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Thanks for joining us on Jacks Journey USA! A 10 week road trip around the country to inspire people and their dogs to get fit by doing fun things! Feel free to read back through all of the fun places we have been!
Thanks to Erica at the Indian Valley Campground, we stopped at Croton Dam Campground on the way to Traverse City. We are going to Traverse City to teach a dog fitness class with Woofers on the Run. Val, the owner, contacted us 2 weeks ago. She read about our trip, saw that we were going to be in Grand Rapids and asked if we could come to Traverse City to teach a class for her. We said YES! She was surprised and excited! She even hooked us up with a place to stay. Her friend, Sally said we could park Spirit in her driveway that overlooks a lake! How could we turn that down!
It was super rainy when we left Grand Rapids and we had a few days before we needed to be in Traverse City so mommy thought it would be fun to just go somewhere and hang out by the water and read her book. We scored BIG TIME!! At Croton Dam Campground, we got a site ON the water with a DOCK and it was super cheap! (site #67)
The next day the sun was out so we inflated the SUP and paddled around the lake. It was really big even though the lady that we met called it a pond. Biggest pond I had ever seen!
It even had a little island on it with a house and a dock! I think I may want to move here!
The next morning was BEAUTIFUL so we packed up and headed to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. Another National Park that is dog friendly on certain trails. It was really fun! A lot of sand dunes to explore. Dogs are allowed on the Cottonwood trail. We went to the end of it and down the dunes a little. One thing that you want to make sure of, the sand gets really hot so if you go with your dog, make sure you go early in the morning because it will hurt our feet plus there is not much shade out there!
After we were done exploring, we drove a little more to the Lake Michigan overlook. There were lots of people at this stop! The view was breathtaking! The water is so blue! We noticed that a lot of people were climbing down the steep dune to the water so we thought, what the heck! We will go too!! Man! It was steep! The lake at the bottom was worth it though! Mommy timed us and it only took us 15 minutes to climb back to the top! Can you see the people climbing in this photo?
Here comes the crazy part! We were half way up the steep dune and a man said to mommy “Is that your RV out on the road” and she said Yes and he said “I think you are staying at our house tonight!” Can you believe that! The people whose house we were staying at were climbing the dunes too! It was so crazy! We met their entire family in the middle of a giant sand dune!
We made one more stop before we went to Traverse City and that was to Grand Haven State Park so I could swim because the ranger said I am allowed there. It was really pretty on the water and mommy stopped for ice cream too in Glen Arbor! It is not ALL about me!
We arrived in Traverse City and Sally’s house was beautiful and she has a lot of toys and a dock! I am in heaven! Can we move here?
The only bad part was mommy left me alone in the RV so her and the girls could go out for dinner on the boat. I was NOT happy about that because I am used to being with mommy 24/7. But mommy got to see a beautiful sunset so I guess it was worth it plus sooner or later, I have to learn to be by myself again!
The next day it was BEAUTIFUL!! We were so excite to inflate the SUP and go for a paddle. Sally’s house is really close to the town via a trail or via the lake. It is really cool! We paddled over to the park where we are going to have class. It is going to be fun having class on the water.
We were told that we should also go check out the Mission Peninsula while we were here and we lucked out and had a beautiful day for it. There is a really nice trail there and a super cool beach. We had the best of both worlds! We got to hike and swim!
The lighthouse sits on the 45 parrallel which means we were half way between the North and the South Poles. Pretty cool, huh!? The drive home along the coast on the lake was so awesome! White sand beaches and beautiful and LUCKY homes with breathtaking views!
Guess what we got to do the next day? Mommy and I got to be on the radio! It was a really good interview with Colleen at WTCM explaining why it is important to do different activities with your dog, make your dog think while you are spending time with him / her and give your dog some credit. He / she wants to please you, you just have to work with them a little, just like a kid!
Val showed us around Traverse City. It is a super cool town with lots of cool areas. They are known for their cherries so of course mommy had to have cherry ice cream! She also bought a bunch of weird cherry stuff, like salsa, jelly, etc. We had lunch in a former insane hospital. It is called the Village at Grand Traverse Commons It was HUGE! It was converted into shops and offices. We even got to meet the guy how built the entire thing! He loves dogs so the entire thing, including all of the trails surrounding it is DOG FRIENDLY!!
The class at Hull Park was in the evening. It was threatening rain but mommy did her sun dance again and the sun came out! We had the largest turnout of any class yet! 32 people and dogs! Everyone had a great time and they are hoping that Val from Woofers on the Run starts classes like these in Traverse City!
What a cool park too! We got to workout on the dock on the water!
After class, mommy and Sally did a demo on how to SUP with your dog.
Traverse city ROCKED!! It was a last minute add on but one of the most fun stops on the entire journey! PLUS they raised $285. for AC Paw, they help shelter dogs in Michigan find homes.
Traverse City was so fun that we didn’t want to leave! A special thanks to Sally and her family for letting us hang out at her beautiful house for a few days! What a awesome family! So fun to meet so many incredible people on this journey!
We are now off to Kentucky. We don’t have long to get there so we are going to drive straight through. It is a Dog Yoga class on the water so stay tuned! You will get to meet my new girlfriend!
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