After the Soo Locks we traveled to Mackinaw City. Not really anything planned there just the chance to enjoy the water and drive over the fun bridge. We stayed at a place that was right on the beach, the Clarion, and we had a balcony to sit to enjoy the water even more. The seagulls were crazy! In fact one morning I went out to drink my coffee on the deck and as I walked out the seagulls came right at me….you would think someone said “Taylor Swift is in the building”!! Yikes I turned around and went back inside. I later came out with just my book and the leader looked at my book and told the others…no food…she’s just reading.
See they think they own the beach! LOL I did go outside and sit for awhile too, but since I had no food they really did not want to interact with me. The people above us did throw food out and those birds went crazy!!!
Oh and the bridge….I am not a bridge person but not driving helps. The Mackinaw bridge can have warnings if there are high winds…and of course on our way over there was a warning in place. Really for high visibility vehicles, but I certainly did not need to see that warning sign. In case you don’t know, the Mackinaw bridge is a suspension bridge that connects the upper and lower peninsulas of the state of Michigan. It spans the Straits of Mackinac, a body of water connecting Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. (From Wikipedia) And of course, there is a toll to cross it!
It was a good ride across, although we noticed that traffic can get backed and stopped up but thankfully not when we were on the bridge. Years ago we went across the bridge when Jason was probably 10 or 11. When we were leaving, he asked his dad is the that last time we are going over the bridge? And he said yes…Jason said good now I can tell the story that a lady told me on the beach earlier…she said a small car was going over the bridge when it was really windy and it blew off!! Jason did not want to share the story because he knew I was not fond of bridges so he wanted to make sure we did not go over it again!!
Next it was on to Duluth. Love watching boats come through the canal lift bridge in Duluth. I always wanted to stay at the South Pier Inn because their rooms are basicaly right at the bottom of the lift bridge.
The view of a Coast Guard boat from our balcony!!!!
I knew a boat would be coming through about 4:30 am so I set my alarm to get up and watch…always wondered if they sound their horns even in the middle of the night….and yes they do!! So cool …. dark out and horn from the boat and the bridge.
We did take the sunset cruise on the Duluth cruise, but the waves were too big to go out of the canal into Lake Superior, so we stayed in the harbor area. It was pretty seeing Duluth light up as it got darker and darker.
There were not a lot of boats that came through…a couple went via Superior because there is dredging going on. But what I did get to see was fantastic!! The South Pier Inn may be pricey and definitely worth a stay especially if you like watching boats or enjoying the waves.
Oh and it was MEA weekend…so Caley and Darcee had the boys for a few days so Jackie and Jermar could still go to work. Kiki (Caley) loves to take them on adventures!
Thursday was back to Blaine so we could attend the Paul McCartney concert on Friday. So just like we started our 2 week adventure with the music of Neil Diamond, we were going to end it with the music of Paul McCartney!
Stay dry….Enjoy the colors…And smile at a stranger!
Dandy Ventures 