Visiting Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) – Part 3 (St. Ignace/Soo Locks/Tahquemenomen Falls/Whitefish Point/Mackinac Island/Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore)

Though we left Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, our touring of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) was far from over. Our next stop was to St. Ignace, where we partook of water/electric hookups and a sani-dump station at Kewadin Casino for $30/night.  Thankfully, we arrived early in the week when spots were still available.  You see, a huge car show was scheduled for the weekend, and Kewadin, like all area hotels/RV Parks, expected limited availability.  And we all know limited availability results in jacked-up prices.

 

After settling in, we went to visit Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox at Castle Rock.  Purchased in 1928, generations of the Eby family still own and operate this old-school tourist attraction/souvenir shop.  For $1, I ascended 200 feet to the top of the limestone formation to get a bird’s eye view of St. Ignace, Lake Huron, and surrounding areas.  And I earned myself a sticker heralding my achievement of climbing Castle Rock.

 

Great view of Lake Huron from the top of Castle Rock.

Then we went over to Bridge View Park to see the work of wonder known as Mackinac Bridge.  At 5 miles long, weighing 1,024,500 tons, and hanging 200 feet above sea level mid-span, Mighty Mac is the longest suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere and within the top 10 world-wide.  What really makes it a work of wonder to me is that a government project was completed on schedule!  Prior to the bridge opening on November 1, 1957, a car ferry system was used.  12 million vehicles and 30 million passengers were transported between the UP and Michigan’s lower peninsula during the ferry system’s 34 years of operation.  I learned, too, that Mighty Mac is part of the North Country National Scenic Trail.

 

Not ones to waste any time, we popped over to the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Soo Locks Operation along the St. Mary’s River in Sault Ste. Marie.  We arrived too late in the day for a tour, but we had a chance to peruse the Visitor Center and watch a vessel maneuver the locks.  I learned the locks provide vessels safe passage to transition the 21-foot drop between Lake Superior’s and Lake Huron’s water levels.  22 million gallons of water are displaced every time a vessel goes through the locks.  About 75 million tons of cargo via 7,000 vessels come through the Soo Locks each year.

 

This Sault Ste. Marie structure's claim to fame is that it is the "tallest tower in the Upper Peninsula".

Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge into Canada.

The next day we purchased our final $11/vehicle Michigan Recreation Pass to visit Tahquemenomen Falls, Michigan’s largest waterfall.  The Upper Falls has a drop of approximately 50 feet, displacing 50,000 gallons of water per second!  The sheer power of water is amazing to me!  While hiking along a nature trail, I learned that dragonflies eat mosquitos.  Too bad I couldn’t just carry dragonflies with me to ward off the pesky mosquitos we were encountering that day instead of dousing myself with mosquito repellent (At least we use a non-chemical eucalyptus/lemon spray rather than DEET.)  We then used our Recreation Pass to go to the park containing the Lower Falls, which is not 1 waterfall but a series of several smaller ones.  Such a spectacular sight!  See for yourself in this video compilation of the Upper and Lower Falls.

 

Our day’s itinerary also included a visit to Paradise, Michigan.  This fascinating area is home to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum.  I was aware of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald (29 men lost their lives on November 9, 1975, when the Laker, carrying 36,000 tons of iron ore, succumbed to 30-foot-waves and 200 mile-per-hour winds.)  But I didn’t know the treacherous waters of the Great Lakes caused 6,000 ships to be lost at sea in the nearly 400 years since Europeans first arrived in this region!    The Museum contains artifacts recovered from several of these shipwrecks including the bell from the Edmund Fitzgerald, brought ashore on July 4, 1995.  

The bell from the Edmund Fitzgerald, brought up from the Lake on July 4, 1995, the 20th anniversary of the ship's sinking.

Whitefish Point, Michigan’s oldest continuously-operated lighthouse on Lake Superior, is also on the property and included in the $15 admission ticket to the Shipwreck Museum.  The Whitefish Point Light Station was built in 1849, using sperm whale oil to illuminate its beacon.  Several years later, the Light Station was declared unreliable structurally, so a new tower was constructed in 1861. In 1885, the Light Station was converted to kerosene.  Electrification occurred in the 1930s, and presently, it utilizes LED lights.  The U.S. Lighthouse Service operated the Light Station from 1849 to 1923, at which time the Coast Guard got involved.  Interestingly, one of the Lighthouse docents was on a vessel that went to rescue the Edmund Fitzgerald!  Very cool to hear his account of events that day!

 

Life at a lighthouse comes with limited human contact...

...Sign me up!   The accommodations were quite comfy and cozy!

We took a sightseeing cruise to Mackinac Island, which received National Historic Landmark status in 1960.  The Island (whose name means “Great Turtle” in the Ojibwa language) masterfully blends the charm of yesteryear with the 21^st century.  You see, there are no motorized vehicles on the Island except for first responders.  Modes of transportation are limited to walking, non-electric bicycling, or horse-drawn carriage.    Every business—whether hotel, restaurant, or shop—has their supplies ferried by boat and then transferred to horse-drawn carriages for delivery.  As we walked through town, I fell in love with the place more and more.

 

I am going to start my own carriage company on Mac Island!

Father Marquette's statue stands in the Park bearing his name.  Looks like he also serves as a perch for the birds (Hope they aren't pooping on him!)

A replica of the Bark Chapel...

...used by Father (later Bishop) Marquette in 1670s.

This pooch on the porch was too cute to be spooky!  The Orpheum might want to find a more suitable advertising rep (I hear Chucky is looking for work).  

Quaint Victorian homes can be found throughout the Island.

While on the Island, we took the tour of Fort Mackinac, which has a rich history.  It was established by the British in 1780 during the Revolutionary War.  Though the Treaty of Paris in 1783 mandated the British relinquish the Fort to the victorious Americans, US Army Troops did not get to raise our Nation’s flag here until 1796.  The Fort came back into British hands during the War of 1812, but it was returned to the Americans in 1815.  In 1875, the Fort became part of Mackinac National Park, America’s 2^nd National Park, and the army troops acted as Park Rangers.  The last US soldiers stationed at the Fort left in 1895 when the Fort became Michigan’s 1^st State Park.  Sadly, anything the soldiers didn’t take with them was sold, and restoration efforts did not commence until the 1950s.  But I must say, the State Park Commission has done a marvelous job of preserving historic Fort Mackinac.

 

Fort Mackinac from afar.

A spectacular view of the town from Fort Mackinac.

Some Fort buildings and grounds. 

Cannon demonstration--Ba Boom!

Some interiors...

...of Fort buildings.

Hot water showers!

Our ticket to Fort Mackinac also provided us access to several historical buildings throughout the Island.  While fur trading and fishing were the main industries on the Island for centuries, nowadays tourism is the money-maker.

And, like typical tourists, my family shelled out the $12/person fee to roam the common halls and grounds of the magnificent Grand Hotel.  Built in 1887, it has all the splendor of the Victorian era combined with modern-day amenities.  We enjoyed vibrant-colored interiors with unique motifs and spectacularly landscaped grounds.  The Hotel was family owned and operated for close to 90 years until 2019 when they sold out to an investment firm.

Captivated by their advertising phrase, “Hang at the Stang, Michigan’s Most Historic Tavern”, we dined at Mustang Lounge.  The original building was constructed in the 1780s as a fur trading warehouse.  It was remodeled in 2008 using those original timbers.  Remember those quaint supply delivery modes used by businesses that I mentioned earlier?  Me thinks they are the reason a burger with fries here cost $20!   (And they charge an extra fee for using a credit card, too.)  But the Mustang Lounge is a big supporter of police, fire, and emergency first responders, so I didn’t mind forking over a few extra bucks.

 

Another fun day consisted of an outing to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  Our route there included driving along the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Byway.  There were lots of waterfront properties nestled within forested cliffs.  It must be gorgeous during Fall foliage with all the tree varieties.  We also picked up another Roadside America attraction:  A replica of the World's largest Cherry Pie that was baked in Charlevoix.  

Our route included a Roadside America attraction, the site where the world's largest cherry pie was baked!

Check out these stats!  No wonder it won the title "world's largest cherry pie"!

We stopped also to view the Mushroom Houses (A.K.A. Gnome Homes) in Charlevoix.  Built by Earl Young (many within the 1920s), these stone homes are whimsically designed. Though not a college graduate or licensed architect, Earl studied construction and architecture on his own.  He was influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, so he brought elements of nature into his building style.  We could only view his dozen or so structures from afar for they are privately owned or operate as vacation rentals (with exorbitant rates like $1,100 to $1,900/night!).   

We passed through the beach town of Traverse City.  It is within the Michigan Gold Coast and known as the Cherry Capital of the World.  What a zoo and traffic nightmare—their Annual Cherry Festival was to commence at noon!  It was raining by this point, so we bypassed participation and instead drove directly to Sleeping Bear Dunes, 1 of only 3 designated National Lakeshores (We already visited Pictured Rocks.  I hope to someday visit the 3^rd one, which is the Apostle Islands in Wisconsin).  Though the rain prevented us from hiking/climbing as much as we normally would, we enjoyed the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive to view the dunes, wetlands, and boreal forests.  I listened intently as Mom explained the Anishinaabek Tribe’s tale of Sleeping Bear and the Manitou Islands:  A mama and her 2 cubs left the great lake in Wisconsin where people and animals were dying of starvation.  They swam the long distance to the other side of the lake.  But along the way, the two cubs weakened and drowned.  The Mama was saddened, but she continued the journey across the lake.  She waded ashore, climbed the bluff, and lied down.  As she gazed out forlornly at where her 2 cubs had drowned, she sees the babies, resurfaced as 2 small islands.  The Mama bear lies there today, still looking out lovingly at her cubs.

Those little dots in the center are crazies who hiked all the way down the dune and are crawling their way back up!  If you could not make it back up the dune, it would cost you dearly for assistance!  The US Coast Guard would bill you $3,000 if they needed to come "rescue" you by boat.

Now here's a sign of intelligence:  Dad stayed at the top!

Filled with new knowledge, I was ready to pick up my Junior Ranger booklet.  We arrived at the Visitor Center, along with several other guests, at 4:01 p.m. only to find it had closed at 4 p.m.!  I was saddened I could not achieve Junior Ranger status at Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore.

 

Those government workers must have left at 4 p.m. like a shot out of hell!  The glass door must have prints of their butt cheeks from them running out so fast!

It was shortly after leaving the Visitor Center that we ran into a problem with the Rambling RV Rat Pack Rubicon.  The radiator had sprung a leak and we were losing fluid!  Thankfully, Dad keeps coolant in stock in all our vehicles, the O’Reilly Auto Parts store in Traverse City had a new radiator and hoses in stock for us to purchase, and we arrived back to the RV in St. Ignace safely.

 

We had torrential rain the next morning.   And, instead of getting to tour Colonial Milchilmackinac that afternoon, Dad performed radiator surgery on the Rambling RV Rat Pack Rubicon.

After completion and test drive, we did get some time to peruse Kewadin’s grounds and Casino (how crazy is it to install signs in the Casino bathroom stalls: “If you are betting more than you can afford, call 1-800-GAMBLER confidentially”).  We particularly enjoyed their bar/lounge where the excellent rock/heavy metal band Peril play that evening.  From Bon Jovi to Poison, Motley Crew to Judas Priest, and hair bands like Night Ranger, Peril nailed them all.  What a great way to end our stay!

 

We have thoroughly enjoyed our time in the Upper Peninsula!  Tomorrow we depart to tour other parts of the great State of Michigan.  I’ll talk to you again soon!