We arrived late afternoon to Whispering Pine, near Cadillac Michigan. We were all pleasantly surprised at the very large and air-conditioned accommodations. We played basketball and had a campfire complete with a marshmallow roast deep in the woods. The next morning, we rose early to get a full day in. We headed first to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore where we climbed amazing dunes and some of us even reach the Lake Michigan beach. The views from the Piece Stocking Scenic Road really blew us away. We ended the day floating, canoeing, and splashing down the Platte River. We have never seen nature like this before.
On day three we headed south to Silver Lake and took a crazy sand dune ride in open air jeeps. We were all amazed that the Sahara Desert is so close to Chicago. Our adventure then took us to Camp Oa-Wa-Kiya, where we spent a much needed restful Shabbos. But before Shabbos, we were treated to speed boat tubing, waterfront obstacle course, and water volleyball. We topped off the afternoon with a long Zipline ride.
On Shabbos, we davened and had our meals in a room overlooking Lake Shelby. Rabbi Polstein gave a shiur about the 5 goal mitzvos of the Torah. We got up at 6:00am Sunday in order to make our 9:00am departure on the SS Badger. It was a four-hour cruise across Lake Michigan. After coming ashore in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, we traveled to the Door County Peninsula. We drove up to Fish Creek and rented bikes and explored Peninsula State Park. We then headed back down to Green Bay and checked out the Bay Amusement Park for some fun and screams, and then to the Tundra Resort, to enjoy the indoor water park.
The final two days were the trip highlights. The Menominee River trip was a guided white-water rafting trip. Each raft had eight people plus a guide. There were stretches of river where we played crazy game and got wet, but the real thrill was the rapids. We even got out of our rafts and walk backed on the Upper Peninsula Michigan side of the river and we did the rapids a second time. After, we traveled to the Wildman Resort where we spent the last night in several luxury homes deep in the woods and along the Peshtigo River. The final day was an inflatable Kayak white-water trip. We all powered down the non-stop rapids together as a group. We had a week of true adventure, friendship, never-ending snacks and good food. Most importantly -memories that will last a lifetime!
