Well, if we are social media friends, then you already know how much I loved Michigan! I don't think I'd want to be here in the winter, but August was a perfect time to visit.
Ann Arbor: We drove from Akron, Ohio into Ann Arbor. It was a Sunday evening, so it wasn't super crowded. The lots were all big enough to fit our RV and were free on Sunday evening. I wouldn't want to be there with the RV on a University of Michigan game day, but getting around on a Sunday night was no problem. We grabbed dinner on Main Street, which was all shut down to allow outdoor seating. Big rain was coming in so we just grabbed some food at the Irish Pub. Nothing special, so definitely try somewhere else. Not too far away was a Meijer store, and they allow over night parking so we called it a night.
Sleeping Bear Dune Scenic Drive: If you plan on doing a trip like us, I definitely recommend getting an America the Beautiful park pass for $80. It gets you into some of the big parks out west, and lots more. This scenic drive is $25 without the pass, but "free" with the pass, and it's one of my favorite things we've done so far. Definitely worth it. It reminded me of the Cades Cove drive we did in the Smoky Mountains, but this one was way better. I had no idea how beautiful Michigan summers can be!
Traverse City- Very cool little city on the water. Worth a stop. We only stopped long enough to grab dinner and a flight of ciders from Taproot Cider House. I'm not a huge cider fan, but it's feeling like Fall here in Michigan, so why not! I wanted to check out the Hippie Tree, but didn't feel like hiking. Maybe the next time we swing through! We stayed at a Harvest Host location in Mackinaw City called Northland Brewing. They weren't open, but still let us stay so that was night so they get a shout out. I don't think they have a website though.
Mackinaw City/Mackinac Island: We woke up early to catch a morning ferry from Mackinaw City to Mackinac Island. We used Starline Ferry from Mackinaw City (St. Ignace is in the UP). It costs about $25 per person and takes about 20 minutes to get from the city to the island. Dogs are free. Once on the island we went the opposite way of the people and found a little cafe on the water called Watercolor cafe. I definitely recommend the Michigan Cherry coffee.
The hike to the Arch is a 207 step climb, OR you could go against the grain like us. We walked up a side street to the top and around. It was a more gradual incline. Then, we walked DOWN the steps. This was way better in my opinion. Worth the hike either way though.
The Mustang Lounge was very dog friendly, cool, and our appetizer was good. I wish we would've stayed there, but we went to the Great Turtle based on a recommendation from a couple we met on the ferry. They sat us right in front of the door even when I asked if we could be on the outskirts because of the dog. Then, our server complained that Lucy was in the way... no big deal, we'll leave. We took the ferry back and grabbed food at Rusted Spoke in Mackinaw City. Way more dog friendly, good food, and lots of beer choices.
The ferry service offered free overnight parking. I don't think that meant we could stay in our RV overnight, but we did with no problem. We can be pretty stealth because we don't need to run our generator. Temperatures dropped into the 60s so we didn't even run our fans.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore: We went from Trolls to Yoopers. Trolls are below the bridge and Yoopers are people in the UP (upper peninsula) over the Mackinaw Bridge. This is a great stop if you are into hiking. Some of the prettier views come from hiking vs. driving, but we got a late and pretty much did everything wrong. Here's how we SHOULD have done this. Bay Furnace Campground has a few first come first serve campsites for $22 (or $11 if you are an America the Beautiful pass holder). Check in is at 2 PM. We should have secured our spot, then did the drive OR started our drive a the east and ended in the west (where the campsite is located). We did not secure a spot and did the drive backwards and had to go all the way (35 miles) back to the campsite. Even doing it all wrong, it worked out. We got the second to last first come first serve spot, cooked dinner on our grill, and had a peaceful yet COLD (50s) night. Before we left, we took advantage of the dump and fresh water which are free since we were campers. If you're not a camper, it's $5. Oh! I made sure we grabbed a Pasty before we left Michigan.
Next up- Wisconsin and the search for cheese curds!
Love this MI adventure...now I'm looking up all the restaurants.