Our last two days of work at Jest Kidding/Goliath’s Spear were quite productive. The women completed the job of mulching the Garden of Gethsemane. A few more plants will be added later. It was hard work, but the garden looks very peaceful and beautiful. Here are before and after pictures:
We moved on to the task of organizing the shed. This involved installing shelves and many hooks for hanging tools. Joyce was an expert with the drill and driver!
The guys took down the worn out, old Jest Kidding sign. New metal post supports were driven into the ground on the other side of the driveway. The old posts were shortened and slotted to prepare for framing the new sign between the posts. We all came over to watch the final installation and pose for pictures. Sheldon and Vickie were very pleased.
Every work day begins with group devotions, each team member taking a turn in leading them. Being a magician himself, whenever Steve P. took his turn, he used a “trick” to make his point. It was quite entertaining and effective. This was a great (and ice cream loving) group to work with and we hope to be with them again somewhere down the road.
We packed up and left Tuesday after working part of the morning before more rain threatened to get us stuck in our campsite. We drove to Ludington where we camped at Cartier Park. We decided to take the ferry across Lake Michigan on our way home. The SS Badger was built in 1952. It is the last coal-fired passenger steamship in operation in the United States. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark. Originally designed to primarily transport railroad cars, it now accommodates people, vehicles, RVs, motorcycles, motor coaches and commercial trucks. It offers a fun experience with Badger Bingo, free movies, lounge areas, food service and sprawling outside decks. The trip takes four hours, docking in Manitowac, Wisconsin. Our departure time was 9:00 and we were at the dock at 7:30 so we could watch our truck and camper be loaded. The driver backed them into the ship with ease! We were amazed at how many vehicles, both huge and small, could fit into this seven story high and 410 foot long vessel. Once underway, we watched the shoreline disappear. For most of the voyage, we couldn’t see land on any side of the ship. It gave us a new appreciation for how large Lake Michigan is! The weather was beautiful with sunshine most of the time, so after exploring the ship, we spent most of the time out on the deck. We did have quite a bit of fog in the middle of the lake and had to listen to many blasts of the ship’s foghorn. After disembarking at Manitowac, we drove on to Seward Bluffs Forest Preserve near Freeport, Illinois. We plan to visit Steve’s mom Thursday and travel the rest of the way home on Friday. This will be our last post until our next RVICS project in September. God’s blessings to you!
Time to Travel 