I was up early drinking coffee enjoying the quiet of the morning. The plan was to go to Mackinac Island so I read a bit about the history. Much like the rest of the US the world, its history is one which starts with military conquest in the form of both French and English forts - the great lakes being an important water system to control. The name, originally Michilimackinac, must have been a mouthful so it was shortened to Mackinac - still a mouthful. I'd prefer it just be called The Place of the Great Turtle. So The Island of the Great Turtle.
Mackinac Island is synonymous with two things - fudge and the absence of cars. The whole fudge thing started in the 1920s, and there are many stories about its origins on the island. Suffice to say, weight gain is not prominent in any of the stories. The lack of cars goes back to July of 1898 when villagers petitioned the city council to prohibit these new reckless horseless carriages since they scared the horses (must be weenie horses?). It stuck and continues to this day.
Big Sis and I headed out relatively early to take the ferry to the Island. After parking and getting our tickets, we had some time to kill since the ferry didn't go out for another hour. We walked along Mackinac City coastline. The Big Mac bridge dominates the skyline as an impressive and very pretty bridge. The spots in the photograph are bugs, which are neither impressive or pretty.
I've driven across the bridge several times, but I had the chance to get a totally new perspective by going under it. Frankly, it was one of the coolest things I've seen in recent memory.
Soon enough the ferry came and we boated across the water. Approaching the island it looks like any other coastal area with tourist tendencies with the imposing Grand Hotel. Getting off the ferry, the main street was quaint enough, if a bit busy. It was early ... it got worse.
We walked around a bit before heading out to walk the entire perimeter of the island. We walked counterclockwise, thus setting in motion only one future based on that direction. Walking was a lot of fun. Early on there were not that many people on bicycles and we talked many of the world problems. Views of the water were stunning in places.
We hoofed up the stairs to see the Arch which was neat enough (I guess), but this exact same picture is probably taken hundreds of times every day. So it goes. Compared to Utah, it is a bit anticlimactic, but the same picture phenomenon exists there as well. I was glad that we were early so we could see it without hordes of people.
The entire perimeter is 8.2 miles. Both of us walk a lot so it wasn't strenuous at all. Traffic picked up and made the last couple miles not quite as pleasant. Mackinac Island may be car free, but the bicycles piloted by inexperienced riders made it feel nearly as deadly.
There was one dude who is my hero for the day - pedaling along he was carrying both his kid and his kid's bike on his back. These are the heroes we need more of in this world.
There must be a route where people can "drive" their own horse carts since there were dazed looking people in smaller carts with the saddest looking horses trudging along a shorter section of the perimeter road. The "drivers" all must have been given the same instructions, although I strongly suspect the well-trained horses are actually in charge with the people playing a more ceremonial role.
Back in the main downtown area, it was an ugly reptile zoo filled with people, horses, people, carts, people, bikes, people, fudge, people, but no cars. We had met up with Brother and family along the walk (they were on bikes), but we ended up doing our own separate things.
Sis and I walked up to Fort Mackinac, but decided not to pay the tax to get in. This was the right decision since later we could see it was filled with a similar subset of kids and people. We continued on to Fort Holmes which was nearly deserted by comparison. The view from the top and highest point on the island was gorgeous.
We had walked well over 11 miles at this time and were ready to be done. I did buy some obligatory fudge, but wasn't sure if it was sweet enough - they should sell it with a glass of maple syrup (yes, I am being quite sarcastic). Every time I saw these tragically horrid horse carts, I couldn't help but think they looked like Fellini in the movie A Boy and His Dog. And while I realize they are draft animals, it seems a rather sad existence.
Back on the ferry we headed back across the water and to the (relative) quiet of our rented 350 acres.
Little Sis was there by that time, and it was good to see her as well.
I spent quite a bit of time trying to put some perspective on Mackinac Island. It is much like any other touristy place, but the lack of cars seems to be an additional draw. It may bring a bit of quaintness compared to other places, but with all the people and bikes, that quaintness gets erased quickly. It isn't a bad place and I was glad I went. The mostly undeveloped areas are treasures. It wasn't a place I feel some irresistible draw to ever go back to.
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