The morning started early with a windy pass over the Mackinaw Bridge from St. Ignace to Mackinaw City. With Lake Huron to the east of the bridge and Lake Michigan to the west of the bridge, we officially crossed over to "mainland" Michigan.
It was a cold, windy day, but rain was in the forecast all week for Mackinac Island. We knew we'd regret not going, so we decided to bundle up and head down to jump on the ferry.
The wind was whipping across the lake and waves were crashing into the pier. Several poor souls on our ferry ride got splashed with spray on the way over to the island.
It was a pretty quick ride on the ferry, only about 15-20 minutes, with a great view of the bridge, a lighthouse, and the island.
Despite the weather, the island was bustling and busy. One of the coolest features about Mackinac Island is there are no cars - none! Horse drawn carriages and bicycles line the streets. You can bring your own bike or rent one on the island, then ride around the island on the 8-mile loop. We really wanted to do this, but decided to skip this time because of the weather. Instead we opted to explore the island on foot, which did not disappoint. The island is full of history, and even boasts a Revolutionary War-era fort that traded hands between the British and Americans several times.
The ferry harbor is adjacent to the Main Street, full of shops, cafes and fudgeries - Mackinac is the fudge capital of the world! It was a lot more touristy than we were expecting, but we still enjoyed taking part in the fun.
It was much nicer on our ferry ride back to the mainland, so we sat on the very top level of the boat to enjoy the views.
In Mackinaw City we found a quiet little beach along Lake Michigan where the kids gathered some really interesting looking rocks and bits of shells. We also stopped by a teeny little historic town and the kids played on a swing hanging from a giant oak tree.
We stayed at Mackinaw Mill Creek Camping, which was like a city of cabins, rv sites, tent sites and more. It sits right along Lake Huron with an amazing view of the bridge, but was just way too big for us. Ray and I had to use the campground map to make it in and out of our campsite - it was crazy! We did meet a really nice family from Oregon who is camping their way around the country as well! - @roadschooling
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