Gird your loins people because this is going to be a long one. OK, longer.
Last weekend was my annual trip to Mackinac Island with my daughter. For the past 18 years we have taken the Shepler ferry from Mackinaw City to the island. It has been quite a run, though that run has probably come to an end. The island doesn't have the same feel as it used to. The Hoffman Family of Companies, which owns both Shepler's and the company formerly known as Star Line, has been charging like mad, and as more and more people come to the island, prices there continue to grow at an unpleasantly high level. More than the costs themselves is the feeling that consumers are being squeezed for every nickel. Michigan has many beautiful spots, and it's time to spend more time there.
But enough ranting - let's get to the trip.
I don't know if you're aware, but Michigan has a big bridge. Pro tip: For views of the bridge, sit on the port side heading to the island and the starboard side when returning to Mackinaw City. I take Venmo.
I arrived on a Sunday so the normally crushing amount of people on the downtown sidewalks was much reduced. My walk to Island House had only the smallest hints of frustration with tourists not realizing that there are other people on the island. Yet, it is much less frustrating than driving through Traverse City in the summer.
I arrived in my room on the second floor to enjoy an amazing view.
Hey, it was only $400/night! For that rock-bottom price, I'm surprised it had beds. Not shown in the picture is the dead bird that was nestled in the corner outside.
Every time I go to the island (and I've been there a lot), I always find something new, or something I knew was there but hadn't visited. The Somewhere in Time gazebo qualifies for the latter. I finally remembered to visit and - bam - it's closed!
Now I know how Clark Griswald felt like in National Lampoon's Vacation. I came all that way, and it was closed. OK, I could have just walked over the sign, but seeing was enough. Had I remembered anything Christopher Reeves said in the movie, I would have jumped the rope and recited them. But I didn't and I didn't.
The true gem is behind the gazebo, a spectacular view of downtown, the straits and the bridge. This little spot has become my new favorite place to view the island. And did you notice that there isn't a cloud in the picture? Both days were like that. That is such a rarity that I felt I had to point it out.
The activity I look forward to most on the island is riding on M-185, the car-free highway that goes around the island. I'm good for multiple trips around the island as well as trip into the interior where things really get dicey. The exterior road is mostly flat, but the interior has many elevation changes. It has, as they say in California, "muchos hillos". One of the tougher ones leads to Fort Holmes, the highest point on the island. Yes, it's a steep incline, but the views are excellent.
Going to Grand Hotel is also a tradition. It is quite an elegant building which contrasts with the often-gaudy colors. But it works for them. You can pretend like you're there and watch a video of a walk through the lower level on YouTube.
I have a demand to visit new-to-me restaurants when I travel. On Mackinac, one of those is Kingston Kitchen, a Jamaican restaurant that used to be called The Village Inn, famous for its planked whitefish. You can still get the whitefish. But my daughter and her boyfriend, who accompanied the wife and I to Jamaica in April, loved the idea of eating some Jamaican food on this, much colder, island. Disappointingly, they had neither jerk chicken nor the meat patties, staples of Jamaican food. The jerk pork and was good, though I would have preferred the chicken. However, they did have Red Stripe on tap, so they get points for that.
Though I only had one night on the island, I did my traditional walk on the Manitou Trail. If this is a mysterious name to you, it is a trail that starts at the East Bluff where the road turns inland near Mission Point. It's a hilly trail that goes by Robinson's Folly along the northern edge of the island to Arch Rock. I like the evening walk because it's a quiet walk, and sometimes the buoy can be heard as it gently rocks in the Straits. Or vigorously rocks depending on the wind.
Calm waters, quiet viewing area, the evening is my perfect time to visit.
Besides Arch Rock is a staircase that leads to Tranquil Bluff trail, picking up where Manitou Trail left off. The area may be tranquil, but the walk is not, with lots of hills and questionable footing - you'll want at least tennis shoes for this hike. But at the end of it, you can another of my favorite views on the island, and sunset is the best time.
We departed the island the next morning. Will I return? I'm sure I will. Next year? Probably not. I need some space from this place I've loved all these years into the place it has become. Perhaps absence will make the heart grow fonder.