Great Loop Day 019 Sept 16, 2016, Part 3 0f 4 Mackinac Island Wild Wind 4-Hour Tour
Mackinac Island, Michigan
"Everyone knew that all islands were worlds unto themselves, that to come to an island was to come to another world." —Guy Gavriel Kay
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Mackinac Island Wild Wind 4-Hour Tour.
Day 19 Friday, Sept 16, 2016. Part 3 0f 4. In the previous post, I had ridden the mountain bike all around the island. All 8 miles. Stopped at all the attractions and got their picture for later reading. 2 nature trails and 207 steps to the top of Arch Rock. All in 1:30 hrs. Now for a quick break onboard for an Amish molasses cookie, well 3, they ended up stuck together and power ade. Mickey is doing as well as can be expected being tossed around but safe inside the cabin. Now on to the town...
Comments From 2016:
Tim Hagan I am exhausted. I am going to take a nap.
Henry Krzemien RN Take an extra-long one for me. It'll take me days to absorb all I have seen in these few short hours I had on this incredible island paradise.
Tim Hagan Henry Krzemien, your energy makes me feel so old. Am enjoying your post. Thank you.
Henry Krzemien RN You're welcome, Tim, thanks to my ibuprofen I can push it a little farther.
Anne Schnatterly Henry, great adventure you are on! This island is a great place and I have friends who manage a few places around town. You should stop by the Pink Pony! Is it open Brian Bailey?
Henry Krzemien RN Wow, Anne, I'm so sorry. I wish I had known earlier. Did a wild wind tour of this incredible island! A photographer's paradise!!! Everywhere I looked had to be photographed. I'm sitting in my boat as cramped as it is viewing the pics on my computer. So many. It was Walt Disney's vision when he created Main Street for his parks. But with huge hotels. Amazing! People are getting off the ferries with suitcases. Many are lugging them up to the Grand Hotel. I walked up there but was not permitted to even photograph the grounds unless I was a registered guest. The golf course looked immaculate! The little churches were spectacular. This was the highlight of my trip. However, staying the night on the Sea Marie would not have been comfortable. Winds out of the east made the harbor very choppy and add the ferry traffic waves made it worse. Rented a mountain bike and rode the 8 miles around stopping at every sign to photograph and read later. 2 small nature trails like our Metropark. One with a babbling brook made me homesick. It was crowded with people bikes and horses. So much to say; can take days to absorb what I witnessed in a few short hours. Took 800mg ibuprofen knowing I'm going to be sore tomorrow. Haven't done this much since doing triathlon training in the 80s.
Brian Bailey, Open and waiting for Henry!
Anne Schnatterly Thank you - he took off earlier in the day! Would have sent him to you if I had known he was going over to the island! Hope all is well and keeping busy this fall
Victor Steve McDowell Where are you?
Henry Krzemien RN If I told you Victor Steve McDowell you wouldn't believe me.
Dan Sheridan Someone told me last week "The 8-mile trip around Mackinac Island is the most dangerous ride I have ever done." (Too many unpredictable cyclists)
Henry Krzemien RN The people, the bikes, and the horses were everywhere in town. And on the roads around this photographer's paradise. I shot every interpretative sign they had so I could read them later. A tornado tour the likes of which I have never done before. And I only covered the outside fringe. The interior of this wonderland still needs to be explored.
Henry Krzemien RN I saw very few road bikes. Mostly comfort bikes and a few mountain bikes like the one I rented and all the bike saddles on the rentals were the same for people with big butts. Many kiddy trailers and tag along. Tandems were everywhere also.
Camille Sandrock, I am enjoying your travel posts!! Beautiful scenery!
Great Loop Day 19 Sept 16, 2016, Part 3 0f 4 Mackinac Island Wild Wind 4-Hour Tour.
Day 19 continued. The bike is back at the rental, had a light lunch with Mickey, and took off for the town to see what was to see. The ferries (there are 2 ferry services) were busy all day dropping people off and going back for more. Also caught a supply ship bringing crates and boxes and loading up the horse-drawn wagons. 3 of these wagons were all open flatbed wagons with exception of one I saw and wonder what they do when it's raining.
A walk down the main street had people going in both directions on the sidewalk. The construction crew has laid out the forms for many of the curbs and waiting for the cement truck to fill them in. Much of the sidewalks were caution taped off to keep the pedestrians from tripping on the boards used as forms to hold the concrete in. This caused some pedestrian congestion at the corners as some people want to go straight and others wanted to cross the road and had to walk around the obstacles.
All the shops were open and the delicious smell of fudge was everywhere. Some of the T-shirts and hoodies proudly displayed how the fudge was made with the gatherings from the ground left by the horses as if to tell us nothing goes to waste in this town.
One of the popular t-shirts at all the gift shops on the island.
Starts to make you wonder, doesn’t it?
Should I see the Fort or go see the Grand Hotel? Seems most of the people were heading to the hotel so I hopped in their slipstream and followed the crowd. Once you pass the town and shops and smaller multi-story hotels the road goes up a hill and the Grand Hotel comes into view.
There are those who are privileged and patronize the hotel in a manner befitting a grand style thus they are rewarded with a pony carriage ride up the hill to the main entrance. Sitting up high in the carriage one can look down their pompous noses upon the poor peasants who are forced to ambulate up the hill under their own power.
There, on the tree lawn as you approach is a sign advising people not registered there will be a charge of Ten Dollars per person written in cursive to give it that - must be grand if the amount of the fare is written in cursive - look just to enter and soak in the grandeur of the lobby of this hotel. If you look closely you will see the words, "Ten Dollars per Person" are painted on a board that is then attached by a set of screws to the original sign so there would be no need to make a new sign when the proprietors decide to increase the rate. Guessing by the number of screw holes that must happen quite often.
I continue my pilgrimage with the peasants getting ever more excited as the columns at the entrance come into view. Another large sign advises the multitude on foot that:
Proper Dress is required at the Hotel and Hotel owned street.
Gentlemen after 6 p.m. must be attired in coat and tie,
Ladies may not be attired in slacks.
It is not yet 6 p.m. and I am dressed as slovenly but respectfully as the next pilgrim on our holy tour.
I checked my wallet and indeed I had a crisp ten-dollar bill I would be willing to make a sacrificial offering to have these poor old man's eyes lay their gaze on the opulent interior I heard so much. Surely this must be the Holiest of Holy Shrines on this island. And what if by any small chance my bodily afflictions should be no more? Would it be a miracle? Yes, A Miracle! I would proclaim it and shout it from every church bell tower on the island I have been cured. Surely there must be many crutches and wheelchairs on the premise to dwarf the famed shrine at Fatima.
The cascade of sojourners became quiet and whispered ever so softly in reverence the closer we arrived. Up ahead, a woman's voice is heard as she addresses the crowd coming toward her. Perhaps to bestow a welcoming blessing, a spiritual beatitude. I strain my ears to hear...
"If you are not a registered guest you will not be allowed in the Hotel!" she stated with a sternness of a Mother Superior with a ruler in hand, 'If you are not registered you will have to go back!"
I stop, stunned, and shaken. The crowd around me continues in a forward advance as I stay motionless watching the chosen pilgrims walk by. A few other people heard the proclamation and turn away, hiding their faces in shame. For they were much too embarrassed to say any word; they walk back down the hill in silence.
My soul has been spiritually wounded. There will be no miracle cure for me today. I turn. I begin my descent into despair. This can not happen, this must not happen for I have traveled too far. I see a small road to the right of me that leads to the bottom of the hill the hotel stands on. Nobody is on this road. Yes, before me lies… the proverbial road less traveled. I take it. Behind some old trees stood a large house of glass. A greenhouse. The greenhouse for the hotel. Alas, and no groundskeepers for me to charm my way in to sample the aroma and behold the colors of the flowers and plants inside. I take some photos and I take my leave.
All is not lost. We have the Fort, Fort Mackinac, to be precise, to see and explore. My legs and feet become energized at the prospect and I walk briskly to my next venue.
The Fort is on the other side of the main street. I make my way thru the tourists shopping and dining. I get to the front entrance and there is... a long line. A Long Line to get into the Fort. I do not have the luxury of time to spend in line if I'm to sail across the strait to the next marina before darkness befalls us. I thought I would walk up the hill and perhaps get some photos of the Fort and the lake below. And to my surprise, there was another entrance to the Fort with no line! A miracle has happened after all! I paid my $12 and get my walking tour guidebook. Beyond the large doors, the Fort is buzzing with activity. On the parade grounds is a small regiment of reenactors dressed in 1800s army uniforms performing drills and doing small firearms demonstrations. A Sargent is bellowing his explanation to the bystanders of the intricacies of close-quarter combat with a bayonet on a carbine rifle. No one volunteered to be the recipient of that drill. The buildings of enlisted men and officer quarters are all well maintained with signage explaining the different aspects of living in a military fort during the frontier. Of particular interest to me was the building that housed the Fort Hospital.
The large room held 4 beds with mannequins laying in three of them representing soldiers with 3 different ailments. A projection was shown of a Modern Doctor and Nurse who would describe the illnesses and how they were treated back then. Surprised anybody was able to survive the ordeal.
With my soul healed and spirits raised in jubilation, I head back to my boat and I said goodbye to Mackinac Island, Thank you for a wonderful time.
Note: I have taken over 430 photographs on the island and going through them was a daunting task. In Part 4, I will display some of the better shots for your enjoyment.