St. Ignace, Michigan

At last we are in the UP (upper peninsula) of Michigan!  Imagine! A two day trip took two weeks. St.Ignace was created in 1671 and is the second oldest continuously inhabited city in Michigan. Explorers Marquette and LaSalle led the French to this area and fur trading brought the French and Indians together. We found our choice of spots at the Moose Lodge.

Soon we were set up and ready to explore the area.

At the visitor's center Leon was surprised to find this old telephone equipment which took him back to his working days. The operators were not replaced in St. Ignace until the mid 1970s.

We enjoyed walking alongside the marina and Lake Huron on the boardwalk provided.

It is hard to believe that these poles marking the fire hydrants in case of snow are this tall!

In the mid 1800's commercial fishing grew to become more important than fur trading. The mackinaw boat was a common sight in the lakes.

As we finished the walking tour we spotted Rich Eddys playing some oldie rock music at the marina.

The Mackinac Bridge crosses the straits from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace, a distance of five miles, where Lakes Michigan and Huron merge. We caught this view from one of several drives into the Straits State Park. Our Michigan parks pass has been a wise choice. We can even go to any of the state parks and use the "sanitation station" aka rv dump!

The bridge was opened in 1957 and replaced the car ferries. On Labor Day we will avoid the crowds that come for the well publicized bridge walk by going further north!