Ok; I've been remiss about posting during the actual ride so I'm playing a little catch-up. Normally I use my Samsung phone to blog during events like the
Shoreline West Bicycle Tour but for the life of me I couldn't keep the phone charged long enough in the evenings after riding all day to write anything down. And that's apart from simply being a wee bit tired after pedaling 50+ miles a day for 6 days (there was a rest day in the middle, thank you God).
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Cyclists luggage is loaded to be shuttled to the
start in Montague
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Suffice it to say that I was very impressed with this ride, from the route, to the friendliness of all the people - riders and staff alike, to the catered meals (breakfast and dinner), to the gorgeous weather we had during the daytime. We did have a downpour one evening when the weather looked threatening enough they were thinking of evacuating us inside, and some light sprinkles some other nights but the days were sunny and warm (but not too hot) and the feared Midwest humidity never was that oppressive (thank you God). We did manage to get lost by missing some poorly marked/signed turns but by day two they had corrected that minor oversight and we could focus on admiring the beautiful scenery as we rode miles through tree-lined glades and along sun-dappled lakeshore.
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The mighty Mackinac Bridge that connects Mackinaw City
to Michigan's Upper Penninsula
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This part of Michigan, which I had never been to before, is where Midwesterners come to vacation and after seeing and experiencing it I can understand why. The roads we pedaled on were for the most part lightly traveled, and the terrain, though not flat, certainly didn't feature any of the vertical challenges that our home State of Colorado offers. Some hills were quite steep (12-25% grades) but were never too long, and one even offered a watermelon stop three-quarters of the way up.
The towns we rode through, as well as the towns where we spent the night, were beautiful with lots of spectacular vacation homes (mansions) along the way to gawk at. In the early 1900's the wealthy industrialists from Detroit and Chicago would make their way out of the crowded and sweltering cities to the cooler climes farther north where they spent some of their prodigious wealth on stunning
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The Mushroom Houses are a site to see in the
lakeshore town of Charlevoix
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abodes along the lakeshore. The Great Lakes ameliorate the temperature since their water is in the 60 degree range so it was always very comfortable riding near the water. Go inland a couple of miles though and the temps would dramatically rise and you'd find yourself sweating like you were riding the Tour De France.
As I mentioned, the people on the ride were very friendly and it seemed that many, if not most, had done the ride before. Some have been doing it for years and they profess to not tiring of it quite yet. Several other folks from Colorado had made the long jaunt to do the ride but the vast majority hailed from closer parts, primarily Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio. And of course, being this close to our Northern border, there was the occasional Canadian thrown in for good measure, eh.
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Not the first choice for bike touring
but a beautiful ride nonetheless
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All had a love of cycling, most were on road bikes but there were a fair share of tandems, recumbents, and trikes. We were on our
Longbike recumbent tandem, and while we were tired by day's end we never experienced the sore hands and sore butts of those opting for more standard bikes.
Meals were catered morning and night and while there was the expected meat and potato offerings (this being the Midwest) they also made a solid effort to offer vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options that were actually very tasty. This is the first ride I've been on where 'vegetarian' means more than lettuce and fruit. Let me tell you, you haven't seen hangry until you've tried to ride 70 miles on just lettuce and fruit! Lunches were on our own and were usually eaten while out on the ride at restaurants along the way. Here too there was a surprisingly good offering of non-meat fare for those so inclined.
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| Tent Cities sprout each night along the route |
Nights were spent at schools in the towns and everyone was in a tent on this ride. For those familiar with events like Ride the Rockies you know that those rides offer not just tent camping but camping inside gymnasiums and hotels as well. The grass was lush so sleeping on the 'hard' ground was never better and the cool, quiet nights in these mostly small towns made for restful slumber and happy dreams.
Since the ride was along the western shore of Lake Michigan there were also beautiful lighthouses dotted along the coast. Most of these date to the late 1800's to early 1900's and since modern navigational methods have improved few are actually still relied upon by intrepid Captains out on the water. So they stand as silent sentinels of bygone times that were simpler but far more dangerous for those brave enough to venture out onto the lake. Lake Michigan is huge and for much of our ride North we could not see the other side and the mighty ships out on the lake often appeared as tiny dots on the horizon unless they were passing close to shore. As with all of the Great Lakes,
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One of the many wonderful
lighthouses that dot the shore
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Lake Michigan has seen its share of maritime disasters and there are maps in the giftshops detailing the hundreds of ships and thousands of lives lost to the cold waters that can turn suddenly violent when the storm winds start to blow. If you've heard the ballad
"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot coming and seeing the actual lake puts the song into perspective. These freighters are huge - anywhere from 700 to 1,000 feet in length - and to think that lake waves can be created in storms that can send them to the bottom paints a picture of Nature's power when she has a mind to wreak havoc. Fortunately for our journey we witnessed no major storms over the water but after the ride's end we did venture to Whitefish Bay where the Edmund Fitzgerald would have found safety if she had been able to sail only a few miles more.
As the ride came to an end we opted to stay a couple of extra days and visit some of the sites around Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island. We also took a daytrip to Saute Ste. Marie to tour the locks that allow those massive freighters to transit from Lake Superior into Lake Huron and beyond. The tour boat actually takes you through the same locks and is well worth the time if you're in the area. Its
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A freighter heads into the locks at
Saute Ste. Marie
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something to see as these massive freighters slide into the lock and are then lowered (or raised, depending on their direction of travel) 21 feet to meet up with the level of the other lake.
All in all a pretty amazing trip in that it came as a surprise to my wife and I. We were not sure what to expect, not having been to this part of the country before, but came away thinking it won't be our last trip to this spectacular region. Of course if you're from Michigan or consider yourself a 'yooper' (someone from the Upper Penninsula) that comes as no surprise to you!
