Marquette to Munising MI
Day 34 - Horseshoe Bay BC to Munising Michigan
You've heard us say before that there are no easy days... well, we still hold to that, but there certainly are glorious days - and today was one of them!
At just over 70 kms, we knew that we would only need 3 to 4 hours of riding to get to Munising, Michigan. We therefore decided to sleep until we woke up - which was the first glorious part of our day. This was followed by an awesome breakfast, a beautiful blue sky, gorgeous scenery, wading in Lake Superior, a rest stop dip, a character lunch spot, and DQ at our destination... But we are getting ahead of ourselves, so let's go back to the beginning...
At just over 70 kms, we knew that we would only need 3 to 4 hours of riding to get to Munising, Michigan. We therefore decided to sleep until we woke up - which was the first glorious part of our day. This was followed by an awesome breakfast, a beautiful blue sky, gorgeous scenery, wading in Lake Superior, a rest stop dip, a character lunch spot, and DQ at our destination... But we are getting ahead of ourselves, so let's go back to the beginning...
Breakfast at the charming Coachlight, and our most excellent hostess - Senara
The sandy beaches of Lake Superior So back to the wake up, which initially occurred when an over zealous housekeeping gal woke us up at 9:40AM, even though check out is 12:00PM! We were able to go back to sleep however, and eventually woke up for real around 10:45AM (glorious!). This was the latest that we have slept on a riding day - it was like having two rest days, even though technically it is just one.
We enjoyed a great breakfast at the Coachlight Restaurant across the street from the Ramada. We were given awesome customer service by Senara (@senaradollar) who is taking pre-law at Northern Michigan University in Marquette. After partaking of the "Friday All You Can Eat Pancakes", we made a 1:00PM departure out of Marquette, which is the latest we have started a riding day so far on this trip (glorious!).
We found ourselves riding on a freshly paved bike path parallel to the highway which was glorious given that we didn't have to worry about bad drivers. Unfortunately, this smooth blacktop eventually turned into a dual-purpose gravel path shared between snowmobilers and cyclists. This resulted in an interesting detour, but we eventually decided to return to the shoulder of the M-28 highway as we didn't want to miss opportunities to view Lake Superior, which will end after today when we veer away from the Lake. Soon we were stopping at a rest area along the highway which provided access to beautiful sandy beaches along the shores of Lake Superior. We waded in knee deep for a quick refreshing cool down, but the lake is still pretty cool at this time of year, so we weren't tempted to go for a swim....
We enjoyed a great breakfast at the Coachlight Restaurant across the street from the Ramada. We were given awesome customer service by Senara (@senaradollar) who is taking pre-law at Northern Michigan University in Marquette. After partaking of the "Friday All You Can Eat Pancakes", we made a 1:00PM departure out of Marquette, which is the latest we have started a riding day so far on this trip (glorious!).
We found ourselves riding on a freshly paved bike path parallel to the highway which was glorious given that we didn't have to worry about bad drivers. Unfortunately, this smooth blacktop eventually turned into a dual-purpose gravel path shared between snowmobilers and cyclists. This resulted in an interesting detour, but we eventually decided to return to the shoulder of the M-28 highway as we didn't want to miss opportunities to view Lake Superior, which will end after today when we veer away from the Lake. Soon we were stopping at a rest area along the highway which provided access to beautiful sandy beaches along the shores of Lake Superior. We waded in knee deep for a quick refreshing cool down, but the lake is still pretty cool at this time of year, so we weren't tempted to go for a swim....
Cam enjoys the glorious waters of Deer Lake The afternoon continued under glorious blue skies and temperatures around 30-32 degrees (Celcius). There are cabins and B&B's (Bed & Breakfasts) situated between the shoreline and the highway all along this stretch of road, as well as several rest areas. One of these rest stops was located beside a beautiful lake called Deer Lake. When Cam rides on a very hot day, he often fantasizes about cooling down by gliding head first through refreshing lake water. Although Lake Superior was too cold, Cam saw this shallow lake as his opportunity and was soon gliding through its glorious waters. It was everything that he hoped for and he was rejuvenated as they continued on their way.
Our very relaxing rest stop at Deer Lake
The Brownstone Inn - built in 1949 All that was lacking at the rest stop was cool refreshments, however, we soon reached the very nice Brownstone Inn located just before a town called Au Train. This was a historic establishment that would have been an excellent choice for supper, except it was a only 4:00PM So we settled for just a bowl of chili and some cold drinks.
The next town along the road was called Christmas, believe it or not! The town merchants got plenty of mileage out of the name with multiple Santas and a Santa's workshop.
The next town along the road was called Christmas, believe it or not! The town merchants got plenty of mileage out of the name with multiple Santas and a Santa's workshop.
The Terrace Motel Our first stop when we arrived an Munising was the DQ, where we met a very nice Southern Michigan family who were in the area for the weekend. After cooling down with a glorious smoothie, we continued on to the Terrace Motel, which required that we climb one last very steep hill. Larry, the proprietor, took good care of us and we cleaned up in the charming motel before heading for a "fish fry" at Sydney's restaurant - recommended by Larry. A fish fry is another "can't miss" meal of the U.P. and we consumed a great deal of fish to help fuel the 99 km ride to Newberry MI tomorrow.
This truly was a glorious day and felt very much like a vacation day. We have found that the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a very beautiful place and would like to return again sometime when we have more time to enjoy the area. It is so awesome to be able to find the joy in the journey that we have through this part of the trip and we are hopeful that we will be able to do so through the remaining days....
Ride Details:
- Distance: 71.9 kms
- Riding time: 3 hours, 31 minutes
- Average speed: 20.5 kms
- Wind: South, but swirling (Light to moderate)
- Cumulative: 3,614.8 kms
Tomorrow' Destination: Newberry, MI - 99.2 kms
For more ride details, see Strava and for more ride photos, see our Photo Gallery.
Ride Details:
- Distance: 71.9 kms
- Riding time: 3 hours, 31 minutes
- Average speed: 20.5 kms
- Wind: South, but swirling (Light to moderate)
- Cumulative: 3,614.8 kms
Tomorrow' Destination: Newberry, MI - 99.2 kms
For more ride details, see Strava and for more ride photos, see our Photo Gallery.