Day 120 – Van Riper State Park
As we usually do, we planned a hike for our Sunday activity. Van Riper didn’t have a ton of hiking trails, but we did find a trail leading to an overlook above the Peshekee River. Like a lot of hikes in this part of the country, bugs were a bit of an issue, but we got some exercise and a few nice views from the trail.
Day 121 – Van Riper State Park to Tahquamenon Falls State Park
Monday we planned a busy day, so Michael took the day off from work and we spent the day exploring the middle section of the UP. Our first stop was Munising, where we planned to eat lunch at The Fish Basket, suggested to us by Michael’s brother, but unfortunately it wasn’t open so we had to settle for eating pizza at the place next door.
After lunch, our first stop was a short hike to Munising Falls, the first of several in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Driving further into the park, we stopped for hikes to Miners Falls, Chapel Falls and finally the Au Sable Light Station. By then, it was getting late, so we continued on to our final destination, the campground at Tahquamenon Falls State Park.
Day 122 – Tahquamenon Falls State Park
We discovered there was no wi-fi or 4G at Tahquamenon Falls, so we had to pack up the van and spend the morning working from a county park in Paradise. Since we were already halfway there, we drove to on to Whitefish Point to visit the Shipwreck Museum, where we saw the bell from the Edmund Fitzgerald. After returning to Paradise for a couple more hours of work, we headed back to Tahquamenon Falls, where we visited the Upper Falls before returning to camp.
Day 123 – Tahquamenon Falls State Park to St Ignace
Wednesday marked the 4 month point of our trip! We are now officially over 1/3 of the way through, hard to believe. We started off the day with a short morning hike to the Lower Falls, which was especially nice since we had it all to ourselves. Then we hit the road to travel to our next destination, St Ignace, on the tip of the Upper Peninsula. Tracey walked around town while Michael worked from marina, then we ate lunch and got groceries before heading to the Lakeshore Park Campground to finish the work day and relax.
Day 124 – St Ignace
This was the first day since the very beginning of our trip (when snow kept us from visiting Crater Lake and Lassen Volcano) that weather completely ruined our plans. While we planned to take the ferry to Mackinac Island, steady rain all day kept us holed up in the van, but at least we were able to get in a full day of work.
Day 125 – St Ignace to Traverse City
Another rainy start to the day, but after working all morning, the weather cleared up a little bit before we headed to lunch Clyde’s Drive-In. Next, we drove over the very impressive Mackinac Bridge and into Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. After a little shopping in Traverse City, we headed to our campground for the next few days, Timber Ridge RV Resort.
Day 126 – Traverse City
By Saturday, we were ready for a long hike, so we took a short connector trail from the campground to the Vasa Trail, and then on to the shore of Traverse Bay just outside of town. The weather finally had cleared, so we had a very nice hike through the forest and great views across the bay. After walking back, we had completed over 10 miles of hiking, so we were ready for a late lunch and some relaxation. Later in the afternoon, we walked another mile or so around the huge campground before settling in for dinner and a (relatively) quiet evening.
Wonderful!
my college friends & I spent 1988 fall break at traverse city, rented cabins on a small lake.
keep after it!