THE U.P.! – PART I

July, 2018

The next leg of our journey started so long ago (has nobody gotten this reference yet?) took us to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.  Brian recalled having visited Mackinac Island many years ago, but he had never spent any time in the U.P.  Barbara had only ever been to Ann Arbor in the Great State of Michigan, but had heard about Mackinac Island and its prohibition of all motorized vehicles!

Folks that live north of the Mackinaw Bridge are known as yoopers to the rest of us, and like the folks that live on “The Rock”, they are a hearty breed, fiercely proud of their heritage and choice to live in the U.P.  We wondered and were a little disappointed that there was nothing similar to a screech-in ceremony to become an honorary Yooper!

We were looking forward to the 5-mile trip from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace over the Mackinaw Bridge.  It is an amazing suspension bridge spanning the Straits of Mackinac to connect the mainland upper peninsulas of Michigan.  The bridge, opened in 1957, is affectionately known as “Big Mac” or “Mighty Mac,” and according to locals, is always being worked on.  On a Sunday afternoon, the bridge was crowded and traffic was slowed to a crawl on the two lanes heading into St. Ignace.  There was a strong wind warning posted as we approached the bridge, advising that our maximum speed limit should be 20mph.  Well-heeded indeed as the winds buffeted the bridge and we got to experience what it is like to be in a box on four wheels on a suspension bridge with wind gusts not so gently rocking us to and fro.  The view, however, was spectacular!

We stayed at Castle Rock Campground which was just a few miles north of downtown St. Ignace, and right on Lake Huron – such a lovely campground.  Mackinaw City and St. Ignace depend on vacationers for a large portion of their annual income, and the cities don’t miss a beat in providing glorious lakefront hotels/motels, adventures and tourist traps for vacationers, as well as restaurants and bars.  There is far more to do if you stay on the mainland in Mackinaw City than across the bridge in St. Ignace.  St. Ignace has a trolley that drives a loop around the area about every 20 minutes, and with a large number of local stops, it’s easy to get around town.

Our first UP adventure took us on a short ride from St., Ignace to Sault Sainte Marie in order to view the famous Soo Locks.  Ever wonder about Great Lakes shipping?  Me neither.   However, I did know that the freighters and ore boats had to navigate some pretty treacherous shallows and narrows between the Lakes, and Brian’s been curious about the a system of locks that were created to smooth the passage.  The shallows and narrows were dug around and through (experts – please don’t get mad at my simplicity), and the problem of differences in water level were solved by engineering a water-proof “box” that either flooded (pumped in) or drained (pumped out) water allowing entry from one point into the next point.  These boxes are known as locks.

Ships coming from Lake Huron into Lake Superior have to rise 21 feet or conversely “sink” the 21 feet when travelling in the other direction.  The process is dependent on the length and weight of the ship.  For those interested on watching a ship navigating through the locks, the park has a 2-tiered indoor observation deck.  During our visit a fully-loaded 800-foot freighter was in the locks about 40 minutes from entry to exit, and it had to rise 21 feet in order to enter Lake Superior.  Watching water pressure alone cause this to occur is an incredibly awesome sight.

We decided to visit Mackinac Island the following day.  If we haven’t been clear before now, Mackinac Island is at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, between the State of Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas, and approximately 5.06 nautical miles from St. Ignace.  The only way to the Island is by ferry, and there are a couple of companies competing for your business.  The ferry ride to the Island takes about 16 minutes, and you can catch a ferry every 15-20 minutes.  Ferries are available only from early May to mid-October, depending on the weather, and there are lots of options when you buy your ticket: include a horse and carriage ride, lunch at the Grand Hotel, multiple day passes, etc.

We left the arrangements to our campground host; all we had to do was pick a time and the ferry company would pick us up at the campground.   We opted for the trip that would sail under the awesome Mackinaw Bridge.  It’s a thing of beauty to behold.

We arrived on the Island on a bright sunny cloudless day.  We stepped onto Main Street with a throng of hundreds of fellow tourists, and immediately experienced the downside of a place in the world (and during summertime) that uses horse-drawn wagons as one of its primary modes of transportation.  That’s right, the fragrant smell of horse (in every form you can imagine) helped us appreciate the reluctance to add autos to this island that is less than four square miles in area. Ha!

The other popular mode of transportation?  Renting bicycles by the hour or by the day. With a map in hand and some helpful advice from the bike shop, we headed south past the Michigan Governor’s Summer Residence and Fort Mackinac toward the iconic Sainte Anne’s Church and a steep climb up a road that took us to the popular Arch Rock.  The spectacular view from Arch Rock allowed us to see part of the flat road that runs around the perimeter of the Island.

We biked on through the beautiful forest, up and down our hilly path, sharing the roadway with walkers and horse and carriage riders, past the Fort Mackinac Cemetery to the beach.  The pastel water of Lake Huron was so inviting that Barbara had to experience it first hand.  Trying to climb out of the water was not so easy as the small pebbles kept giving way underfoot.  Back on shore, we headed back to town past some beautiful Victorian-looking homes.

Our last climb took us up to the Grand Hotel, a Victorian Age reminder of opulence.  The Hotel opened in 1887, and it has maintained its place amongst America’s greatest hotels.
Unfortunately, unless one is a guest or the guest of a guest, management imposes a charge to walk around the grounds, sit on the expansive veranda, or sneak a peak at the lobby.  What a shame.  With up to 15,000 visitors a day to the Island, we could understand the need to restrict entrance to the hotel to paying guests only, but to restrict visitors from the grounds, too, seemed unneccessary to us.

We headed back to Main Street, and we stopped to eat our packed lunch in the welcoming shade of an old maple tree in the middle of a green grass oasis with a breath-taking view of Lake Huron.  We could appreciate why this tiny Island of less than 500 residents is so protective of its heritage and its history.  We returned our bikes and decided to walk Main Street with fudge, ice cream, caramel popcorn, and touristy tchotchkes calling our names.  We settled for some average ice cream (and a sample or 2 or 6 of some very yummy pecan chocolate fudge) which we ate quickly before we headed into the Mackinac Island Butterfly House and Insect World, tucked away on a side street behind Sainte Anne’s Church.  The butterfly collection was amazing, and included species found all over the world. The miracle of witnessing butterflies hatching from their cocoons is not to be missed.

We were escorted into the butterfly room and told not to touch the butterflies.  If a butterfly landed on a guest, it was removed by one of the employees at the exit.  The startling beauty of these magnificent creatures is hard to describe in words.  The variety, depth and range of colors, and the exquisite patterns of their wings was a wonder to behold. Butterflies ranged in size from very small to so large they would cover the palm of your hand. We learned that butterflies are attracted to rotting fruit which was plentiful in this small room, and their voracious feasting allowed us to take lots of photos.  We also learned that Monarch butterflies fly up to 3,000 miles during their annual migration to Mexico.

Barbara had an opportunity one Fall to help tag Monarch butterflies at Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center in Belfast, PA.  The tag used is a small adhesive dot containing a bar code.  The dot is placed on the wing of the butterfly so it can be scanned by researchers to identify where the butterflies found in Mexico originated their flight.

In the room next to the butterflies is a collection of beetles.  Did you know that beetles account for a quarter of all the living plants and animals on earth?  Did you know that the rhinoceros beetle can lift 850 times its own weight, making it the strongest animal in the world?!

Another awesome day in Michigan (Go Blue!).  We can’t wait to tell you about our next adventure.

Barbara and Brian