Day 34: Hello, Huron

I reached my fourth and final Great Lake today, Huron (though I’ll still be on Lake Michigan for another couple days). I’ve come within miles of Huron at a couple points in Michigan, but didn’t actually see it until today, when I visited Mackinac Island.

A World with no Cars

I hit the road a bit before nine this morning, but came upon Johan’s Pastries after only 6 miles and had to stop. 1) Bakeries make great coffee stops, and 2) Johan is my dad’s German name. I got a giant jay roll and iced coffee to go. On my way out, I met a proud papa of a touring cyclist who lives in Seattle. He was very encouraging and enthusiastic.

The next twenty miles were spent on a narrow, winding road called the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Byway. It was beautiful and very quiet. There was no shoulder, and not even a dividing line between the lanes, so I’m glad there weren’t many cars around, except for that one time I was passed by about twenty antique cars in a row.

The Tunnel of Trees ended at Cross Village where I ate first lunch and picked up some cool post cards at a local gift shop.

The next twenty or so miles of roads were comically, entertainingly bad. It was a game of dodge the pothole most of the way. Thankfully almost no cars were around, otherwise it would not have been nearly as fun.

I rolled into the ferry terminal in Mackinaw island in time to catch the two o’clock boat to Mackinac Island. Mackinac Island doesn’t allow any motorized vehicles so is dominated by bikes and horses. It’s quite touristy, but also very pretty, especially once you get off the Main Street.

I had a second lunch of a cheeseburger and maple pecan fudge (not together), enjoyed sitting in a park overlooking Lake Huron and a couple of lighthouses. I then took a leisurely lap of the island on the eight mile highway that encircles it. I stopped at the nature center and learned a bit about the local flora and fauna (there are no bears or wolves on the island). All in all a very pleasant jaunt to the island.

Instead of returning on the same ferry, I instead took the ferry onward to Saint Ignace on the upper peninsula (UP). I got off to quite a traffic jam/parade. There’s a car show this weekend so there were tons of old muscle cars roving around and some people sitting on camp chairs lining the street. I don’t think it was a formal parade at that point, but unclear if I was parade crashing.

The campground at the local state park is full, but MI has a no turn away policy for touring cyclists, so I’m still able to camp here. I have a group campsite all to myself for the evening - quite peaceful really.