Mackinac Island

Hello again,

Yesterday we crossed back into the US to visit Mackinac Island, Michigan (and crossed back into Canada afterward).  It was by far our favorite day yet.  It was a mostly sunny, calm day and we really enjoyed our visit to the island.  The island has a rich history:  how the Indigenous People lived, the arrival of the fur traders along with the British military, and the battles between the British and the Americans during the war of 1812 (the Americans did not win any of the battles, but took possession of the island after the war was over).  We visited the Mackinac fort and saw a cannon fired off (but no cannonball as there was a city park below).  We would definitely like to come back and would stay at least one night next time.  This morning we are off to Pukaskwa National Park where we will stay for two nights.

This is a photo as we were arriving on the island.

This is the Mackinac bridge which our ferry took us through on our way to the island.

This was taken right after we got off the ferry.

                                                                    

First things first!  Before we took off on our bike ride around the island we stopped for a mid-morning snack of fudge and white cheddar cheese popcorn.  Mackinac is known for its fudge and it seems like every other shop is a fudge shop.  It was very, very delicious.

Cars are not allowed on the island so people get around by bicycle or horse drawn carriage.  We rode rented bikes around the island, 8.3 miles.  While on our ride around the island, we heard a 5 or 6 year-old boy on a tandem bike with his dad say, "Come on Daddy, you can do it!".  Of course Dad was doing all the work.

Took this photo from above Arch Rock.  The water was very clear and beautiful colors.

A view of the island from the fort.  It was situated up on a hill - when the Americans tried to fire at the fort from the water, they couldn't lift the cannons high enough to hit the fort so the cannonballs all landed on the hill below the fort.

There are many beautiful homes on the island - this one caught our eye as we walked around because of the house and the landscaping.  We looked in the window of a real estate office and saw one home listed for sale for more than $5 million dollars.  I thought these flowers were so pretty.

                                                                                

This photo was not taken on the island but on our drive to the ferry early that morning.