Life on the frozen tundra of South Dakota Life on the frozen tundra of South Dakota

Day 4 - 07/13/2009 - Ludington, MI to Eau Claire, WI

Day 4 - 07/13/2009 - Ludington, MI to Eau Claire, WI

The route for the day.

My alarm went off at 6 AM. The ship left port at 8 AM. I wanted to get there by 7 AM for boarding, as that's what the web site recommended.

After the previous night's lack of sleep, I had good intentions of hitting the hay early and getting the rest I needed. However, the previous evening's campfire festivities got me to bed later than I had planned. Also my air mattress went flat three times during the night so the sleep I did get was interrupted. I didn't awake feeling refreshed.

I groggily got out of bed, got dressed and broke camp. Taking everything down and packing took longer than I had anticipated, for no good reason. I wound up pulling out of the campground at 7 AM instead of arriving at the port at that time. I was kicking myself the whole ride there, but when I pulled up at 7:15, my fears were calmed as I could see there was plenty of time to board.

Arriving at the SS Badger.

I pulled up behind another motorcycle. The rider didn't have tickets, and apparently his wife was off purchasing them. I sat while he discussed the situation with the woman checking in the vehicles. After a minute, he pulled forward off to the left of the hold of the ship.

I had purchased my ticket months beforehand, so it was a simple process to tell them my name and they looked on a clipboard. The woman gave me my boarding documents and instructed me to pull up next to the other motorcycle. She said to wait there until they were ready for us to load our bikes

As I pulled up behind the other bike, I noticed that the license plate was definitely not a US plate. I got off and asked the rider if he was from Canada. He smiled and said no, that he was from England. He and his wife had their motorcycle flown over from the UK and were spending 10 weeks touring the United States.

My new friends, Bill and Katrina.

I learned his name was Bill, and his wife Katrina came back with their tickets. We chatted for a while, until a man from the ship came over and said we could load the bikes.

The cargo hold of the ship.

The SS Badger requires that all riders strap down their own bikes. I had thrown my straps into my saddlebags before I left on the trip. Bill and Katrina, however, did not have any straps. The ferries they utilize in Europe provide straps, so they hadn't thought to bring any.

The Badger was willing to sell them straps at an outrageous price, so they had elected to just leave their bike on the side stand and hope for the best. When I learned that they didn't have straps, I dug out a spare set from my saddlebag and let them use it. Not sure why I had packed an extra set, but I'm glad I did.

Strapping down the bikes.

My first order of business on the ship was to get breakfast. The Badger has two food areas: a buffet style on the upper deck and an ala-carte line on the lower deck. Of course, I fully intended to hit the breakfast buffet.

As it turned out, this was Bill and Katrina's plan as well. So they asked if I would like to join them for breakfast. We had a great time talking and getting to know each other. Against my recommendation, both Bill and Katrina decided to try grits which is a decidedly American cuisine.

Now, before you grits proponents get down on me, let me explain my stance. I have tried grits. I like corn. I don't like grits. I have concluded, that all of the flavor of corn comes from the shell of the kernal, and when this is removed what you are left with is bland mush. To the lack of flavor add a terrible baby-food like texture, and you have a recipe for a bowl full of breakfast hell.

It was a split decision. Bill liked grits. Katrina didn't.

Getting some breakfast.

We ate most of our breakfast, then the ship's horn sounded. We were pulling out.

Now, I had never been on a boat this size before, so this was a brand new experience. I decided I wanted to go out on deck and watch us pull out of port. So the three of us decided to take a break and go outside, then come back and finish our breakfast in a few minutes.

I grabbed my camera and started taking pictures. Here's the Badger's twin sister, the SS Spartan, which is now retired. The only difference between the ships is that at one time the Badger was torched in half horizontally, and an 18 inch section was welded in place to allow rail cars to fit in the hold.

Pulling out of the port.

The Ludington harbor was very pretty. Although I didn't see all of it, overall I think Ludington was a neat little town.

The Ludington harbor.

I walked around snapping pictures like a tourist. Wait a minute, I was a tourist.

Smokestack of the SS Badger.

Because of my unfamiliarity with being on a ship, and my propensity towards motion sickness, I downed a couple of Dramamine tablets that morning. I also have a tendency to react violently to drugs so I made sure to get the "less drowsy" formula of Dramamine. So far, however, then ride was smooth as glass.

Leaving Ludington.

The front deck of the ship had plenty of lawn chairs and would be a great place to relax, had the temp not been in the upper 50's with a strong wind. Not too many people were working on their tans this morning, although it was a beautifully sunny day with no clouds.

The front deck of the ship.

There's a nice looking neighborhood as you're pulling out of the port. I can only imagine what it costs to buy one of these.

A nice looking neigborhood on the Michigan coast.

As we left the harbor, a small fishing boat was also leaving. There was a lighthouse on the edge of the open water.

Leaving the harbor.

Here's where the captain navigates the ship. I didn't meet him, but I was prepared to call him Captain Stubing. I'm sure he's never heard that before...

Where the captain navigates the ship.

Looking out from the front, there was a tugboat sitting there. We didn't need it.

A view from the bow.

As we passed the lighthouse, there were people out there waving us goodbye. It was cheesy, but fun.

A neat little lighthouse on the edge of the harbor.

A closer view of the lighthouse.

Here's a closer picture of the tugboat.

A tugboat waiting for someone.

Bill, Katrina and I returned to the galley and finished our breakfast. Katrina excused herself to go catch up on the news in the TV room. Bill and I sat for about an hour and went over a map of the US.

As it turned out, Bill had quit his job to come over and take this ten week tour. In his words, "I can always get another job. I can't always tour the United States on a motorcycle for ten weeks." I was (and am) astounded at the commitment he had to motorcycle touring and for how he has arranged his life priorities. When he is older, he's not going to tell people about the days on end he spent staring at cube walls. Instead, he's going to have a story about the ten weeks he spent seeing the U.S. It gives me a lot of food for thought...

I looked at his proposed route, and made a few suggestions about great roads I knew.

After a while he decided to find his wife, and I decided to explore the rest of the ship, then find a spot to read my book.

The lake was very calm that day.

The badger is a coal fired ship. the smoke coming out of the stacks wasn't as black as I had thought it might be.

The badger is a coal fired ship.

The upper deck had a walkway that went all the way around the perimeter of the ship.

Leaving Michigan.

The lower deck was mostly indoors. There were two TV viewing rooms, both showing the morning news.

One of the TV viewing rooms.

In the main area of the lower level, they were calling bingo and doing Karaoke. I was quite impressed with how much the ship offered to keep guests entertained. It really was like a short cruise.

They had bingo and karaoke on the ship.

Down the hallways were private rooms one could rent if you wanted to sleep during the trip. There was also a museum, a quiet room, a gift shop, a movie room, an arcade and a kid's play room. Lots of stuff to do.

A view down one of the hallways on the lower deck.

After exploring, I found a chair at the stern of the upper deck. Here I was shielded from the wind and had the warm morning sun beating down on me, which was quite comfortable. I pulled out my book and read. The lack of wind in this area meant occasionally I would have to brush away a speck of coal dust, but it was a small price to pay.

After a bit, Bill came by and we started to talk. Then two more bikers came up and we compared notes on the different places we had ridden.

Bill and I talking to a couple of other bikers we met.

I sat and read and relaxed. The cruise could have easily been twice the length and I'd had been happy. It was very therapeutic. Toward the end of the cruise I was starting to get a bit drowsy, but I attributed it to just sitting for a few hours. I decided to get up and walk around.

Hanging over the side of the boat to get this shot.

I went back to the front deck. Still not much action happening there.

It was rather cold and windy, so not too many people were on the relaxation deck.

There were plenty of lifeboats available should we need them. Thankfully, we didn't.

Plenty of lifeboats were available, should we have needed them.

Soon the coast was visible in the distance. It grew in size until the city of Manitowac, WI became visible.

Coming in to Manitowac, WI.

I kind of freaked myself out getting this picture of the ship's anchor. Something about hanging over the edge of the ship.

I found the anchor.

As we entered the bay, Manitowac had a lighthouse too.

A lighthouse as we enter the Manitowac harbor.

Another shot of the lighthouse.

We pulled into the harbor, then backed into the port.

The docking area for the Badger.

I looked out on Lake Michigan one last time. Once I hit the road I wouldn't see it again.

My last view of Lake Michigan.

As I walked towards the back of the ship, I noticed the seagulls were going nuts over something. I'm speculating that maybe the ship's propeller chopped up a school of fish?

The seagulls were going nuts over something.

Watching the ship pull in to the port was just unbelievable. It was amazing how the captain could maneuver a boat that size so precisely.

Backing the ship into the dock.

As we got closer to the dock, you could tell the captain knew exactly when to reverse the engines to slow us down so we didn't slam into the shore. You could hear the mechanicals of the ship making noise as the rudder turned. The ship slowed, pivoted and kissed the dock ever so gently in the perfect position. I felt like applauding!

The captain of the ship doing an unbelievable job of pulling up to the dock.

We went down to the cargo hold and unstrapped our bikes. I said my goodbyes to Bill and Katrina, exchanged phone numbers and headed out. One benefit to riding a motorcycle is that I passed everyone in the parking lot who was standing their waiting for their car to get unloaded.

So I was now back in Wisconsin. I had also crossed the time zone back into Central Time, so it was only 11 AM.

Welcome to Wisconsin.

I rode through Manitowac looking for interstate 43. There were street signs indicating which way to go, but at some point I must have missed one as I stopped seeing them and found myself in a residential area. So I turned around and started looking for where the signs left off, but never did see them again.

I finally decided that as long as I keep moving west and north, I would eventually run into I-43. Sure enough, after riding through Manitowac I came across the interstate. I went north towards Green Bay, where I would stop for lunch.

Once I got to Green Bay (home of the nemisis of my beloved Minnesota Vikings) I started looking for somewhere to eat. I was really hoping to come across a Popeye's chicken, but didn't. I did find, however, a Fazoli's. We don't have Fazoli's in South Dakota, so it's a treat when I get to eat at one.

Stopping for lunch in Green Bay, WI.

After a leisurely lunch where I ate way too much and read my book, I hit the road again. The temperature had risen significantly, and it had become down right hot (a first for this trip!) The sun was out and the humidity was up. I removed my jacket.

Back on the road I got on route 29 heading west through town. As I rode, I kept my eyes out for any signs pointing to Lambeau Field. Even though I have a deep dislike for the Packers, I thought it would be cool to get a picture of the stadium. I never did see any signs, and because I hadn't looked up beforehand where it was located, I missed out on that photo op.

Heading west from Green Bay towards Waseau, I started to get drowsy. Perhaps drowsy isn't the right word. I went into a coma. That's a better word! I think the culmination of several nights of poor sleep, the warm weather, the big meal and the reaction from the Dramamine I took that morning finally were taking their toll.

Getting drowsy on long rides isn't uncommon. Usually I can combat it by changing positions, grabbing something to eat or drink or singing. None of this was working. I was fighting sleep in a bad way. I began to look for a rest stop along the highway where I could get off the bike and walk around a bit.

No rest stop appeared. Suddenly without warning, I fell completely asleep while riding. I awoke slumped over crusing a few feet next to a semi in the adjacent lane. I'm sure I was only out for a couple of seconds, but I was most definitely out! It was time to get off the road now!

I could see an exit about a half mile ahead, with a truck stop on the corner. I decided to stop there. In that half mile I fell asleep two more times. There was absolutely nothing I could do to keep myself awake.

Thankfully, I made it to the truck stop without a tragic incident. I pulled in and noticed an area in the back where there were trucks parked. I rode over to this portion of the lot and saw a grassy ditch. I pulled up, grabbed my jacket and rolled it up like a pillow, then laid down in the ditch. I was out immediately.

When I awoke, I looked at my watch. I had slept hard for an hour. I sat up, feeling groggy and looked around. When I had gone to sleep, there had been a semi parked about 20 feet away from me. The semi was now gone, which means that while I was sleeping it had started up and pulled away, and I hadn't heard it.

I had been laying in the direct sunlight the whole time, so I could tell I was a fried egg. I needed a restroom break badly, otherwise I might have considered going back to sleep. I hopped on the bike and rode across the parking lot to the store.

After moving around a bit, I was starting to wake up, but I decided that a caffinated beverage might make the remaining day's miles pass a little easier. I was looking at getting a bottle of soda, but then I decided "what the heck" and bought the largest cup of coffee the store sold.

At this point I experienced another first: chugging a steaming cup of hot coffee on a sweltering July afternoon. It was warm, but I downed the coffee as fast as I could, like a college freshman during a fraternity initiation. I wanted to get back on the road and get to Eau Claire for the evening so I could truly relax.

The rest of the afternoon's ride was uneventful, which after the coma incident was a good thing. This stretch through central Wisconsin is not a very interesting piece of highway. I stopped for gas and a restroom break, but other than that I rode until I finally reached Eau Claire at about 5 PM.

There was a campground about 17 miles east of Eau Claire where I had originally intended on staying. However, I wanted to spend the evening in Eau Claire itself, and at this point didn't have much desire to back-track 17 miles to the campground. I decided to look around the Eau Claire area and see if there were any campgrounds I could find near town.

I spent an hour driving around Eau Claire, but didn't come across anywhere I could (legally) pitch a tent. I was getting very tired again at this point. I also wasn't looking forward to another night of fighting a deflating air mattress every few hours.

So I conceded defeat, and checked into a hotel.

Conceeding to spend the night in a hotel.

Color me a wimp if you like, but the air conditioning felt great and after a shower I was feeling much more happy.

My hotel room.

One of the reasons I wanted to stay in Eau Claire that evening was because of Mike's Smokehouse. I used to work for a company that had a division in Eau Claire, and on occasion I would have to travel to the town. Through these business trips, I became acquainted with Mike's Smokehouse, which originally was a in little BBQ shack down by the river. Because it was always packed full of people, about 10 years ago they were able to build this much nicer and larger restaurant.

Mike's Smokehouse. An Eau Claire tradition.

I ordered the full rack of ribs, with cajun fries and beans. It was a heck of a lot of food for $10.99.

My supper.

I thoroughly enjoyed my meal while I read my book, and in a few minutes this was the result:

My supper, fifteen minutes later.

Having an addictive personality, and not knowing when to say "when" I decided to ride over to Wal-Mart and pick up a few snacks for the hotel room.

Back in my room, I ate my snack and called my wife. I read some more of my book, then called it a night. The air conditioner made a beautiful sound as I slept...

Continue on to day five...

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