Out of Michigan: Day 1, Traverse City
Jul. 17th, 2012 12:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cyranoSomebody requested photos, and today seemed like one of the more photogenic days of the trip. Lots of photos means high bandwidth. We headed west until we ran out of Michigan and then turned north.
118 steps above Arcadia is a viewing platform over Lake Michigan.
This is the view from there. We continued on from there to our goal, Sleeping Bear Dunes. A was racing daylight at this point to find us a place where we could watch the sun set over the lake. There are 15 shots in the scrapbook folder describing the event, but I'm only posting one here. Click through to see the rest.
It would have been nice to take each shot from exactly the same perspective, but I was dodging other tourists. And then we drove to the Bayside in Traverse City. I have yet to see a cherry anywhere, but there is a spa bath in the room so that's nice too.
118 steps above Arcadia is a viewing platform over Lake Michigan.
This is the view from there. We continued on from there to our goal, Sleeping Bear Dunes. A was racing daylight at this point to find us a place where we could watch the sun set over the lake. There are 15 shots in the scrapbook folder describing the event, but I'm only posting one here. Click through to see the rest.
It would have been nice to take each shot from exactly the same perspective, but I was dodging other tourists. And then we drove to the Bayside in Traverse City. I have yet to see a cherry anywhere, but there is a spa bath in the room so that's nice too.
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Date: 2012-07-17 11:59 am (UTC)The viewing platform where we watched the sunset was elevated enough that there was very little sand, but it was still blowing tremendously. It was exciting, leaning against the railing and feeling the entire structure tremble as the wind took hold and shook it.
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Date: 2012-07-17 01:54 pm (UTC)If you want a nice Dunes sunset place (and swimming place), check out North Bar Lake just north of Empire. The lake is deep enough to dive from the shore (though I think the dune's been settling into the water a bit in recent years), and connects by a little channel that cuts through a small dune to connect to Lake Michigan. Alternately, drive up to Old Mission Point and the lighthouse. You can walk way way out into the water before it gets too deep to walk, which is kind of fun, and it's a good sunset spot. If you're out at the dunes, I do recommend the climbing dune experience. The per car price has gotten a bit steep, but it really is just fun to slog up a great wall of sand, putter about on the top for a bit and enjoy the views of Glen Lake (you can walk a couple of miles over to Lake Michigan, but I've never done it), and then to run down the dune, trying desperately to keep your feet ahead of your body (falling is fun in its own way, but considerably sandier). Wear lots of sunscreen and carry water, though, 'cause it's hot and hard work.
Cherry Festival was last week, so you're missing the glut of people, but you're also missing the glut of things like fireworks and parades and film festivals and games and food fests. You have to get some Doug Murdick's fudge (store downtown), and they should have a couple of flavors w/ black cherries in them. Stop in to my mom's best friend's hat store downtown, Diversions, which I think you'll like; it's a couple of doors down from Murdick's, and if you see the older proprietress, Bev, tell her I say hello. Apache Trout Grill has some yummy dinners for fairly reasonable prices - it's over where Grand View Parkway starts turning north to go up the Leelanau Peninsula. Moomer's ice cream is southwest of town a little, toward my neck of the woods (Long Lake), but they have really good homemade ice cream.
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Date: 2012-07-17 01:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-17 03:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-18 01:04 am (UTC)