2021 Up North Travel Journal
If you noticed, I previously missed a day of blogging one week, because I took a vacation with my family! We went “up north” Now before we dive into my travel journal, let’s get something clear. I know many people don’t know what the significance of an “ up north” vacation is. Although, where I live it’s common knowledge I know some people are not as familiar.
In the Midwest, when someone says they’re going “up north,” everyone has a general sense of what that means. It doesn’t matter which town or lake because in the Midwest “up north” is less about geography and more about what you do once you arrive.
It’s just known that “going up north” includes days spent on one of our beautiful lakes, camping in the woods, fishing on a river, and simply taking in all of the natural beauty too.
So, it’s a very common thing but wanted to clear that up beforehand
Huge shout out to my grandparents as they paid for everything to rent the house. My grandma did the cooking for each meal. Without them, this vacation wouldn’t have happened. Also not exactly sure if they read my blog, but who knows.
Saturday | June 26, 2021 | Arriving
This was the day when we would arrive later on in the day. First, in the morning, we packed pretty much all the way until lunch. After that, we left.
My brother and I rode in a separate car than my sisters and parents, which was very fun. We jammed to music and it was so exciting. It rained really hard though when we were driving so that was not really helpful.
We stopped at the grocery store in a nearby town since we had to get ice. After that, we headed to the lake house.
When my brother and I arrived at the house we were very surprised to notice we were the first ones there and I don’t think that has happened before.
When our parents arrived in the other car, they called my grandparents to see how close they were to arrive. Only to find out they had not even left their house.
So we went in and unpacked and waited an hour and a half until the others arrived.
After that, it eventually started to get late and it wasn’t the best weather so we just hung out in the house and eventually went to bed.
Sunday | June 27, 2021 | Too Close
The next day we woke up and my grandma made pancakes for breakfast and for lunch she made Mac n cheese.
In the afternoon, my brother and I went to the library so he could test the Wi-Fi there since he would work the next day from his car at the library since the Wi-Fi in the lake house was not very reliable.
Later, my dad and I went kayaking and we got a little too close to some loons. I screamed when I realized how close they were. I did get a good photo though! We also saw some turtles. Later, I went on the paddleboard for a while which was fun!
Monday | June 28, 2021 | Tubing
This was the day we went tubing since my uncle came with his boat. It was such an amazing time. In fact, I had my GoPro attached to my lifejacket when I went tubing and I recorded a video as we went. The video is in my Youtube video that I made. I put my video footage into one huge travel video. I went tubing multiple times this day and each time it was so much fun, especially since when we went through choppy waters, I bounced and went airborne for seconds.
Tuesday | June 29, 2021 | Bingo
We played bingo in the afternoon since it was not great weather. My entire family played and there were prizes for winning! I received a head massager and lipstick for my prize. I also spent this day recording another video for my youtube channel which was recently.
Wednesday | June 30, 2021 | Tubing, Eagle & Rocks
I had a few goals to complete before I left. One of them was to get a photo of the eagle we have seen. So most of my day I sat in my pink chair watching for the eagle which takes longer than you would think. I did get a photo. We also went tubing some more.
In the evening, we painted rocks. My aunt provided the paint and rocks for us which was super cool since I ended up painting some unique designs.
Thursday | July 1, 2021 | Sunburned, Kayak & Eagle
I was not exactly really looking for the eagle but I found it perched on a tree on the edge of the water on one side of the lake. It was a perfect photo opportunity. So of course I could not pass it up. However, I had to get to the tree it was perched on. So my dad took the kayak, I took my camera and he paddled me out there just so I could get a closer photo (thanks dad).
Eventually, sometime during the day, I realized I was sunburned. I promised to put sunscreen on but somehow my legs got sunburned and soon my arms and nose were sunburned too. So in case, no one has told you recently: you all should use sunscreen because it sure does hurt to get sunburned.
Friday | July 2, 2021 | Sunrise & Lake
One of the things I wanted to accomplish was to see the sunrise over the lake. So at 4:45 in the morning, I got up and went out to see the sunrise, and let me tell you it was breathtaking. It was like a painting. The mist was gliding over the lake. I don’t think I can describe it enough. You had to be there. However, I will insert a photo!
Saturday | July 3, 2021 | Leaving
We got up and we started packing. It was interesting since we originally brought two cars but my brother had to leave a few days earlier for work so we were down to one car. On the way, we stopped at a fire lookout tower. It had 132 steps. The view was mostly trees and a farm but it was fun to climb to the top!
So that was my week up north! It was a very fun time! Since my vacation, I have uploaded more podcasts episodes! The most recent one being about theatre! So check it out below or access my podcast page here!
