Lake Michigan Tour 2013

[TimC]

I did a 4-day motorcycle tour around Lake Michigan last month. I should have posted my ride report then, but wanted to wait until I could post photos from the trip at the same time. The pix are available on Flickr.com via the link below. (No registration/sign-in required.)

I planned a clockwise route around the lake, taking the Ohio and Indiana turnpikes to the Chicago area. I left on Friday morning and returned Monday night. The turnpike is very boring, but it's necessary to make time to get to the main attraction: Riding around the lake, taking roads that keep me as close to the lake as possible most of the time.

Unfortunately I hit major Friday afternoon rush hour traffic through Chicago on Day 1. It was an absolute nightmare. I took I-90 to I-94, but should have taken I-294 through the suburbs instead. I'm sure it would been better, as my route took me about 90 minutes to go 10-15 miles through town. It was the worst time I've ever spent on a motorcycle. Thankfully it was only in the upper 60s outside, but I was roasting in my gear nonetheless, and my VFR's temps soared most of the time, too, peaking at 250 degrees. I almost pulled off the road just to let it cool down, but was happy it wasn't necessary. I swear I'll never, ever ride through a major city after noon again.

After finally getting out of Chicago, I made Sheboygan, WI, my destination for the night. I got off the freeway to cool off, eat an early dinner, and give my VFR a break before I got to Milwaukee - also so I could (hopefully) miss the last rush hour traffic through Milwaukee. It helped, but I still faced some traffic due to rush hour and road construction. Once clear of Milwaukee, however, the rest of the route to Sheboygan was fine. I used the Priceline app on my iPhone to find a reasonably priced hotel, a Super 8 in this case, and got there in the early evening. I had enough time to drop my luggage in the room and get to the harbor area to enjoy the sunset and call home. BTW, this Super 8 had the nicest room of any I've ever seen from that hotel chain.

For students of history, the Great Lakes have a ton of it, and a lot of it is bad. Many, many shipwrecks on the Lakes, and most with lives lost. It gives you an appreciation for the power of these very large bodies of water during storms. The remnants of the hull of an old timber-hauling sailing ship are on display near the harbor, along with a few plaques about the ship and its fate. (Photos are in the linked set below.)

For Day 2, I planned to ride to Mackinaw City, MI. My first stop was in Green Bay, where I took a few photos outside Lambeau Field, gassed up, and had a snack. From there I headed north and toward Michigan's upper peninsula. The sky darkened as I got closer to MI, and once a few drops of rain fell I pulled off the freeway and under an overpass to don my rainsuit. I rode through some light to medium rain over the next hour or more, but it wasn't an issue. I think this was the only rain I saw during the whole trip. Following the lakeshore as closely as possible means some beautiful sights, but also changing weather and temperatures. Be prepared for both when you're near major bodies of water.

Knowing I was going to make it there with plenty of time to spare, I booked a room at a small independent motel in Mackinaw City during one of my stops in the UP. I crossed the Mackinac Bridge for the 2nd time in a month (and my 2nd time ever) under a cloudless sky in the late afternoon. The first time was in late May during my Lake Huron tour, when I had to ride on the steel grates due to construction/repairs in the paved lanes. Very nerve-racking, as it constantly feels like your wheels are slipping out from under you. This time, very thankfully, I was able to ride on the paved lane. Much more enjoyable, and I was able to go slowly enough to sneak a few peeks around me at the scenery and water. For those of you who don't know, the bridge is the separation point between Lake Michigan to the west and Lake Huron to the east. Very cool to be able to see two Great Lakes at the same time!

My hotel in Mack. City was just across from the Old Mackinac Point Light, a beautiful lighthouse with an excellent view of the bridge. I walked downtown, bought my only souvenir for the trip (a new Case knife from the hardware store downtown), and had dinner at the Keyhole Bar & Grill, one of the bar/restaurants in downtown Mack. City. Definitely not fancy, but nice enough. I sat at the bar and talked to a couple locals. Would highly recommend the hot wings, onion rings, and Cheboygan Lighthouse Amber on tap. (I had two pints since I was walking!)

On the morning of Day 3, I rode across the street to the lighthouse to snap a few more photos, then headed south on I-75 to US 31. My planned route took me west on C66 to MI-119 so I could follow the lakeshore again, back to US 31 and toward Traverse City. I actually had no idea I had accidentally planned Michigan's famous "Tunnel of Trees" into my route for the day! Stupid me, I had heard of the Tunnel of Trees before, but had thought for some reason it was in the UP.

As soon as I saw the sign for the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Heritage Route, I got excited. This is a narrow, twisty road without a centerline that hugs the coast, but the trees are so dense in most areas along the route that you can't see the lake. And many of the trees grow above the road, making parts of the road actually seem tunnel-like. When I started down this road, which is about 27 miles in length, the weather was beautiful. Five miles down the road, however, I was in heavy mist and fog. The pavement was slippery and visibility very poor. It made for a slightly less enjoyable experience, but as the same time quite thrilling! I saw many cyclists, some motorcyclists, and passenger vehicles. If you take this road, and I highly recommend you do if you're ever in northern (mainland) MI, please watch out for the many bicyclists, and make sure to stay on the right side of the road, both for your safety and for oncoming traffic.

Here's a Wikipedia link to route M-119 and the Tunnel of Trees: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-119_(Michigan_highway)

One of the unexpected treats of the trip was seeing the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. I'd never heard of these dunes but was amazed by their size. I've never seen dunes like these on any Great Lake. Pretty cool, and there are places to rent dune buggies, ATVs, and dirtbikes nearby if you ever want to go there. (See photos of the dunes in the link below.)

My goal for the day was to get to Muskegon for the night, and to make it in time to photograph sunset on the lake. I booked a room at the Holiday Inn in downtown Muskegon (which from appearances is quite dead for a small city downtown area), left my luggage in my room and headed to Muskegon State Park to shoot the sunset. Weather was again very beautiful and the water was fairly calm. NOTE: The state park is not just outside Muskegon. It's a good 10-15 mile trek from town to the park. I got some great photos but had to ride back to the hotel in the dark with the temps dropping.

Off-topic: I worked one summer during college near Muskegon at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, a camp for middle school and high school kids. I have some great memories from that summer, and earned enough to buy my first C trumpet, a Bach Strad 229 I bought from a friend. I had no plans to visit the camp, but it was neat to stay nearby 25 years later.

For Day 4, I planned to ride along the coast as much as possible, to Michigan City, IN, and then home. I was getting a little tired, so I skipped some of the roads closer to the lake to make time. I had seen enough of the lake at this point and wanted to get home a little sooner. I did ride all the way to Michigan City, took a few more photos at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (a park with a beach), then started heading east toward home. I again took the turnpike, boring but fast, and made a bit easier with my EZ Pass. At one point in northern Indiana I passed an out-of-control vehicle fire on the westbound lanes, with emergency personnel and trucks on the scene. It was a large Ford Econoline passenger van. I said a prayer and hoped those inside the van had gotten out safely.

I got home around 9 pm Monday night, after four days and over 1500 miles, tired but happy I had successfully completed my 3rd Great Lakes tour, including the 2nd in less than a month. I went around Lakes Erie and Ontario in one long weekend a few years ago, knocked Lake Huron out in late May, and now have done Lake Michigan. This was a great trip, it seemed easier than the Lake Huron tour even though it was longer, and the last treat during this trip was seeing my VFR's odometer hit the 70k miles mark on my way home.

Now I just need to do Lake Superior to complete my tours of the Great Lakes. That's the big one, as it's the furthest from home by far, and will require (by my planning) a 5-day tour. And I'm planning to do that tour in a couple weeks!

Below is the link to my photos from this tour. The camera used was a Fujifilm FinePix S4200, with 14 MP and 24x zoom. I'm not sure if it's still available in stores, but it's a great digital camera for the money. It has some nice features (including an electronic viewfinder) takes great photos IMHO, and has been terrific for me.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/98983586@N03/sets/72157634678544840/

BTW, the last photo was taken at the Michigan City beach I mentioned above. If you look carefully, you can just make out the downtown Chicago skyline across the lake!

[Dutchy]

Posts are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much nicer with the pictures actually in it...................

:-)

[TimC]

You're right, Dutchy, and next time I will try to put the photos in the post. For the last 2 tours, however, I'm just now catching up in even posting the ride reports and photo album links, so I've taken a shortcut.