Ignace is Bliss

We were up early and got ready to face our last day in the Upper Peninsula. The room was so small, we really did have to go outside to change our minds, as the old cliche goes! It made getting the bikes packed up even harder. There were no breakfast options, so we had homemade granola before taking off. It took a while to ease the 100+ pound bikes down the steep steps of this broom closet room after getting them through the narrow door.

We debated just going down US 2 or following Google directions. We decided to split the difference and do the first part following Google. So far so good. It was a constant gradual uphill for most of the ride, but it was beautiful and scenic. We were on the Hiawatha Trail, which is actually a paved road for about 15 miles. Then gravel. The going was slow, but no travails. It was dense northern forest with huge trees. Then we turned onto a thick, sandy path. Bruce persevered through the muck, but Kelley was off her bike and walking. There were some unidentifiable animal tracks on the path- not bears, but not any tracks we could identify. Fortunately, we were only on that path for 1/2 mile. We came to a campsite and enjoyed a break. We had a snack next to Strouble Lake and walked out on the pier to enjoy the view. It seemed we were in the middle of nowhere.

Once on the bikes again we had only a few short feet of gravel before being back on the road. Whew! The scenery was amazing! Beautiful evergreen forests and charming homes dotted our path. We rejoined US 2, dreading the awful traffic that was sure to be there. To our surprise, it wasn’t too bad. Soon we were seeing amazing views of Lake Michigan.

After a time we came to a picnic area where we could eat our lunch. We enjoyed some re-hydrated vegetable soup, and then a quick walk down to the beach to check out the lake. When we got back on the road, the views of the lake got better and better! Once again, cycling Nirvana!!! There were huge dunes on both sides of the road.

One thing the Upper Peninsula is known for is their Pasties, which is a meat and vegetable stuffed, rolled pastry-it is like a large empanada. They are made with rutabaga, onions, and potatoes. There is an iconic place, Lehto’s Pasties, that was right on our way, so we had to have one, even though we had just had lunch. It was worth the stop. Delicious!

We got to our campground at St. Ignace and set up camp. They had a private beach, so we walked down to check out the beach. We showered, fixed dinner, then went back to the beach to watch the sunset. We could see the famous Mackinac suspension bridge to the north. So lovely, but we were irritated by bugs the whole time.

We had a great night’s sleep and ate breakfast- rice pudding. We went one last time down to the beach before packing up and heading to Mackinac Island.

Wednesday Cycling: 49 miles

Hiking: 3.5 miles