fudgies*

we went to mackinac island last weekend. as you may recall, we camped in the u.p. on friday night. on saturday morning, we set out for mackinac. the drive takes us past the infamous mystery spot, and it was hard to not go. we had a ferry to catch, and we had been there before, so we pressed on without the mystery.

before moving on, one more mention of the mystery spot and a reflection on a 2005 visit....
those angles are so MYSTERIOUS!

moving on.

we took the star line ferry across the straits of mackinac only because we would have to wait an hour to take the arnold line. does it matter? it does if you're david and you've only ever taken the arnold line. he let go of tradition (or some semblance of tradition) and climbed aboard the star line, basked in the sun on the top deck, and enjoyed the rooster-tail water spray coming off the back of the ferry.


the grand hotel was glowing in the sun on our arrival. it's pretty cool.


we did the requisite circumnavigation of the tiny island by bicycle (no cars allowed), and took in the views of the mackinac bridge, blue water, and tourists who don't know how to ride bicycles.


after the ride, we climbed the hill to the historic mackinac fort and role-played the soldier lifestyle. david shot the cannon, and i stood watch in a sentry tower.

after all the bike riding and fort defending, we had to fix david's glasses.

mackinac by day is cute and historic, full of visitors buying fudge and t-shirts, sitting in restaurants and taking carriage rides. there are beautiful old homes to stare at. the cold lake huron water is great for dipping your toes, and ice cream shops are on every corner to offer a chance to cool down. every 10 seconds, beautiful work horses clip-clop past, pulling visitors, luggage, and supplies. it's pretty great.
at night, after the last ferry leaves, the place changes. the summer staff, largely college-aged michigan kids on permanent vacation mode, punch out of their hotel and restaurant jobs and hit the bars. the transformation is shocking. we sat on the front porch of our hotel, sipping oberon, and took in the spectacle. the bars were crowded and 21 year olds had complete run of the city. we felt old, but in a good way.

the next morning, we were on the 9:30am ferry and homeward bound. this is a nice panoramic of mackinac from the ferry on a cloudy summer morning.

we had fun.

* "fudgies" is the term for tourists on mackinac, due to the high volume of fudge consumed by tourists. it sounds derogatory to me.