way out of town. This, combined with the Cubs-Cardinals game at
Wrigley the day before provided a very nice complement to my Chicago sports
visit.
Wrigley Field is tiny, it takes up what appears to be just a
single city block, but somehow fits in an entire baseball stadium. It was great
to see the old wonder, wandering around the concourse and streets outside,
looking at the ivy-covered outfield walls, and watching the rivalry that is the
Cubs-Cardinals. The game wasn’t the most exciting, perhaps because I am not
used to the National League rule of the pitchers having to pitch. It seemed
like every rally was snuffed out by a pitcher coming to bat and promptly
striking out. It really stunted the flow of the game. Nevertheless, I
thoroughly enjoyed my time at the game and am glad to have gone.
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