MICHIGAN!!!!

WELCOME HOME

USA

We had a great time in Canada, but isn't it always great to be home?

DeTour Village Harbor

Upper Peninsula, MI

Wednesday 8^th August

We checked back in to the USA using the app CBP Roam where you face time with Customs on your phone.  

Pretty sunset in Detour.

Cruising Lake Huron

Straits State Harbor

Mackinaw City, MI

8- 23^st August

Mackinac Bridge that connects lower Michigan to the Upper Peninsula.

We plan to stay here awhile, rent a car and visit the area. Alan has to pick up a windlass anchor system and replace the old one. We also need to re-provision. We plan to visit friends in the area as well as wait on some friends from home to join us on our cruise through the north part of Michigan.

We were not bored.  Concerts on Tuesday and Saturday nights.

Fireworks every Friday night.

Mackinaw or Mackinac? Which is it? Why?

The French occupied the area before the British and spelled it Mackinac even though they pronounced it Mackinaw. The British spelled it the way it sounded. Over time the city kept the “aw” spelling while the bridge, straits, and island cling to the “ac” spelling. No matter how it is spelled, it is always pronounced Mackinaw.

OUR EXCURSIONS

Mackinac Island

On Mackinac Island, the horse is king! There are no motorized vehicles. Horse drawn carriages carry equipment, luggage, food and drink as well as people. Horses are shipped back to Michigan in the Winter because it is easier to feed them there than haul their food to the island. Then, in the Spring, up to 500 horses are brought back to the island as they are needed.

Alan and I and good friends form home,  Mark and Mary Alice, took a carriage tour to explore Mackinac.

Gaylan was our coachman and entertaining tour guide.  Izzo and Atlas were our team and did all the work.

Horses may be the major mode of transportation, but bicycles are second.  Alan and I biked 8 miles around the island on our first trip there.  During our bike trip around the shore, we found lots of Cairns, or stacked rocks.  Cairns are often used as landmarks to mark trails and such.  Other times people use them as a form of meditation.  They can be beautiful, but in the US, the national parks service forbids disrupting or moving any rocks within the park.  It is argued that stacking rocks often disturbs the natural order of nature.

Cairns.  The water was clear and the day beautiful.

Alan stopping to wait on me because I was always stopping to take pictures.

The Arch

After biking around the island we biked inland to get a better view.  And what a view!

The Little Stone Church

The Grand Hotel

Inside the Grand.

The Carriage House dining room at the Iriquois. Lunch with Herb from Phanthom (on the left), and Karen & Ken from Island Girl.

The Woods for dinner. A fine hunting lodge with 5-star dining operated by the Grand Hotel.

The Woods dining room

Mark and Alan waiting on their brides and anticipating dinner.

I don't know how many t-shirt or fudge shops there are on the island, but it is believed that over 10,000 pounds of fudge leave the island every day.  So much that the islanders call tourist "fudgies."

Traverse City

It's Wineries and Sand Dunes

Alan is from Michigan.  While we were waiting on boat parts to arrive, we rented a car and drove to Traverse City for a few days to stay with our good friends Joel and Debbie. What a treat!

Mackinac Island has nothing on Debbie & Joel.  What a feast for the eyes and soul.

Alan & Debbie getting some apricots at a serve yourself roadside stand.

Lunch in Leland.

View from Sleeping Bear National Park.

Very large sand dunes on Lake Michigan shore.

Fresh cherry cheese cake when we got back to Joel and Debbie's after a very busy day.

The next day we toured 3 fine wineries.  They are taking over the cherry orchards.

Les Cheneaux Islands

Herb & Alan admiring a Century Resorter.

Cross City

Somewhere between Harbor Springs and Mackinaw City along the shore.

This quaint little cross roads has metal sculptures, 

and old farm equipment.

. . . and a very old log and stone Inn

with a very rustic interior

and exterior whimsical gardens

with pretty flowers and our very good friends who flew north to visit.

AGAWA CANYON TRAIN TOUR

Northern Canada

Because of non-navigable boating weather, we decide to take a train ride.  Back to Canada.

to see the canyon 

and pretty scenery.

I love pretty paths

and places to sit.

CRUISING AGAIN

Charlevoix, MI

24 August, Friday

Finally we are able to take Sea Jamm south.  Weather was suppose to be 1-2 foot waves, but when we were on our way, they turned into 3-5 feet!  

We made it though.

Charlevoix is a perfect harbor town with many fine shops and restaurants.  We had to say goodbye to Mark and Mary Alice who hired a driver to take them to Traverse City to catch their flight home.  We were unable to take Sea Jamm because of the high winds predicted for the next day.

A beautiful harbor and marina. You can see the clouds rolling in.

Mushroom houses.

Finally on Sunday we continued south on the only decent weather day for several days. And it sounds like that is the way it will be for the rest of August.  We made it to 

Franfort, MI

26th August -

Sunday -

Patriotism

Frankfort beach.  Not a good day for the beach.

Lake Michigan can be unpredictable and rough.  In September travel days will be even less.  That is fine as long as we make it to Chicago by mid-September.  

We will leave you here in Frankfort.  Looks like we won't travel until Thursday.  Then after that the next travel day is Sunday.  Eventually . . .  we will let you know.

The view from our stern.  Going to rain tonight and be windy tomorrow.  We'll be here another day.