Mackinac

I am a transplant to the state of Michigan. One place in the state I have fallen in love with is Mackinac Island (pronounced MACK-in-aw). The Island has an 8 mile perimeter and is located within sight of the Mackinac Bridge which connects the upper and lower peninsulas. The Island prohibits the use of motor vehicles. The only vehicles on the Island are emergency vehicles. To get around, you must walk, get a taxi (horse drawn), or use a bicycle.

My brother-in-law David and his wife, Barb, have a vacation home on the Island and have invited the whole family up the last 3 years to shack up with them one weekend (there were 23 of us this past weekend). The weekend has been one of the highlights of our recent summers. An annual baseball game has been played at the Great Turtle Park and I am not so proud to report that my daughter and wife each matched my hit total of 1 (and my side, the Tigers, lost to the Yankees 9-8 in extra innings).

80% of the Island is owned by the State and controlled by the Mackinac State Historic Parks. Fort Mackinac, now maintained by the Park, was controlled by the British in both the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The State maintains the Governor’s summer residence on the Island and I have it on good authority that Governor Granholm attended services at St. Ann’s Catholic Church on the Island this past Sunday.

There are a little over 500 year round residents on the Island. In the winter, when the Ferries are no longer running, the only way to get off the Island is by air or by snowmobile once the lake has frozen (The residents use snowmobiles in the winter to navigate the Island). The Island has its own public school with less than 100 students k-12.

There are three 9-hole golf courses on the Island. Having played all three courses I highly recommend the Wawashkamo Golf Club. Although it will never make the golf digest top-100 list, it has a unique feel as it is an original links style course dating to 1898. The Grand Hotel is the most famous Hotel on the Island, but having spent my 5th wedding anniversary there in 1996, I found it overrated and overpriced. I recommend renting a room at Stonecliffe which is located on a beautiful piece of property far enough out of town to be peaceful.

When you stay on the Island, you will find that a ride through the center of the Island is pretty awesome. You will struggle biking up to the center, but the ride down is awesome. Be careful of coming down too fast by the Grand Hotel, as my nephew once got a speeding ticket on his bicycle! You will find the bars on the Island are pretty lively at night and a moonlight run around MI-185 is a great way to work off those 2 beers from Horn’s Bar.

Hopefully you will also have the opportunity to enjoy the Island the way my family and I have.

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