The last leg of the Michigan part of our adventures ended with going to the Upper Peninsula first.
We drove up there to tour Tahquamenon Falls which were accessed through one of the state parks. The falls were so beautiful and rushing wild! The river bed was great and very good for kayaking. One thing I loved that was an option on site was to take a little rowboat up to the falls base. So cute. After viewing all the observations of the falls, we went to the concessions because they had a brewery, "Tahquamenon Falls Brewery." The beer was so good. Fresh and crisp too after the small hike. We sat drinking our beers, talking, eating snacks, and Eric bought me a t-shirt! I'm all about a shirt from a state park or especially from a National Park.
From the falls, we headed up to Lake Superior to take a boat tour to view "Pictured Rocks." This was such an incredible experience. We rode on top of the boat. In July in the U.P. of Michigan at the top of a boat on an open deck, it felt like 50 degrees. Haha! Can you imagine, southern friends? As a matter of fact, one morning it was 46 degrees when we woke up in July!! It's no wonder why God made me a southern belle! Ha! Anyway, the tour was gorgeous. The water was so clear and blue and immense. We saw an old lighthouse, and toured all the "paint" on the rocks from all the minerals in the water that have "painted" the rocks colors of red, teal, black, white, and brown. The way the water and erosion has cut the rocks over time and the stories that go along with the views and history were just awesome. I don't think we stopped "ooing and ahhing" the entire tour. You can also kayak tour this if your children are a certain age. I think that would also be awesome! You can actually also hike parts of this area and with each tour you'll see the same things in a new light/different perspective. I thoroughly enjoyed our boat tour and HIGHLY recommend doing this and sitting up top is a must. (So get there early and get in line at the front; you'll not regret it!) I took another thousand photos because it was insane! And again pictures just never do the beauty justice. After this tour, we parted ways with Eric's parents as they went back to Bay City. We grabbed super juicy burgers and wonderful fries at this spot on the water then headed back over the Mackinac Bridge to our little hotel just beside it where we had a waterfront beach and view of the bridge. We were so cozy there and slept really well after our adventurous day!
When we woke up, we got dressed and boarded the ferry boat to take us up close and personal to the Mackinac Bridge then over to Mackinac Island. Did you realize, that on the island you can have no car or vehicle at all? You can walk, ride a horse, or bike! And y'all it made for the MOST charming town...it didn't even feel real; it was like a fairytale. We ate breakfast at the chuck wagon - a restaurant that was about the size of a hallway and it was AMAZING! I got like a Tex Mex Burrito and yummmm! Way to start the day. We went next to explore and reserve a horse buggy....Ellie made an immediate request for a horse no shock to us. We toured around the historic sites and landmarks while we waited for our personal horse and carriage. When it came time to board our carriage, we returned to Jack's Livery Stables and got acquainted with our horse, Judy. Eric took the reigns and he lead his girls around the island where we saw all the sites. This was so cool and so fun! A totally new experience to be in control of our own horse carriage. I felt like Laura Ingalls. This added to the feel of not being in real life. Dang I didn't even feel like I was in America! Haha! Another way to tour the island is by riding bikes or walking or taking a large group horse carriage tour. I loved the way we did it and my second choice would be to rent or bring our bikes over on the ferry and tour that way. Be mindful there are tons of steep hills. We toured by the lake, charming homes from another world, historic landmarks, and natural wonders. Ellie took her nap on the carriage and it was so good she did because we walked and explored a lot that day. Once we had returned Judy to her stable, we grabbed drinks and lunch at the Great Turtle Brewing Co. Once refreshed and bellies full, we picked Ellie up a special souvenir at the island book shop of a story book based on a true story, "Cubbie, The Mackinac Island Bear." What a cute and adroable book about a true story. You can see a small exhibit about this true story within the John Jacob Astor house on the island which is free to tour (but donations are recommended.) Fun note, did that name ring a bell? John Jacob Astor was big in the fur trade business in America...but you may remember his name from Titanic. (I remembered the name from documentaries I've watched). John Jacob Astor (who's home we were inside) was the grandfather of John Jacob Astor IV who helped build the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel AND was a passenger aboard Titanic who was crushed to death. This was a neat self guided tour through the home turned museum and I recommend doing it if you love history as I do. Truly interesting. We toured Arch Rock on the island which is an edge of the island that was cut away by erosion in the shape of an arch and the arch frames the crystal clear blue water of Lake Superior. Then we walked up to Fort Holmes to look around. Fort Mackinac is the only thing on the island we didn't take a full tour of. I'd have liked to have seen it but it was like $13.80 per adult + $8 for children and it closes at 6. We weren't ready to even look at it until 5:30 so the cost would not have been worth it to us. However, had we spent two days here, I'd have spent a full day at Fort Mackinac as they have events that change everyday all throughout the day. And there are some interactive aspects throughout the island that you can tour with purchased admission from the fort. We did however; get to witness a cannon demonstration. We were not expecting it as we sat below what would be it's field of range had it been loaded, licking our ice creams and basking in the sun. It was cool! Eric got me another shirt. We viewed some churches and other historical features, then loaded the ferry back to our hotel after a very full blessed and beautiful day on this magical island. When we returned to our little hotel on the lake with a view of Mackinac Island in the distance across the water, we sat on the beach watching the sun go down, building creations with the rocks in the sand, and feeding the geese (like we don't see geese all day every day in our own backyard, ha!) Except, there were truly about 80 geese and they were not aggressive (used to guests) so...it was pretty cool. We went back inside after watching the sunset and snuggled close and read Ellie's new book about Cubbie the Mackinac Island bear.
When we woke up, it was to Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky we went!
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