I spent my formative years in Ludington. It was a magical place and time. We used to call Stearns Park (the beach park) "G-Park" or G for short. It was short for Giraffe park because that's where we went to "neck." The sculpture garden reminds me of my band teacher and I wonder if his memory had some influence in its construction. He was one of the most legendary people I have ever met. He was a frogman in the Pacific Theatre during the Second World War, and heard the most horrible sounds, yet when the war ended, he dedicated the rest of his life making beautiful, uplifting music. He required us to march in the Memorial Day Parade, but we Wanted to march for him! He was all about paying tribute for the Veterans. We met so many heroes at the Ceremony at Stearns, some from the First World War. I've not made it back to Ludington in decades, but if i ever do, a visit to his memorial is first on my list.
We just spent six days in Ludington at the State Park campground. Absolutely beautiful ❤️ Lake Michigan beaches and dunes are spectacular! We also drove to town to see the S. S. Badger leave for Wisconsin.
Something you do that I really like is you pause your camera, just for a split second, on 'storyboards' and plaques so we can freeze-frame and read them if we choose. This was how I learned today that salmon were transplanted from the West Coast to Michigan and thrived there, adding a lot to the local economy (and local barbecue grills too, I'm sure). And that horses had to pull barges of lumber into the water to get to big ships that couldn't come closer because of the shallow water. Plus the heroic story of a Medal of Honor recipient (it would make a good movie!) Thanks!
🙋♀️Hello Russ! Beautiful blue sky. Beautiful blue lake. I loved the bronze picture with the ship wheels on either end. The bronze fish was neat too! So clean looking along the beach with the huge white stones as border. Love the inviting feeling the benches & picnic tables give. Exciting seeing that huge Ferry come in. Loved hearing the horn blow. Even this town omits a peaceful quiet feeling. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Hope you get a good nights rest.
Thanks for sharing your travels and beautiful scenery of America. I am out west now in Las Vegas but I used to live in Michigan and my family would travel up to Northern Michigan every spring to go camping. This brings back childhood memories.
If you decide to come back, you missed the bulk of the sculpture park, down by where the Badger docks. And the City Park is at the west end of the downtown district, on the north side of the Avenue just past where the boulevard starts. Be surenalso to take some of the trails at the State Park if you can. There are *MILES* of gorgeous trails and another lighthouse.
Welcome to Michigan, Russ! The west coast of Michigan is stunning and sand dune covered its whole distance from Chicago to the Big Mac Bridge. Born in Detroit I've had summer vacations there my whole life, and nothing compares to watching the sunset in the summer on Lake Michigan.... Thanks for coming, Mark
Russ, if you like Michigan just wait until the fall colors on the leaves come in. It happens mid September to late October depending upon what of the state. The earliest it starts is in the UP and the latest it at the state border for Ohio and Indiana. The colors are spectacular. You should come back sometime during the fall season. Everything is less crowded because kids tend to back in school.
Ludington State Park,,,,,Great Great state park,,,,My kids loved that place they never got bored,,,,5 star place,,,,a natural lazy river floats you into lake Michigan you get in by the damn
Russ if your around the UP OF MICHIGAN on September the tenth and eleventh there’s going to be antique tractor parade across the Mackinaw bridge with a lot of tractors 🚜 which is neat to see
1:19 Is that a Ford Model A parked at the curb on the right? Nice. 7:31 Rainbow. Should have looked for the pot of gold. Saw what you did there at the dam, Russ--stairs down, gently sloped pathway back up. Lol. The crickets at that last storyboard were most soothing. Stopping here was a good choice, Russ, thank you.
Hope you stop in Manistee to tour the SS City of Milwaukee permanently docked there. A much older ferry, it is now partly restored and a B&B and event venue. I rode that one across the lake also years ago.
Wow what a fun to do with the kids or grandkids I know a lot of homeschool families watch this channel and they research theses lakes and all the mom and pop stores and restaurants these lakes provide to all theses cities
Russ, the sculpture park is waterfront park , east of the lake Michigan along filer rd at rath/roberts area. About 1/2 mile east of where you saw the ferry come in. Today the park hosted a free Jimmy Buffet tribute band concert, drew about 2800. That's also one of the best spots to watch the ferry come and gol I hope you had a chance to visit the lake Michigan beach house at the state park and climb to the upstairs part.
How are winter roads there? Do you get snowed in a lot to where you can't get to where you need to go in Winter, like to the stores or Dr. appts, etc...?
@@marywegrzyn506 We don’t really get as much snow as people think. They keep the roads pretty clean. Almost never when you can’t get where you want to.
I'm about that far east also, right in the middle of Custer. Beautiful area around here. And yes, a lot less snow than people might guess. I haven't had to fire up the snowblower for three winters now.
I have taken that ferry since I was a kid long time ago. It’s a great ride, but a little pricey with car. But if you want to skip driving Chicago, it’s perfect. Recommend it to anyone
Russ a little south of you is Silver Lake State Park, an ORV riding area, large dunes and beach all open to the off road adventure. also Mac Woods dune tours and Silver Lake.
I’m from Ludington now live in Holland. I love that you covered The state park. You probably didn’t know but Ludington state park is the hardest park to camp at in Michigan and top 10 in nation. Come back sometime and camp it won’t take ya long to figuire out why😀
Just wanted to make a note you keep saying Madison county we are Mason County in beautiful Ludington Michigan. I live roughly 15 miles from Ludington & work in Ludington. I live in tiny Scottville, Michigan.
Loved the toot toot from that HUGE ferry! I think that's the East side of Lake Michigan, but I keep hearing you say your traveling up the West side...I'm looking at Google maps. Now I finally know what UP is. Upper Peninsula, your almost there. Glad you're making the journey, enjoy the green grass & trees and tweety birds...
My family and I took the badger over to Wisconsin. We drove up to Dorr county. That's a charming place to visit! On our way back to ludington We went down to the theater room and the waves made me feel sick so we went outside on the deck and the smell of that coal kinda made me feel more sick. But it was a nice experience anyway. 🙂
The SS Badger is the last of the historic coal fired car ferries still in service. Called car ferries because they were designed to carry railroad cars! I rode it as a young girl to Milwaukee to visit cousins when it was new. The State gave it a special permit to continue burning coal because it would have cost too much to convert to diesel.
Russ, the ship travels at a top speed and makes the 68-nautical-mile (78 mi; 126 km) trip three times daily from each side of the lake during the peak of its operational schedule. Lake Express is able to cross the lake in two and a half hours.
I stayed there with some friends years ago. They rode their bikes from Ludington to the state park. I made it a block and had to turn around. So I drove to the park and hiked to the light house and climbed to the top. But I can't ride a bike my chest hurts to much. Don't figure.
To the content creator, if you like the black and white pictures, drive about 20 minutes north to Manistee, and have some food at the Bungalow, their tables are covered in old photos from logging days.
Hello Russ, what a HUGE ferry ship...WOW!! I have been to Ludington but have never seen the ferry. Now it's onto Manistee and it's got a nice beach and park area. Also a nice riverwalk and downtown area. Check out Big Al's Pizza. Small town USA!
Hey Russ, we were just in Holland and Ludington and we are non residents and had to pay $34 for a state park pass for the year. Just curious ? You mention you only paid $17. We loved it there and hope to go back again soon as our trip got shorten due to unforeseen circumstances.
Not Madison county…. It’s “ MASON “ county. But glad you visited Ludington. Sorry you didn’t walk out to the big say let’s light house at the state park it’s awesome you missed quite a sight. And you could have seen a much better view of Hamlin lake from the othe other side of the lake. If you come back let us know. We will help you out.
I noticed that he has recorded some of these visits fairly early in the morning. I can assure you that these places are a lot busier later in the day , and packed on nice weekends.
Hey, gosh you went so fast thru down town I didn't get to see any of the old stores or the older homes on down the road. I wish you could have slowed down a tiny bit n panned the Camera a bit on the way out to the dunes you were in a big rush to get to even though you said you had all day n time to kill, lol 😂
Yes you can go without a car. I once took a bicycle across, stayed overnight, and then came back the next day. They had special rates for that. They called it a "mini cruise".
Hi, what I like about your videos, is that you keep the camera in front, so we see everything. So many utubers think that we have to constantly look at their ugly faces all the time. Show us the scenery and comment in the background , please. ,
I spent my formative years in Ludington. It was a magical place and time. We used to call Stearns Park (the beach park) "G-Park" or G for short. It was short for Giraffe park because that's where we went to "neck."
The sculpture garden reminds me of my band teacher and I wonder if his memory had some influence in its construction. He was one of the most legendary people I have ever met. He was a frogman in the Pacific Theatre during the Second World War, and heard the most horrible sounds, yet when the war ended, he dedicated the rest of his life making beautiful, uplifting music. He required us to march in the Memorial Day Parade, but we Wanted to march for him! He was all about paying tribute for the Veterans. We met so many heroes at the Ceremony at Stearns, some from the First World War.
I've not made it back to Ludington in decades, but if i ever do, a visit to his memorial is first on my list.
Nice laid back vibe, classic👍🏻
We just spent six days in Ludington at the State Park campground. Absolutely beautiful ❤️ Lake Michigan beaches and dunes are spectacular! We also drove to town to see the S. S. Badger leave for Wisconsin.
Seeing that huge ferry come in was fun to watch 🛳! Very nice stop to relax 🤠
Loved the ferry horn blowing!
Thanks for sharing the 3rd coast and West Michigan. Look forward to your coverage of the U.P.
Very nice parks, enjoyed the boat coming into port. Love the horn. Thanks Russ!
wow - glad i banked this for my Sunday morning....wonderful as always Russ
Something you do that I really like is you pause your camera, just for a split second, on 'storyboards' and plaques so we can freeze-frame and read them if we choose. This was how I learned today that salmon were transplanted from the West Coast to Michigan and thrived there, adding a lot to the local economy (and local barbecue grills too, I'm sure). And that horses had to pull barges of lumber into the water to get to big ships that couldn't come closer because of the shallow water. Plus the heroic story of a Medal of Honor recipient (it would make a good movie!) Thanks!
🙋♀️Hello Russ! Beautiful blue sky. Beautiful blue lake. I loved the bronze picture with the ship wheels on either end. The bronze fish was neat too! So clean looking along the beach with the huge white stones as border. Love the inviting feeling the benches & picnic tables give. Exciting seeing that huge Ferry come in. Loved hearing the horn blow. Even this town omits a peaceful quiet feeling. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Hope you get a good nights rest.
I've never been to Michigan, but this video made me realize that it is a beautiful and interesting state.
Looks nice and cool and WET up there. Loved hearing the birds in the park.
Thanks for sharing your travels and beautiful scenery of America. I am out west now in Las Vegas but I used to live in Michigan and my family would travel up to Northern Michigan every spring to go camping. This brings back childhood memories.
Cool! This was a really nice place. Thanks, Russ. 😊
Great lakes and dam with nice fishing area sir njoy the tour and be safe sir.God bless you sir ❤❤❤👍👍👍
The boat horn was worth the wait. Thanks, Russ
Great shot of sunset!!
Love Ludington ❤️
Hi Russ, I enjoy these videos of all your travels....keep it up!
Family is from Ludington. Brought back a ton of memories, stories and the like. Still have relatives there carrying on the family business!
If you decide to come back, you missed the bulk of the sculpture park, down by where the Badger docks. And the City Park is at the west end of the downtown district, on the north side of the Avenue just past where the boulevard starts. Be surenalso to take some of the trails at the State Park if you can. There are *MILES* of gorgeous trails and another lighthouse.
Beautiful Place
👋 Hi there Russ welcome to Michigan there are a lot of things to do and see in our amazing state from Larry in the bottom of Michigan
Great video of the great lakes. Roadrunner Rich
Welcome to Michigan, Russ!
The west coast of Michigan is stunning and sand dune covered its whole distance from Chicago to the Big Mac
Bridge.
Born in Detroit I've had summer vacations there my whole life, and nothing compares to watching the sunset in the summer on Lake Michigan....
Thanks for coming, Mark
Russ, if you like Michigan just wait until the fall colors on the leaves come in. It happens mid September to late October depending upon what of the state. The earliest it starts is in the UP and the latest it at the state border for Ohio and Indiana. The colors are spectacular. You should come back sometime during the fall season. Everything is less crowded because kids tend to back in school.
Thank you for sharing. What a quaint town. The ferry ride would be fun. Lake Michigan and the cities along its shores have so much to offer!
Russ you should be at the dock they turn it around to unload . Great video! Welcome to the neighborhood.
Yes, the big show at the docks when the ferry unloads and then loads up for a crossing is worth seeing, too bad that was not in the video.
@@jwagnermail my little bro works as fireman on it. Always fun to watch.
Ludington State Park,,,,,Great Great state park,,,,My kids loved that place they never got bored,,,,5 star place,,,,a natural lazy river floats you into lake Michigan you get in by the damn
Ludington is so beautiful. Great beach, State Park. Old Hamlin for breakfast and Scottys for dinner.
We Love RVerTV - Best TV On UA-cam. Thank you Russ.
Russ, we are finally getting rain in AZ. Well at least in the PHX area. But it sure is muggy.
you bypassed Silver Lake and the Dunes.We use to go there every summer.
That’s what I said! ❤️
He flies like crazy, lol
Russ if your around the UP OF MICHIGAN on September the tenth and eleventh there’s going to be antique tractor parade across the Mackinaw bridge with a lot of tractors 🚜 which is neat to see
👍👍 One big classic ferry. Nice!
Beautiful!!! Safe travels!!!
The SSBadger ferry ride is awesome
1:19 Is that a Ford Model A parked at the curb on the right? Nice.
7:31 Rainbow. Should have looked for the pot of gold.
Saw what you did there at the dam, Russ--stairs down, gently sloped pathway back up. Lol.
The crickets at that last storyboard were most soothing. Stopping here was a good choice, Russ, thank you.
Hey Russ!!! "BEAUTIFUL " Sun&Water!!! (rain and flooding in Arizona) Be Safe!!!
I don't know if you got out and walked around the dunes, but the sand there is so unique that it squeaks when you walk on it!
Ludington is my favorite state park .
There are a lot of trails that you can run your ATV down supper ones in the UP
Mason County.
Mason 😀
Great view of the parks and beaches.
Hope you stop in Manistee to tour the SS City of Milwaukee permanently docked there. A much older ferry, it is now partly restored and a B&B and event venue. I rode that one across the lake also years ago.
Wow what a fun to do with the kids or grandkids I know a lot of homeschool families watch this channel and they research theses lakes and all the mom and pop stores and restaurants these lakes provide to all theses cities
Russ, the sculpture park is waterfront park , east of the lake Michigan along filer rd at rath/roberts area. About 1/2 mile east of where you saw the ferry come in. Today the park hosted a free Jimmy Buffet tribute band concert, drew about 2800. That's also one of the best spots to watch the ferry come and gol I hope you had a chance to visit the lake Michigan beach house at the state park and climb to the upstairs part.
We live just 10 miles east of Ludington and there’s lots to see welcome
How are winter roads there? Do you get snowed in a lot to where you can't get to where you need to go in Winter, like to the stores or Dr. appts, etc...?
@@marywegrzyn506 We don’t really get as much snow as people think. They keep the roads pretty clean. Almost never when you can’t get where you want to.
I'm about that far east also, right in the middle of Custer. Beautiful area around here. And yes, a lot less snow than people might guess. I haven't had to fire up the snowblower for three winters now.
Howdy Russ!
Thank you!
I have taken that ferry since I was a kid long time ago. It’s a great ride, but a little pricey with car. But if you want to skip driving Chicago, it’s perfect. Recommend it to anyone
Headed north you must go up 119 (tunnel of trees) out of Petoskey to cross village !!! Nice scenic route!
Russ a little south of you is Silver Lake State Park, an ORV riding area, large dunes and beach all open to the off road adventure. also Mac Woods dune tours and Silver Lake.
I’m from Ludington now live in Holland. I love that you covered The state park. You probably didn’t know but Ludington state park is the hardest park to camp at in Michigan and top 10 in nation. Come back sometime and camp it won’t take ya long to figuire out why😀
Just wanted to make a note you keep saying Madison county we are Mason County in beautiful Ludington Michigan. I live roughly 15 miles from Ludington & work in Ludington. I live in tiny Scottville, Michigan.
Good video Russ,
Have a Blessed day.
😊👍❤
Thanks for sharing!
Loved the toot toot from that HUGE ferry! I think that's the East side of Lake Michigan, but I keep hearing you say your traveling up the West side...I'm looking at Google maps. Now I finally know what UP is. Upper Peninsula, your almost there. Glad you're making the journey, enjoy the green grass & trees and tweety birds...
The west side of the state of Michigan is the east side of Lake Michigan
My family and I took the badger over to Wisconsin. We drove up to Dorr county. That's a charming place to visit! On our way back to ludington
We went down to the theater room and the waves made me feel sick so we went outside on the deck and the smell of that coal kinda made me feel more sick. But it was a nice experience anyway. 🙂
Enjoyed the video Russ! Up ahead is Sleeping Bear Dunes Nat’l Lakeshore. Huge Dunes!
Heh Russ what was on the road at the 45 sec mark? Looked like another beautiful day, thanks Russ.
Great shots of Ludington! My friends have a cabin along the cliffs just North of there in Manistee.
My son took his semi on a ferry somewhere up in that area and it was over $300 it was the Badger
The SS Badger is the last of the historic coal fired car ferries still in service. Called car ferries because they were designed to carry railroad cars! I rode it as a young girl to Milwaukee to visit cousins when it was new. The State gave it a special permit to continue burning coal because it would have cost too much to convert to diesel.
Russ, the ship travels at a top speed and makes the 68-nautical-mile (78 mi; 126 km) trip three times daily from each side of the lake during the peak of its operational schedule. Lake Express is able to cross the lake in two and a half hours.
Robin and the 7 hoods could have relocated out there! What nice digs
Mason County, not Maddison.
Beautiful city park. Well done.
Thanks Steve, you said it for both of us.
I stayed there with some friends years ago. They rode their bikes from Ludington to the state park. I made it a block and had to turn around. So I drove to the park and hiked to the light house and climbed to the top. But I can't ride a bike my chest hurts to much. Don't figure.
Monsoon is going on big time in AZ. maybe the wildflowers will be better next spring just thought I'd let you know...safe journey's
Nice town.
You could have some fun it your van had a horn like the big boat
Okay, NOW you are really right in my back yard. Can’t believe you didn’t stop in. 🤣🤣🤣. Take Care and Toot-A-Loo 👋
Hi,
Thank you for a beautiful, informative video.
Just an FYI….Ludington is in Mason County, not Madison.
Check out silver lake in mears and mears Michigan you got to walk up to the top of the sand dunes but it's amazing
Fruitport Michigan near where you're at is amazing there's a bunch of vultures out there peach orchards apple orchards
To the content creator, if you like the black and white pictures, drive about 20 minutes north to Manistee, and have some food at the Bungalow, their tables are covered in old photos from logging days.
Hello Russ, what a HUGE ferry ship...WOW!! I have been to Ludington but have never seen the ferry. Now it's onto Manistee and it's got a nice beach and park area. Also a nice riverwalk and downtown area. Check out Big Al's Pizza. Small town USA!
Rambling Russ is missing the monsoon flooding back in the desert !!!!
Hey Russ, we were just in Holland and Ludington and we are non residents and had to pay $34 for a state park pass for the year. Just curious ? You mention you only paid $17. We loved it there and hope to go back again soon as our trip got shorten due to unforeseen circumstances.
Bet he got a senior rate - or did you buy two while Russ would only need one.
Best part! us Michigander's get it for $12 on our license plate's.
According to the gate attendant it is $17 for Michigan residents per vehicle and $34 for non resident per vehicle. No senior discount offered. ☹️
Not Madison county…. It’s “ MASON “ county. But glad you visited Ludington. Sorry you didn’t walk out to the big say let’s light house at the state park it’s awesome you missed quite a sight. And you could have seen a much better view of Hamlin lake from the othe other side of the lake. If you come back let us know. We will help you out.
Madison County..lol..all three signs said Mason county..Ludington is always beautiful..
Looks like Michigan has as many trees as we have in Georgia.
I walked across that dam at 9:00 this morning
Why didn't you go too Silver Lake State Park, You passed it on the way to Ludington. It is in Mears Mi the best Park
Oh no, you missed Silver Lake State Park and the sand dunes. It is halfway to Ludington.
Where are all the cars on the roads and all the people where you visit. Strange! Looks beautiful though.
I noticed that he has recorded some of these visits fairly early in the morning. I can assure you that these places are a lot busier later in the day , and packed on nice weekends.
Check out Mazy grave at the state park , I was there today Russ
:44 sec in. Was that a possum in the road?
Sadly, looks like an opossum was hit by a car but still alive as he was turning into town at 0:43.
Way back in the first decade in the 1900's they would bring in Native Americans on boats to the docks at Ludington, Michigan.
I'm not subscribed to this man, nor have I searched for anything like this, why am I seeing it? I already live in ludington. But okay.
Hey, gosh you went so fast thru down town I didn't get to see any of the old stores or the older homes on down the road. I wish you could have slowed down a tiny bit n panned the Camera a bit on the way out to the dunes you were in a big rush to get to even though you said you had all day n time to kill, lol 😂
Hi Russ. I would move to Michigan if they had a different governor.
go to nebraska, wyoming, or kansas as they are nice places Wisconsin is very nice also
Gretch the Wretch!!!
Mason county, not Madison. lol. Safe travels.
Hay f you need a place to stay come on over to Whiskey Creek Campground 25 min away from you.
Man I would need to go on a boat ride ,can you not take your car ,and jest do passage ? nice there now probably cold in the winter ?
Yes you can go without a car. I once took a bicycle across, stayed overnight, and then came back the next day. They had special rates for that. They called it a "mini cruise".
@@johnstudd4245 thank you
Mason county…. Not Madison County…. A nice presentation of the town.
its mason county
Hi, what I like about your videos, is that you keep the camera in front, so we see everything. So many utubers think that we have to constantly look at their ugly faces all the time. Show us the scenery and comment in the background , please.
,
thank you thats the goal. you see what I see
Read the signs correctly. MASON County NOT Madison
😅😅😅😅