St. Ignace & Mackinaw Island, MI

Our campground, Tiki RV Park, was in St. Ignace, a 15-minute ferry ride to Mackinaw Island. The downtown had a community park where the boardwalk would take you to the lighthouse. Every Saturday until Labor Day, they had a firework display. In the last three years, we haven’t been to a place where the 4th of July fireworks were within a reasonable distance, so I was excited to watch the night sky light up.

The massive Mackinaw Bridge connects the upper and lower parts of the peninsula. We decided to go for an 18-mile bike ride which required us to drive across the bridge. Going through the toll booth took us longer than traveling across the bridge. After our ride, we stopped at Mackinaw City. The town has many shops and restaurants, and of course, we had to visit the lighthouse.

We took the 7:15 ferry over to Mackinaw Island. The ferry carried primarily people who worked on the island. The first item when we arrived was to rent a tandem bike. No motorized vehicles are allowed on the island. Bikes, carriage rides, and on foot are the modes of transportation. It was our first experience on a tandem, and the best part was the deserted streets. The 8-mile ride around the island was peaceful, with a view of the water and a stop to climb the Arch Rock – all 207 stairs.

Our next stop was a tour of the Grand Hotel. Somewhere in Time was filmed here, and it has been a vacation oasis for generations. The history of this hotel is fascinating, and it has the most extended veranda with rocking chairs I have ever seen. After six o clock, all guests must be in dress attire. FANCY!! We left the hotel to go back into the town for lunch. The number of people now roaming the streets was unreal. It reminded me of Disney’s Main Street. We enjoyed our stay on Mackinaw Island, but for us, it was a one-and-done.

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