9/17/09 (Thursday): Here we are in the beautiful, slightly chilly Upper Peninsula! We're having so much fun that it's difficult to find time to blog, but I've got pictures backing up, so I'd better get to it.

We're in the little town of St. Ignace, just across the Mackinac Bridge from lower Michigan. Here's a map. Before we go any further, let me say something about Mackinac/Mackinaw. The bridge and island are "Mackinac" the city on the mainland is Mackinaw. Apparently, the French Pronounced it "aw" but spelled it "ac". The British heard it pronounced "aw" so they spelled it that way. Whichever way it is spelled, it is always pronounced "aw." I'll probably flub that up a couple of times in this blog, so bear with me.
The bridge is really mind boggling. Here's a link to the official web site (Macinac Bridge) so that I don't have to go into all the details. It was a little overwhelming to think about driving across it pulling 10,000 pounds behind me, but I triumphed (and enjoyed it, too).
On Tuesday we visited Mackinac Island (see the map). What a great day! The weather was beautiful, the ferry was fun (chilly!), and walking the roads and trails was educational, good exercise and fun. The island was formed by ancient seas, ice age glaciers and various upheavals. It's about 4 square miles and lies in the Straits of Macinac, between the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan. It was inhabitated by Native Americans even before the arrival of European explorers. From the 1700's onward, it was important to the Great Lakes fur trade. This led to the establishment of Fort Mackinac by the British during the American Revolution. It was also the site of two battles during the War of 1812.It's a short ferry ride from Mackinaw City to Mackinac Island. As you enter the harbor of the island, you see the Round Island Lighthouse and the Round Island Passage Light.
Then the village spreads before you, crowned by Fort Macinac. The entire island is a national historic landmark. It's been dubbed a living Victorian village. About 80% of the island is preserved as a state park.
Motorized vehicles have been banned on the island since 1898, which has gone a long way toward preserving the old timey feel of the place. There are lots of bikes on the roads and tourists can take horse drawn carriage tours. We opted to hike.
We took the paved path up the hill past the fort. It was very steep, but the view from the top was worth the shaky legs.
Here we are at the top. Note the Passage Light and Round Island Light in the background.
Arch Rock is a natural limestone arch, 146 feet (45 m) above the ground. We could see people on the shore far below.

We followed some shaded dirt roads to see Skull Cave.

Here's the story of how Skull Cave got its name. It looks mighty small to have spent a night in, especially on a bed of skulls! You can't go in the cave now. I presume the skulls have been removed.

It was getting close to lunch time, so we headed back to Market Street in the village and had lunch in one of the many cafes that line the street. Of course, we couldn't pass up a piece of famous Macinac Island fudge for dessert. People have been buying fudge on the island for more than a century and there are fudge shops everywhere. This has led to tourists being called "fudgies" by locals. I can attest that Macinac Island fudge deserves its reputation for yumminess.

I guess we got our second winds with lunch and the fudge. We decided to walk the perimeter road and get a look at Arch Rock from below. It was a pretty walk along the Straits past Victorian homes large and small, resorts and numerous beautiful gardens. Unfortunately, the sun made a good picture of the arch impossible. But you get the idea.

We probably hiked at least 5 miles that day and I was absolutely exhausted. Wiley, on the other hand, came home and went metal detecting! It's really great to be traveling the country and still go to sleep in my own bedroom at night. On Wednesday, we went to Fort Michilimackinac. That will be the topic of the next blog. Stay tuned!