Detroit Part 2

The Apple store in Columbus was located in a strange, brand new outdoor mall. The mall was made to look like a small town, with quaint looking facades over all the stores. It was kind of like Disney World. I arrived a little before 10 in the morning and discovered that I would not be allowed to see the resident iPhone "genius" until 1:40pm. With plenty of time to kill, I secured all my riding gear on my bike, bought a ticket to Transformers 2 on IMAX and picked up some breakfast. It was a great movie-going experience. As one of only three people in the whole theater I spread my breakfast over the three seats on either side of me and had a feast! The movie was over with about 45 minutes to go until my meeting with the "genius." Conveniently, the mall had WiFi so I whipped out my mini laptop and did some email. 45 minutes later the meeting with the "genius" turned out to be bitter sweet. Bitter because it cost $200 for a replacement device but sweet because my phone, GPS and portable blogging tool was back in working order. I got out of there as quickly as I could and headed north, my aim set on East Harbor State Park on the shore of Lake Erie just outside of Sandusky. The campground was crowded and the sites were way too close to one another. It was almost like a parking lot with thin grass strips between each spot. There were a lot of noisy kids and I had to sleep with my ear plugs in once again. In the morning the "volunteer in park" (VIP) came by to pick up my tag. We got to chatting and he told me about a new Honda scooter he bought that goes 140mph. It sounded awesome, except for the fact that it was a scooter! He also had a good tip about camping at state parks. He said that most parks have what's called "primitive" or "walk-in" sites. You usually have to ask for these sites but apparently they are cheaper and much more private, perfect for a solo traveler on a motorcycle. Thanks for the tip, VIP! I left East Harbor early and made the short ride over to Cedar Point in Sandusky. The plan was to get on as many roller coasters as possible. I ended up riding five out of the six coasters I had hoped to ride. Millennium Force was by far my favorite. Unfortunately, the Top Thrill Dragster broke down as I was waiting in line but I wasn't too heartbroken because I had been on an identical version of that ride at Great Adventure in New Jersey. Check out my Sandusky post for slightly more info on the Cedar Point visit. I left Cedar Point around 3:30 and headed for Maumee Bay State Park, on the shore of lake Erie outside of Toledo. At the camp store I asked for the quietest site they had and was rewarded with a remote site nearly out of view and earshot of all the other campers. It was beginning to rain so I unfolded my tarp for the first time. Using the tar-infused string lent to me by Pete and G (thanks, guys!), I set up the tarp over the picnic table and whipped up a delicious freeze dried stew while staying nice and dry. In the morning it was still raining so I hung out under the tarp waiting for the rain to stop so that I wouldn't have to pack up all my gear while it was soaking wet. A half and hour before the 1pm check out time it was still pouring so I shook out the tent as best I could and rolled it up under the tarp. The tarp was the last item I packed. Suited up in full rain gear, I took off on the short ride to Detroit. I got in to the city a bit early so I stopped by a Starbucks where I met Brian, a Sears Repairman and motorcyclist. It turns out Brian rides a BMW R1200S, very cool! He told me about a bike gathering that goes on nearly every night on Main Street in nearby Royal Oak. He invited me to come by and check it out, he'd be hanging out near the Starbucks. Brian really likes Starbucks! We finished our coffees, Brian jumped in his Sears van, and I onto my bike to Simone and Max's house. Don't touch that browser bar, Detroit Part 3 is coming up after the break.