The Irish Hills

I cannot remember the last time I was up to the Irish Hills of Michigan for a visit.  As a kid, we vacationed mostly on Wamplers Lake where my mom's brother, Uncle Phil & Aunt Bessie had a place.  One of the last vacations I remember, my sister Barb was still alive and she has been gone since 1998.

Many of my relatives now have places in the Irish Hills.  Some are on Wamplers Lake; another is on Stony Lake, and this weekend I was with friends from work on Devils Lake.  The view of a lake on a fall morning is gorgeous! (Okay, a view of a lake on any day is too!)  I love the smell of wood and leaves burning and can't get enough of the crunchy sound as we walked around dreaming what was inside each cottage.  I drove around the lake as I left and took the scenic route towards Hayes State Park to see if I could remember where any of my cousin's cottages were.

The landscape was filled with farms, pumpkins, lakes and trees.  There was still alot of color mixed in with a lot of bareness.  I found my way to Suzie & Terry's place.  They were working in the yard.  I met their beautiful puppy Chloe.  After a nice visit and armed with a new route to Wamplers, I was on the road again.

I saw the cottage that my cousins Tom & Lori would rent and where I last stayed with when my kids were little - that was years ago.  I thought of my Haylee as the big hill of Hayes State Park came into view.  I remember taking a road trip once a week there with a van load of kids.  We'd pack food for the day and swim, climb, and visit all who were vacationing that week.  Those were fun times!

The memories of Irish Hills are good.  Family, friends, food, and fellowship...that's life!