DM's Birthday Present and Clan Tyke of Cascades Grand Rapids, Michigan Day 18-19 - June 20 and 21, 2002  Back   |   Next

DM's Birthday Present I awake sometime before dawn when the forest darkness turns gray. I awake thankful the day has begun and there is enough light to break camp. And then something different happens. I remember that today is my birthday. Twenty-six summers old. And I read a note Dan Miller packed for me that said: "Do not open until B-day." And then this forgotten forest doesn't seem so forlorn. After packing and a hot cup of Earl Gray, I ride north to Saranac and then west to Cascade, home of the Tykes, near Grand Rapids. Tubing on Thornapple River. I'm on the tube and my cousin Becky Bueche is at the helm. Clan Tyke of Cascades It is nearly 2 PM, my odometer reads, 1, 054 miles, and the thermometer says it the hottest day of the journey at 98 degrees F. Aunt Dottie and my cousin Becky give me root beer, and my Uncle Charlie, patriarch of Clan Tyke, invites me into the cold pool. Here in Grand Rapids I hope to stay until July 5th, so that I can allow my legs to rest, clean my gear, read some books (and not have to carry them anymore), as well as figure out what gear I don't really need. My cousin Becky introduces me to her children, Brittany, "Breezy" Breanna, and Chase. Brittany and Breanna play basketball. Brittany, a 5'6 eighth grader, is nicknamed "White Chocolate" by her teammates for her ball court talent. Not only playing for her local Cascades team, she does a long commute to Detroit three times a week to practice for the National Championships, which will take place in Tennessee in early July. Cousin Becky and her son Chase   Brittany and Breanna on the Tube Her sister Breezy, though a skilled basketball player as well, already has a passion for politics, and it is refreshing to see someone so young to be so interested about government service and the old Republic. Chase is a man of few words, though expresses volumes on the field of glory as a starting offensive and defensive lineman for his football team.