Our final sprint towards home had some pretty fun detours.

The Wisconsin Dells were all mystic and foggy and beautiful.

We took a 2 hour river boat tour. This stop at Witches Gulch was so breathtaking.

In 1886 HH Bennett made this rock and the Dells famous by taking a pic of his 14 year old son Ashley leaping across this 5.5 ft span. Bennett had invented a rapid shutter for his camera that made this pic even more unbelievable (previously camera shutters took several minutes to capture an image).

For a long time, tourists were allowed to attempt this feat themselves, but eventually insurance decided this wasn’t a great idea, so now a few trained dogs are the only ones allowed the chance to jump.

Our next stop on the itinerary was one that I remember studying about in school: Mackinac Island.

The ferry ride was quick, and the famous horses met us as we arrived at port.

The island only allows horses and bike traffic. And tourists- so many tourists.

Em and I quickly rented bikes and set out for the 8 miles around the perimeter of the island. Her knee hung in there like a champ.

The water was gorgeous. Em said “why do we go to the Bahamas?” It was really that beautiful. But I’m guessing winter would change our minds.

I wonder if all the 470 people who reside on this island are all gardeners.

We enjoyed a delicious dinner before we spent a small fortune on their famous fudge and called it a day.

I hope I have the opportunity to return.

Other noteworthy stops in Michigan included the cemetery of this old church. Back during the Spanish Flu, the great grandad of my group was stricken and died leaving his wife and 6 children. Such hard times for that family. The stories of the hard times they faced are something. But the same God who was faithful then is still faithful today.

And as the beautiful sunrise kissed the land, we set our sights for good old Virginia.

Everytime I go west, I pick up a piece of blue graniteware. I thought maybe the boys would enjoy a piece or two to add to their collection. I think they might 😉

A HUGE thanks to Em for all the countless things she did to make our 8600 mi/18 day journey as flawless as possible

And to our family and loved ones who cheered us on our travels from a far- your support means so much😘

East, West, Home is best ❤️

Thank you, Jesus,

Kendra

Bonus Pics:

We cheesin’ 😉 Guess which state

Stayed home long enough to do laundry and reorganize my van, then headed for Kentucky for a few days. It’s beautiful here too.

In case you’d enjoy Em’s compilation of “America by Song Part 2” you can find that here