MARVELOUS MICHIGAN!

Michigan, oh Michigan… You are a true beauty! I never realized there was so much to do and see in this marvelous state. I wish we could have stayed and wandered longer. We were fortunate enough to stop in two of the most beautiful places that I’ve ever seen. Michigan is touched by four out of the five Great Lakes (Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Superior, and Lake Michigan). Therefore, there are many opportunities for experiences on or around the lakes!

1. Mackinaw Island: The girls and I journeyed to Mackinaw Island. When I was researching for our road trip, Mackinaw Island was mentioned over and over again, and I knew that we had to see it. Mackinaw Island is located in Lake Huron between Michigan’s lower and upper peninsulas. To reach this island, you need to take a ferry from either Mackinaw City or Saint Ignace. We booked Shepler’s ferry in Mackinaw City in advance, and it was an easy and great experience!

Once you are on the island, there are no cars allowed. Bikes and horses are the only forms of transportation. The picture below is a great way to portray the island… I loved seeing Amazon packages being pulled by horseback.

Our first stop off the ferry was to Murdick’s Fudge. The Murdick family opened the first first fudge store on Mackinaw Island in 1887. The fudge is delicious, and it was a perfect way to start our tour!

We then took a carriage tour of the island to see all of the sightseeing spots. The tour stopped at the Surrey Hills Museum, Wings of Mackinac Butterfly Conservatory (extra fee), Arch Rock, and Fort Mackinac (extra fee). We chose not to pay the extra fee for either the Mackinac Butterfly Conservatory or Fort Mackinac. We absolutely loved seeing Arch Rock, which is a natural limestone arch. The views were breathtaking.

Afterwards, we decided to take ourselves on an adventure with a horse named Bob. We “drove” Bob, but he definitely knew the island better than anyone else and drove himself. The girls loved every minute of our private horse tour, and it was definitely worth the smiles and giggles.

We walked around some more, ate lunch, and then hopped back on the ferry. We truly loved the charm of Mackinaw Island. If you have the opportunity to go, run!

2. Pictured Rocks: We were so excited to pick up Pa (my Dad) before heading to the Upper Peninsula to see the Pictured Rocks. So, what are the Pictured Rocks? The Pictured Rocks are multicolored cliffs located on the south shore of Lake Superior. To see these magnificent formations, we took a cruise with Pictured Rocks Cruises. We decided on the Spray Falls Cruise, and it was absolutely gorgeous. The tour was a little over two hours, and the kids were definitely antsy towards the end… Good news though – they fell asleep for the last 30 minutes!

After the tour, we headed to Wisconsin. I am so glad we took the time to stop to see this National Lakeshore. It was definitely one of my favorite stops of the road trip. Have you ever seen these formations? Thank you for wandering along with us!