Mackinac to Saugatuck

It was a beautiful morning on Mackinac Island, where my friend, Lynn, and I were staying at the Grand Hotel.

Fortunately, we weren’t in a hurry to leave and could enjoy the hotel and the island until the afternoon.

We went to the main dining room for another breakfast with just about anything you could possibly want. We were always greeted with a fresh, warm basket of baked breads and pastries.

Everything was delicious and the service spot on.

  

We took our time and packed up our room at the Grand Hotel, enjoying a little time on the balcony taking in the spectacular view for the last time.

After we checked out, we took the horse drawn carriage to downtown, where our luggage would be store while we walked around.

Downtown Mackinac Island is filled with shops for souvenirs, clothing, and fudge. I certainly couldn’t leave without taking some with me.

We decided on the Pink Pony, a well-known bar and grill, for lunch before we got on Shepler’s Ferry back to St. Ignace.

The ride was smooth and quick and we were soon in the car driving to Michigan’s lower peninsula. I had arranged for us, rather than take an eight-hour drive home, to stay over night in Saugatuck, about halfway in between.

The Hotel Saugatuck is a beautiful property on the Kalamazoo River, just a few minutes from the shoreline of Lake Michigan.

It’s a bed & breakfast with attention to luxurious details. In addition to the rooms, there are cottages across the parking lot, for a total of 18 accommodations.

The entrance to the hotel is welcoming, with a fireplace and piano. We were taken to our suite, the Blue Star Room, which had its own fireplace.

One of the specialties of this hotel is that they bring to your room a homemade “sweet treat” each night. For our stay it was blueberry mousse).

I wasn’t feeling well after a long day and decided to stay in and rest. Lynn went on her own for a drive to check out the area.

I would still have the next day to see more of Saugatuck.  

The Best of Mackinac Island

It was a beautiful morning on a most amazing island.

I fell in love with Mackinac Island on my first trip and this time was no different. My friend, Lynn, and I had arrived at the Grand Hotel the day before and were ready to explore.

Most of the people who stay at this resort take the dinner and breakfast package, and that’s what the hotel had provided for us.

After taking some time to once again enjoy the view from our balcony, we headed to the main dining room.

The buffet at the Grand Hotel, from which I decided to take a little of a few different items to have with a smoothie and coffee, was extensive, as was the menu. 

Included were items such as Apricot Cream Cheese Brioche French Toast and steak and eggs. The basket of freshly baked breads was also always on the table.

After breakfast, we headed down to the front entrance. Mackinac Island does not have motorized vehicles. Instead of asking the bellman to get a cab, we needed to get a horse drawn carriage to bring us downtown.

We were going to spend the day with Mackinac Island Carriage Tours. I had done the tour previously and it’s the perfect way to get a real feel for the island.

The tour had changed some since the last time I took it as it had a stop in the middle for shopping and a carriage change. It still covered all of the highlights of this one-of-a-kind island.

We saw the sites on Market Street as Mackinac’s history came to life. We went to the Parade Ground, and saw some of the town’s Bed & Breakfast accommodations and stores. Then, we went to Mackinac Island State Park and Fort Mackinac for the most breathtaking spots in the Midwest.

After the tour, we checked out a few stores and picked up some fudge. Mackinac Island is famous for its fudge and you can get samples and purchase unique flavors at a dozen different shops.

When we returned to the Grand Hotel, we stopped at Sadie’s Ice Cream Parlor, where we enjoyed local flavors, Mackinac Island Fudge and Michigan Deer Traxx (Peanut butter cup and chocolate fudge in vanilla ice cream).

It was time for a rest before another delicious dinner that included pork chops and filet, with all the trimmings and a delicious dessert.

Then, we headed out to the porch, enjoying some wine on our final night on Mackinac Island.

Welcome Return to Mackinac Island

I was enjoying my time in the UP of Michigan and it got even better when my friend, Lynn, joined me. We have known each other for 30 years and have done many trips together in the last 10.

We woke up at the Alger Falls Motel in Munising and got ready to hit the road. Our final stop was one of my favorite places in the world, Mackinac Island.

Along the way, we veered off to a few places that had scenic overlooks. I couldn’t get enough of the beauty of the lake and the landscapes, which includes waterfalls everywhere.

We stopped for lunch in Grand Marais, once again overlooking the water. It’s a quaint town, home of the Pickle Barrell Museum, I’d like to visit again someday.

From there we drove to Ferry from St. Ignace to take the ferry to Mackinac Island. This was my second trip to the Island I had so greatly loved a few years ago.

It’s hard to describe Mackinac Island to someone who hasn’t been, though you can get a good idea by watching the Christopher Reeve movie Somewhere in Time. It’s a place that has remained back in time, with no motorized vehicles allowed.

Mackinac Island is in the middle of Lake Huron and surrounded by natural beauty. You can only get there by boat. There are ferries from Mackinaw City in addition to the one we took from St. Ignace. The ride is only about 15 minutes.

I had made arrangements for us to stay at The Grand Hotel and its name says it all. It’s on the list of Historic Hotels of America and certainly deserves to be there.

There was a horse and buggy waiting at the pier when we arrived. We climbed inside and they put our luggage on another horse drawn cart to take us to the hotel.

We were immediately mesmerized by the longest porch in the world, sparkling white and adorned with flags. You can also see the Straits of Mackinac and the Mackinac Bridge from the hotel.

Inside, we were greeted and taken to our room, which was beautifully decorated. Each of the 397 rooms has its own personality. There was a box of Mackinac Island Fudge waiting for us, a reminder of the dozen different fudge shops on the island. We also had a beautiful view from our balcony.

After a rest, we dressed for dinner, which is a must at the Grand. Most of those in the dining room adhered to a semi-formal attire for the white glove service.

The waiters were very attentive and we had a spectacular five-course dinner. It started with a grilled pineapple and ham appetizer, continued with salads, had cream of mushroom and gazpacho soups, included Beef Medalions and Spinach Asiago Ravioli, and ended with a delicious Marshmallow Nutella Bread Pudding for Lynn and cheesecake for me.

The menu changes every night, with choices in every section. It reminded me a bit of staying at the Catskills when I was younger. This was a lot more formal and I didn’t mind at all. It’s nice to dress up and be waited on once in a while!

After dinner, we went outside to see the sunset. It was too cloudy, but it was a warm night and we sat on the porch and listened to the music played in the parlor inside.

It was the perfect way to end our first day back on Mackinac Island.

Lakes of Beauty in Munising

My first trip up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan was in the wintertime. I took a ride to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and, even in winter, I couldn’t believe how beautiful it was. 

I vowed to come back and explore this area more and it seemed like an ideal way to spend my birthday.

I left Great Wolf Lodge in Gurnee and drove through Wisconsin to the UP. I had decided that Munising was a base for me to start and it was the right choice.

It was near sunset when I arrived at the Alger Falls Motel. The Munising tourism board had set me up there for two nights. The rooms were large and the location was central.

 

I was a bit hungry and decided to go for something local. I drove down to Muldoon’s and had my very first Pastie, a local favorite they were known for.

 A pasty is a hand pie looks like a cross between a turnover and a calzone, or for those who have been to the U.K., a meat pie. I decided I was not in a beef mood and got one vegetable, and one apple for dessert.

I took my pasties down to the Munising dock. It was a beautiful scene of boats and glistening water, and the perfect way to end the day.

After a full night’s sleep back at the motel, I was ready for an extremely full day in Michigan. Lake Superior was the center of it all and the turquoise water was waiting for me.

 

First up was a fairly new attraction, the Munising Pirate Cruise. It was a warm, beautiful day for this family filled cruise.

It was a nice combination of pirate fun for the kids and adult sightseeing. I enjoyed watching and photographing both as we went up Grand Island and back along the cost of Pictured Rocks.

 

It was even more beautiful than I had imagined. I saw the Grand Island lighthouses, old and new, and rock formations that could only be made by nature.

I grew up near the ocean. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining about enjoying life on Long Island, but the idea of these calm, clear, colorful, hurricane and shark-free waters of the great lakes appeals to me much more.

 

After the boat ride, I had most of the day free until another cruise in the evening. I headed back to the motel for some rest and then out to a late lunch/early dinner.

I decided on a local favorite, Dogpatch, for the salad bar and delicious pulled pork.

Despite rain in the forecast, it was ideal evening weather for the Shipwreck Tours with a glass bottom boat.

The boat was going in the same directions as the morning one, but the itinerary and purpose was different. We were going to see many of the shipwrecks left in these clear waters of this Great Lake.

 

The windows on the bottom of the ship were large and clear and it was easy to see the wrecks. The boat went in and out of some of the Grand Island caves, even stopping in one for us to get a closer look, as well as selfies.

The formations of these caves were a work of art. I was looking forward to seeing the ones on the other side, at Pictured Rocks, the next day.

 

I was extremely relaxed on this amazing body of water and had another peaceful night sleep. I was excited that I had more days to explore the wonders of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Visiting the Sault

It took us all day to drive up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, but Brittany, Jamie, and I were excited about the trip ahead of us over the Mackinac Bridge.

The trip to Sault Ste Marie was a first for all of us. This city on the Lake (Superior) is filled with history and fun and we were ready to experience it.

The Sault Ste Marie tourism board arranged for a large suite for us at Superior Place.

It is in a good location and quite comfortable, with a pool and gym for use at the Best Western across the parking lot.

We got an early start in the morning and headed downtown to find someplace for breakfast. Oh, Crepe immediately caught our eyes and we decided to go in.

They have a menu with a little something for everyone. I went for the sweet (Nutella and banana), while the girls did more savory crepes, with bacon, sausage, and eggs.

This year celebrates the 350^th anniversary of Sault Ste Marie, the oldest city in the state of Michigan.

Sault Ste Marie has another attribute you won’t find in another Michigan (or Midwest) city: its name is duplicated across Lake Superior in Sault Ste Marie, Canada.

The first thing on our agenda was to see the Soo Locks, where billions of dollars’ worth of iron pass through on freighters.

The best way for us to see this was on a boat, so we headed to the dock to board the Soo Locks Boat Tour.

From the boat, we could see the whole operation and even got to experience the locks taking the boat down, over, and back up again.

The only time I had previously been through locks was on a Viking River Cruise on the Danube. Brittany and Jamie had never done it before.

The other part of the ride that we found to be unique was that we went out along the U.S. side and came back through Canadian Waters.

The International Bridge, just passed the locks, separates the two countries.

Although you can be “in” Canada with Soo Lock Boat Tours along the lake, you need a passport to get from one country to the next through the bridge.  

After the boat ride, we went down the road to Museum Ship Valley Camp.

This unique site is especially popular with kids as the museum is inside an actual boat used in the Soo Locks.

The Valley Camp consisted of three freighters that were launched from Ohio three weeks apart, during World War I, landing in Sault Ste Marie.

There is plenty to explore at Valley Camp, while you read about the various freighters that came through here, the Eastland Disaster of 1915, and even the fish (perch and whitefish) that are typically found in this Great Lake.

We were really hungry by the time we finished touring the boat and decided to go straight to dinner before heading back to the hotel.

The Palace Saloon was the perfect choice for authentic Mexican food.

We started out with a few of their fruity margaritas, as well as the house made queso they are famous for. 

I also wanted to try their fresh guacamole.

For our dinner, we had shrimp skewers, a burrito, and a chimichanga. Everything was delicious.

We were all exhausted when we got back to the Superior Place and settled in for the night.

We had another full day of fun ahead of us in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan.