Christmas, Michigan

We've just completed our second and last week at Sandy Oaks RV Resort in Houghton Lake, Michigan. It was a week of varied activities, good food and local sightseeing. On Friday we traveled northwest toward the Traverse City, MI, area to see Torch Lake. It is the longest (18 miles) and deepest (300 feet) inland lake in Michigan and second largest in area (18,770 acres) after Houghton Lake, near where we have been staying. On the way to see the lake we stopped for a few minutes in the village of Grayling to do some shopping.

Grayling is a bit of a tourist and summer activity stop, but Diane knew where a special store was located, so we "had" to stop. The Tip'n the Mitten shop is just behind one of the famous sculptures located around town.

We first dipped a toe into Torch Lake near the town of Alden. Diane and Bill were brave enough to check it out.

Donna contented herself with a backdrop of a lovely lake.

One of the stores we visited in Alden had a sign that I should have bought....

Due to shifting sand bars and varying currents, Torch Lake has been known to have up to five different colors of water. We saw three the day we were there.

After a delicious dinner at Boone's Long Lake Inn (Friday night fish: fresh Lake Michigan Whitefish!), we drove back to Houghton Lake. It was a long day trip, but worth it to see a beautiful lake and some of the magnificent summer homes along the shore.

Saturday evening, Bill fixed us a pulled pork dinner! He slow cooked the pork in his Egg cooker and it was magnificent!

On Sunday, we jumped on US127, heading north toward the Mackinac Bridge, a hundred plus miles away. As we approached the bridge, a couple of sign posts advised us of upcoming points of interest.

And finally, we were on the famous Mighty Mac!

Lake Michigan, with Mackinac Island in the distance, is very pretty.

Just north of the bridge we bailed off onto highway US 2, driving west....we made the turn toward home...and eventually made our way to the little village of Munising, Michigan.

This is the location of the western entrance to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, and we hope to visit that area. Just a few miles farther west we found our home for the next few days, the Pictured Rocks RV Park and Campground (yeah, that's the official name). It's a nice, if rustic, park, just a few years old and still a work in progress. However, the rv connections are perfectly adequate and the sites are spacious, so it will do nicely!

The park is actually located in Christmas, Michigan, with the expected decorations...

After setting up "camp" we took a short drive along the shore of Lake Superior.

Munising was a thriving fishing and lumbering port back in the day, but has mellowed over the years. Where 14 fishing boats once operated out of the harbor, now only 3 operate. Most of the boating activity revolves around kayaking tours and boats going to the National Lakeshore. This pic of the city boat launch ramp shows how quiet it is on a Sunday afternoon.

About half way between Munising and Christmas, an elevated scenic overlook gave us a view of Grand Island which is just offshore, and part of Lake Superior.

The temperature here in Christmas is in the 70's during the day and in the 50's at night. Perfect! We can't wait to see what's next!