We went right between the two tall pillars of the largest suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere.
As we went directly under the bridge, we could see the cars and trucks crossing over our heads in the two "see-through" inner lanes. It's a little unnerving to think how much weight just two pillars are supporting.
Even with the detour, the boat ride was less than thirty minutes. As we approached the island, we could see the Grand Hotel making its grand first impression.
Denisa also got a picture of the not-nearly-as-grand Mackinac lighthouse as we sailed by.
We had been advised to take our bicycles with us, and we were glad we did. We had to buy a ticket for the bikes to ride the ferry as well. Between the two of us, and two bicycles, it was a $70 round-trip ticket.
A little Victorian town greets all the ferry boat passengers. Even though the streets seemed hectic when we first arrived, we later realized that this was the calm before the storm of tourists arrived for the day. We beat most of the day visitors to the island, and it was definitely going to get more crowded before the day was over!
We love the fact that cars are not allowed on the island. So we won't have to worry about dodging vehicles on these busy streets today. But we will still have to be watching for all the horses and carriages, and the crazy tourists!
We decided to get out of that crowded town, and started on the 8-mile road that circles the entire island.
Remember, we don't have to watch for cars. But we do have to watch for tourists that rent a horse and buggy but have never driven a rig like this before in their lives. We also read that there are 1,500 bicycles for rent on Mackinac Island, and it feels like every one got leased today. So we must also be watching for tourists who haven't ridden a bicycle in the last ten (or more) years.
There were plenty of places to pull off the road for views of Lake Huron that surrounds us.
We also made a stop at Arch Rock, high on the hill above the lake.
We found out just high that hill was when we started up the 240-step staircase.
But it was fun to get to be eye-to-eye with the Arch.
Mark was more than a little sad to find that he wasn't allowed to climb out on top of the arch. The views through the arch--down to the road and the waters of Lake Huron--were worth the climb.
After we climbed down the steps, we were back on the perimeter road. We had to try very hard to get pictures without other bike riders in them.
We made a stop at another unusual rock formation--Devil's Kitchen. We're not fooled by the name, as we know this island is another of God's wonders.
We've now completed the first 8-mile lap around the island, so we found ourselves back in town. A friend had told us that you will know your ferry is getting close to Mackinac Island when you get your first whiff of the strange combination of fudge and horse manure. We've already experienced the horses, and now we are in search of the fudge. This island is the fudge capital of the United States. One can't walk more than 50 steps without bumping into another fudge shop. In fact, we were surprised to find fudge shops by the same name only a block apart. The most popular seemed to be the Murdick Shops, which tout that they have been making this sugary convection here since 1887.
We headed inside to watch the fudge chefs working their magic. While one cooked up the next batch, another guy was cooling another batch on the marble tables.
A confectionary artist, he will stir and blend and shape all that cooked sugar until he forms a perfect piece of fudge. We'd hate to think how many calories are in that four-foot-long single piece.
Yet another guy is slicing up the cooled fudge into perfectly sized pieces. The three cooks are working all the time to keep up with tourists that are carrying this stuff out in heavy packages. The ferry boats will be considerably heavier on our return trip, as we read that tourists buy 10,000 pounds of fudge each day here on Mackinac Island.
Fortified with fudge samples from more than one shop, we continue our bike ride up the hill. The woman at the visitor center gave us the tip that we could get away from the crowds by going up the steep hill protected by Fort Mackinac.
She was exactly right. Suddenly we were on a deserted island with trails entirely to ourselves. It's amazing how a very steep hill will separate you from the crowds of fudge-eaters in town.
We rode all around the upper parts of the island. We found things like the the gazebo left over from the filming of the movie "Somewhere in Time" filmed here in 1979. That's now on our list of old movies to watch.
We also found the site of Fort Holmes, where a nice replica of the 1812 fort has been built on the highest point of this little island.
We walked through old cemeteries where some of the earliest residents of this little island found their final resting place. The U.S. flag is always flown at half-mast here, in honor of the unknown soldier graves in this military cemetery.
We also found Sugar Loaf Stack--a 75-foot limestone pillar that has survived the weathering of time. This made a nice place for a picnic lunch we brought, since our stomachs were growling in spite of all those fudge tastings.
Our bikes proved to be great assets, as we really got to see every bit of the island--and at our own pace. Besides renting a bike, some visitors choose to rent a horse. This doesn't look like a very fast mode of transportation, as even Denisa could pass the horses--even going up hill!
Mark took this picture just a little later, and wanted to say, "Denisa was pooped out after that horse race." Besides dodging tourists on bicycles and horses, we also are finding we have to dodge all the horse poop on the roads.
After thoroughly exploring the highest parts of the island, we have one more destination. We found a less-traveled road that got us close to some of the grandest houses on the island.
More importantly, it will bring us to the less-used side approach to the Grand Hotel. We stashed our bikes and backpacks in the bushes, and walked up onto that grand front porch just like we were rich enough to be staying there. Later we found out that the cheapest room at the cheapest during-the-week rate would cost us more than $700 for a one-day stay.
Built in 1887, it is the world's largest summer hotel. We even sat down in two of the rockers that line the longest porch in the world.
We pretended we were guests to get a view of the grand lobby. We could have stayed for afternoon high tea, but the $50 per person price tag seemed a little high for tiny sandwiches and a cup of tea.
At the grand hotel, they even roll out the red carpet for their guests.
While Denisa stayed on the porch, Mark took some pictures from the sidewalk below.
After playing like we were in an episode of "The Rich and Famous," we headed back to the real world to retrieve our bikes and backpacks. We rode to the other side of the hotel where most visitors approach. That's where guards were scaring off tourists, who had to buy a $10 ticket to get a tour of the hotel.
We took one more lap around the top of the island, and we figure we've ridden about 20 miles today.
This lap brought us a few more quintessential pictures of Mackinac Island. Because there are no motorized vehicles, horse and wagons are used to gather trash, deliver food to restaurants, and even deliver food for the horses.
Back in town, we take time to stop by the two churches. The first is the humble first mission church that was built here in 1829.
The second is the grander Sainte Anne Church, a staple steeple of the island.
A long line of horses and carriages are lined up on the road, waiting for those visitors that didn't want to pedal their way around the island.
We had a hard time finding a parking space along Main Street among the multitude of bicycles. We thought it was crowded early this morning when we arrived, but it is crazy busy by late afternoon! We stopped at one more fudge shop to get our last fudge-fix before we board the ferry back towards the reality of life in a world filled with cars.
As we leave Mackinac Island, we also leave behind that interesting combination smell of fudge and horse manure. It's been an interesting day on one of America's most interesting islands.
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