Weekend Getaway: Holland/Ludington Part 2

Catch part one here.

Around 5:00 we packed up and headed to Ludington to our bed and breakfast. Check-in was between 5 and 7 so we would get there just in time. The view up Lake Shore Drive was scenic. G and I are house hunters obsessed so every time we saw a For Sale sign G would yell out the address and I would add it to my notes in my phone. We looked the houses up later and holy smokes. Check this house out. It's my dream house. Now I just need $1.9 million.

We got to Ludington around 6 and checked into our bed and breakfast. The owners were so friendly and accommodating. They gave us a tour of the house and the history of the Cartier house. 

Fun facts: It was built in the 1800s and when looking at old pictures of the house we realized the claw foot tub in the room we stayed in was exactly the same! Also, Antoine Cartier was the mayor of Ludington and president of the bank. When the bank lost money Antoine personally paid everyone back. His son built a house right next store to his dad and it was larger and grander. It is a bed and breakfast as well.

Our room was large and romantic. We had the house's original master bedroom so the bathroom is original to the house which was cool. 

We got ready and sat in the courtyard with a glass of wine to unwind.

Then we walked the two blocks into town for dinner. We started at Blu Moon for drinks and an appetizer. We had this amazing red pepper feta dip with grilled naan. SO GOOD. We sat on the roof and it was busy and fun. G thought it was cramped and hot. 

After that we walked around the rest of the town exploring. It's a cute town, though it seems like it has seen hard times. I was expecting a town like Holland, South Haven or Saugatuck but it's more low key and casual. The bars were dark and the Irish pub had a wait so we ended up at Barley and Rye. It was a cute place with a nice patio. But the service wasn't great and my food was lacking. 

I had a taco bowl and there was a flavor in there that just did not mix. You win some, you lose some.

My marg was good and G had beer in a boot so there's that!

By this time it was 8 and we still had over an hour to sunset and a mile walk to the beach. We had been up early, had walked over 8 miles and had been in the sun all afternoon and we were beat. We walked back to the b and b and were asleep by 9. Ha!

The next morning we walked down to a fancy breakfast complete with a candle and table linens. There were tables for two couples and one table for one couple. We slept in this day so the only table left was for one couple so we sat there. It was nice, but I was hoping for the true bed and breakfast experience. 

We started with fresh fruit in yogurt and french pressed coffee. Ahh-mazing.

Then we had the main course of sausage, fruit and a peach french toast with cream cheese. It was delicious. G and I both loved it so much. THE BEST.

After breakfast we grabbed another cup of coffee and headed outside. There was another couple already sitting there and we asked if we could join them. we talked to them for over an hour and I finally got my bed and breakfast experience. They were celebrating 34 years of marriage. Lived in Grand Rapids. They shared their favorite restaurants and we told them ours. He is a neuro psychologist which was really interesting to learn about. They have two kids and have lived in Miami, Southern California, Chicago and now Grand Rpaids. We asked for their best marriage advice and they said not to take life too seriously and keep laughing together.

Around 10 we said our good byes and changed into our bathing suits for another beach day. A vendor had told me to drive toward the State park and park on the side of the road where we saw other cars. So we did and it did not disappoint. We had to walk down a sand dune and then we had miles of Lake Michigan shoreline all to ourselves!

Simply incredible. We walked a bit down the beach and found our spot. We had a big breakfast and brought our cooler and snacks so we could spend the whole day here. The water was a bit rougher and our first time out in the water with our tubes we both flipped over and got soaked. The water was a bit numbing, but then you get used to it. 

Our day consisted of sipping Chardonnay and laying in our tubes with our feet in the water. I read a book and when we got hot we would swim for a bit and then head back to our tubes. It was perfection. We had the whole beach to ourselves for a good couple hours. And when people did join us they were super friendly and always craving privacy so they would walk furhter down the beach. It was the perfect afternoon and I didn't want it to end.

Time flies on vacation though. Soon enough it was around 5:00 and we headed back to the bed and breakfast. We made reservations at PM Steamers and went back to our room to get ready for dinner.

PM Steamers was actually recommended by the inn keepers at bed and breakfast and it was a really fun restaurant. We sat right on the harbor overlooking all the boats including the SS Beaver which had just come to port. It was so huge!

We were starving after not having a proper meal in over 8 hours so we started off sharing the asparagus soup and it was delicious.

G got ribs and I had the seafood pasta with shrimp, scallops and lobster. It was to die. 

We almost never get dessert but we wanted to make it to sunset so we shared a Baileys and ice cream drink that was almost too good.

Then we walked around the harbor and got a better view of all the boats.

How funny is this boat It is named Sorry Kids)?

Finally we headed over to the public beach to catch sunset. The clouds starting rolling in fast, but I think we still caught a pretty great sunset.

Sunday it stormed all night which was so romantic. In the morning we went down and enjoyed another lovely breakfast. This time we were seated with a girl and she had quite the story. Separated, but still living with her husband and two adult kids. Her boyfriend had just left earlier that morning to work. Oh and he is 15 years younger than her. I'm not judging you guys. It was fascinating hearing her life story. 

This breakfast was so good I forgot to take a picture. It started with fruit and granola and then we had fruit and a cheesy egg and ham bake. YUM. More french pressed coffee and I'm a fan. It was still raining so we couldn't enjoy the outside area. We got ready for the day and were going to try Jamesport Brewery, but they didn't open for another 30 minutes and since it was raining G didn't want to hit the beach so we went home. I hate when vacations end. I did not want to leave.

But we picked up Manny and he had a ball. He played with his friends and even got to go to a dog park. We gave the pups birthday cake and it was a hit. We were home around 3 and it was nice to have some time to rest up and relax before another work week. And just like that vacation was over. But it was amazing and I had fun recapping it. 

Happy Thursday friends!