This morning we utilized the dock power and baked biscuits, cooked up the fresh carrots from the farmer’s market and made some applesauce before casting off by 11:00. We are all set now with some cooked up food and clean laundry!
SO LONG DRUMMOND ISLAND YACHT HAVEN
Looks like we are in for a few days of beautiful, warm weather and we are lounging in the sunshine as we travel. Cool nights, warm days – does it get any better? Oops, what’s this? Dan is no longer lounging but hard at work, scrubbing the dirty deck. Guess I am on windows and mini-blind cleaning. So much for relaxing!! Quest does look cleaner and happier now.
BACK WITH THE BIG BOYS NOW
DE TOUR TO DRUMMOND ISLAND FERRIES
DE TOUR CHANNEL LIGHT HOUSE
Heading towards the famed Mackinac Island (pronounced Mackinaw) I used the time to read up on our destination. This postcard island prohibits those “new-fangled” horseless carriages and real horses, bicycles and foot traffic are the means of getting from one place to another in this enchanting summer resort. The English built a fort here in 1780, American revolutionaries took it in 1796, and the Brits reclaimed it in the War of 1812 but only until 1815 when it went back to those American whipper snappers. Since 1895 it has been a State Park.
Sighting the four mile Mackinac Bridge, I knew we were almost there. This connects Mackinaw City on the south shore with St. Ignace on the north shore of the Straits of Mackinac. Ferries zip back and forth from both of these cities to the island, bringing gobs of tourist during the height of the season. We are lucky to be trailing in at the tail end of summer.
THE FOUR MILE BRIDGE
Approaching the harbor, we saw the beautiful Mission Point Resort and Fort Mackinac. As we enter, the busy ferries take their right of way and deposit or pick up travelers. What a beautiful picture the village presents to us.
MISSION POINT RESORT
FORT MACKINAC
FERRIES ZOOM FOLKS TO AND FRO
Whoa! This is a nice dock. It is owned by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, well maintained, modern and inexpensive. I like it! Oh, and the water. It is the closest thing to Caribbean waters I’ve seen since------- since the Caribbean!
We are watching the island transit system working full speed (ok, so not so much speed) ahead. Here we see Arnold Transit where bikes are parked and the ferries come and go. Next we see the “bus” with its luggage trailer behind. The “trash truck” is working even on a Sunday and visitors take a “taxi” to their destination. Kind of cute.
ALL THE BIKES AT ARNOLD TRANSIT
NOTE THE LUGGAGE TRAILER BEHIND
TRASH "TRUCK"
TAXI
OH YES, DON'T FORGET THE HOTEL LIMO
We are off to explore on foot and to make our plan of attack. What a mixed bag. The down town could be Key West with shops selling tee-shirts, fudge and ice cream (just no Jimmy Buffett or tattoo parlors here). We have way too much to do tomorrow! I want to take a carriage tour of the island, rent bikes, swim, visit the Grand Hotel and climb to the fort. This may be a “two-day” stop.
After a good fish dinner on shore, we again took off walking and were drawn to the Mission Point Resort by delightful shrieks of childish laughter in the dark. The resort has a little putting course where the kids were engaged in “Glow Golf”. What a sight! They all had Glow Stick necklaces, bracelets and headbands and were putting their “glowing” golf balls towards the “glowing” T. We were captivated by the ever moving neon colors and the force of the kids’ energy. Too cool for words! The resort also had a outdoor movie going on with scads of Adirondack chairs dotting the lawn before the huge screen. Families and couples were enjoying the resort’s amenities all over the grounds on this night.
I just found your blog, and it's been fun reading, but, since I am from Michigan, I do feel the need for a small correction. The Mackinac Bridge is 5 miles (4.995 miles, or 26 feet short of 5 miles) over the Straits of Mackinac, and is 7 miles long from approach to approach.
ReplyDeleteA little more information about the "Mighty Mac". It is the longest suspension bridge in the western hemisphere. Construction began in 1954 and was completed in 1957. The bridge is painted in green and white and at night is lit in blue and yellow, the state's 2 largest college's colors (The University of Michigan (blue and gold) and Michigan State University (green and white)). The annual walk across the bridge is held on Labor Day every year, except for the first, which was held in June 1958 at the official dedication of the bridge (the walk is actually 7 miles). It is led, each year, by the governor of Michigan. 5 people died during the construction of the bridge, but, contrary to popular belief, no one is interred in the concrete of the bridge. 2 vehicles have "gone off" the bridge. The first was a Volvo that was blown off after the driver stopped on the bridge and a strong gust of wind blew it over. The second was determined to be a suicide. An airplane, carrying 3 US Marine Corps reservists flew into the bridge in a heavy fog, crashed and everyone in the plane died. There has been only a handful of suicides off the bridge. The bridge has been featured in a couple of televisions shows ("Dirty Jobs" and "Modern Marvels) as well as a documentary film ("Building the Mighty Mac"). It has also been featured on postage stamps a couple of times by the US Postal Service. In 2007, the Detroit Science Center featured an 80 foot long, 19 foot tall, scale model of the bridge. Sherwin Williams provided the authentic Mackinac Bridge paint for the project.
You'll find more information about the bridge at the following links.
http://www.mackinacbridge.org/about-the-bridge-8/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mackinac_Bridge