Weathered: Amish Farms & Back Roads (Road Trip Day 83)

Gary and Joan picked us up today to treat us to lunch and take us on a tour of backroads in the area. Gary’s mom, Jane, was my mom’s sister. We are cousins. Gary and Joan have been married for over 40 years and used to visit my folks often.

Gary will be seventy-seven this year and Joan will be seventy. Gary died in 2021 (I think I have the year right!) and they were able to bring him back to life. Fortunately, he was in the hospital which permitted them to save him. Joan shared the doctors said if Gary had been anywhere except the hospital he would have been gone for good. This episode gave them a deep appreciation and desire to make the most of the days they have together.

Joan and Gary do backroad tours on a regular basis. Some weeks they will go every day for a drive. It is often the spur of the moment. Instead of taking a nap, they will go for a ride. The drives help to keep them active.

Lunch was at The Lone Ranger Café in Reading, Michigan. Prices and food were very good! Gary and Joe had omelets, while Joan and I ate burgers.

Then it was off to tour local dirt roads to view Amish farms in the southwestern area of Michigan with a stop on the back road that has a marker for the spot where the state lines of Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan merge.

I took lots of photos. Joan is a gifted photographer and usually shares a photo or two from their drives on Facebook. Over the years she has taken some of my favorite photos of barns.

In this area there are a few things in common to distinguish the Amish homes and farms from the English (that is the name Amish assign to non-Amish people) homes and farms. This is what I gleaned from today’s drive:

Laundry. The Amish hang their clean clothes out to drive. Monday (or maybe everyday) appears to be wash day. Almost every home had laundry out to dry. The hanging laundry is of Amish clothing.
Bird Houses. Most of the Amish farms had at least several birdhouses as you will see in the photos. Particularly Gourd Birdhouses.
No cars or tractors in their yards or near the barns. Instead, you may see a wagon or manual farm implements.
All the homes and barns we saw today were white. Which makes sense as the Amish are interested in the good of people and animals and not in outer appearance as a measure of someone’s worth or value.
Horses. The Amish horses are well cared for and among some of the most beautiful animals I have ever seen.
Gardens are full of flowers and vegetables. Beautiful gardens.

· A big crop for the Amish farmers in this area – pumpkins! Gary and Joan shared they have been here during the harvest, and they enjoyed watching. The pumpkins are sorted in a local barn and then semis come in and haul the pumpkins out to be sold.

The first photos I will share today were taken by Joan. The silo with a red and white top caught her eye. You can see a dirt road in the same photo.