Ohio/Michigan, Part 4

Ok, here we go with the last of the vacation tour.  After leaving  Hidden Lake Gardens near Tipton, MI we headed for the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids.

This is a fascinating park to tour, with artwork placed, well... artfully, in and around the garden landscaping.  The featured artist on prominent display was Dale Chihuly, world famous for his blown glass art.

This sculpture is breathtaking and very, very large!

d

 These sculptures look so natural in the garden.

The blue glass is very intense and pretty.

I liked the way the sculptures were color-coordinated with the plantings in some areas.

The statement this display makes is stunning.  One thing I was curious about was, how do they mow the lawn?  And another worry I would definitely have is, what would happen during a hail storm?  Or even high winds?  See, I'm a worrier.

 

I was so glad it was sunny the days we were on vacation, for the glass was just alive with color.

Now, there were other sculptures in the park besides those of Chihuly, and there were three which are near and dear to my heart as I love horses. 

Here I am with the first horse; but wait......there's another one here....

Oh, my this horse is much larger!  But, wait........there's one even bigger here:

Now, that's a BIG horse!  Cast in bronze, 24' tall,  this horse is the artwork of Nina Akamu:

Absolutely stunning, and from a distance, he appears to be coming across the lawn.

There were many other sculptures in the  park, too.

Chihuly sculptures floating in the pond

Isn't this one different?  I love blue!

and red, and orange!

We were very lucky to have been visiting while the Chihuly exhibit was being featured.  This was a rare chance to see such beauty.

We were at the Frederik Meijer gardens on Monday; that night we spent in a National Forest campground which was very nice and secluded.

Tuesday morning, we packed up and headed out for Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park:

 The dunes are huge, the pictures don't really do them justice--and the scenery is wonderful.

 Apparently, when the sand drifts in too much, the park needs to use a bulldozer to clear the trails.  I was just happy the operator and machine didn't go over the edge of the dune as it is a very long drop to the lake.

 Here there are some dunes which are ok for people to climb---Ann & Joel are near the top of the dune and Carl is in the middle.

I made it about halfway up before they were already on their way back down.  The sand is so soft and clean.

Then, back over the Mackinac Bridge, leaving Michigan and entering Upper Michigan.

Our last attraction before leaving the UP and heading home was Kitchitikipi in Palm Books State Park.   Kitchitikipi is a lake which is spring-fed and crystal clear to the bottom.  You can see the springs on the bottom of the lake bubbling up and moving the sand from the self-guided raft provided for the purpose.  Joel manned the raft for us:

Very difficult to see what I mean from this photo, but this is the bottom of the lake, 40' deep with bubbling springs.  We met a wonderful couple from Michigan on the raft and had a nice chat with them before parting and going our own separate ways.  We exchanged email addresses (and my blog address, too) so I hope we can stay in touch.  Sure is fun to meet new friends.

From Kitchitikipi, we made it home by 7PM on Tuesday night, and though the trip was great, the homecoming was even better.

Just like Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz, ''There's no place like home."

And I don't own any ruby slippers, either!


I thought I'd end this post with a few more pictures of the stained glass windows from the cemeteries in Cleveland, Ohio.

That's it for 'How I Spent My Summer Vacation'.  Thanks for coming along!

Karen