Off to Burt MI

I got a late start out of Port Huron on Tuesday. My SIL fixed a big breakfast and my two nieces were also both there to see me off. It was the first day of school for almost all of the kids. The late start didn't matter because I only had a two hour drive to my destination in Burt Michigan. The only reason for getting on the road first thing in the morning was the ever present threat of rain. It was just starting to sprinkle when I pulled out and I still had to make a stop at the Port Huron Township RV Park to empty my tanks. After three weeks, my black tank was nearly full, one gray water was 3/4 full and the other only 1/4 full. I am blessed with large tanks which is only a problem when you are just out for a few days and have to add a bunch of water to get a good dump. Anyway, the rain didn't materialize and I was able to get that job done and get on the road. I took I-69 west and it was fine until I hit Flint and then it was really rough going through there before I headed north on M-13.

I had no trouble finding my friends summer home and even found the cheapest gas I've seen in Michigan. Unfortunately, I filled up a few miles earlier at the second cheapest place I've seen in the state. Once I got backed into their driveway and hooked up once again, I got a chance to see their place. Burt is a very small town but they wanted a place to stay in the summer when they come up to visit all their relatives and avoid the hot Texas weather. They bought a fixer-upper and they have definitely fixed it into a real nice place.

Friday, we took a drive to see some of the area.  The Taymouth Township Library is right there in Burt. It used to be the old school but it was renovated by volunteers in 1979. The first year it was also run by volunteers and started with discards from the Saginaw Public Libraries. Now they have over 15,000 books, tapes, and videos as well as 6 public computers with Internet.

There is also a nice Taymouth Township Park right in town.

Another very interesting building is the American Legion building.

The town of Burt was named after Wellington R. Burt who was elected to the State Senate in 1892. Although he was one of the wealthiest men in America in the early 20th century, he was unsuccessful in his bid for governor and congressman.

He was successful in arranging for the railroad to come through the village and he also donated $1000 towards a township building. Several other individuals donated bricks and land and pretty soon Burt had an Opera House which now hosts the American Legion.

 We headed on over to Birch Run which sits right off I-75. The town has all the amenities and also boasts the large Birch Run Outlet Mall.

You may have heard of Tony's Restaurant in Birch Run since it was featured on "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" due to the huge servings. A BLT or a breakfast order includes a full pound of bacon if you can imagine and the banana split includes a gallon of ice cream. Since we didn't eat there, I can't provide any first hand experience but I would definitely plan to share if you stop there. They have a huge parking lot.

I also found a Harley Davidson dealer here although it isn't huge.

And a Culver's home of the Butter Burger. They are easy to find up north although they now have 450 locations in 19 states. It's a family type restaurants with choices other than burgers.

Birch Run has beautiful huge flower pots along the main road as well as lots of American flags on display.

We also toured some other towns in the area like Chesaning where you will find the Showboat. There is a restaurant as well as the boat where they put on shows. Unfortunately, I missed getting a picture of the boat.

We also made stops at several relatives homes in the area. My friends Bob and Loretta both come from large families so there were quite a few stops. Bob's sister Kathy gave us a tour of her "park" back in the woods. I have heard about it for years so it was great to see it in person. This is the party building complete with chickens in their roost.

"The front porch"

There are several buildings that make this special place like a public park and there is also a drive through the woods with scenery along the way.

Back at Bob and Loretta's, we walked through their large treed back yard and found these interesting fungi.

I've never seen anything like this before.

It's been a busy week so far. We went over to Frankenmuth which will be a separate post. We've also played cards with relatives quite a few times. They are really patient which is necessary since the only time I play cards is with Bob and Loretta. The most popular game right now is called "Blocker".