Life in a Ghost Town

When last I wrote we had just boarded the Texas Eagle in San Antonio, our journey north just beginning.

Where are we? According to the Internet we are visiting a ghost town about 50 miles west of the Mackinac Bridge in the beautiful upper peninsula of Michigan.

That may be true if you consider: when I take someone around town I usually point out the empty lot where my grandmother once lived. I talk about families that left the area in search of jobs or are deceased, businesses that no longer exist, empty lots and what used to be. Gould City, MI is just a yellow blinking light on US2. But to me it’s where I grew up.

It’s a beautiful time of the year to visit. After the scorching 106 degree temps. of the desert southwest and the high humidity of the south, it’s wonderful to sleep comfortably with the window’s wide open. The days are warm, the evenings cool and the annoying insects that abound are generally missing this time of the year.

Ping. Another wild raspberry hits the bottom of the pail. Bees buzz. The yellow, white and blue wild flowers sway in the gentle breeze. A flock of partridge, feathers ruffled scurry from the two track gravel road into the under brush. Two raccoons watch from twin trees. The smell of apples freshly raked into piles, shoveled into baskets and transported to feed the deer scent the air. A small deer darts into the dense hardwood forest.

The chores are piling up but the weather is a distraction. It’s only 10 miles to the shores of Lake Michigan. The water is refreshingly cold after the spa hot water of the Gulf of Mexico. The waves are small compared to the Atlantic and Pacific. The beach is deserted except for me.

There is a pancake breakfast to benefit some group or the other, the Friday night American Legion Fish Fry, family dinners, visits to the elderly, trips to transport family to doctors or pick up medicine, meals to provide and events to attend.

The highlights of Labor Day weekend were the Art on the Lake festival in Curtis with home made maple syrup, spinners, jugglers, arts, crafts, food, wine, beer, a puppet parade and live music. Attending with an old childhood friend, priceless. And to top of the weekend, participating in a once a year event for the first time, the 51st annual five mile plus walk across the Mackinac Bridge. We have the certificate and pictures to prove it.

Not bad for a few weeks spent visiting a ghost town. But now it’s back to fall chores, canning tomatoes, making jam and mincemeat. Every once in a while it’s nice to take a break from travel.