After a beautiful morning on the island, we took the ferry to the mainland and decided to explore Fort Michilimackinac.

 

Doug remembered visiting the fort as a kid and we explored all the old buildings and learned about the traders and native americans who called the shores of Lake Michigan home. On the weekends, the fort has volunteers who dress up in character and have demonstrations of cooking, blacksmithing and firearms. After a history lesson or two, we headed back towards home – but decided to take the scenic route along the shore of Lake Huron.

 

We turned to PureMichigan’s site for some inspiration and found their lighthouse roadtrip guide. Our first stop was the lighthouse of Old Mackinac Point – which is now a restored museum. It’s in a beautiful location (right beside the Fort and overlooks the Mackinac Bridge to the UP. We then headed south and our second lighthouse was 40 Mile Point Lighthouse – which is free and you can climb up the tower at no charge (we found that most charge a fee for this). I would highly recommend this location for a picnic on the beach – as they have a trail leading down to the water. Perhaps our favorite stop of the day was the Old Presque Isle Lighthouse (said to be the oldest lighthouse in Michigan). The tower is separate from the living quarters and the steps are hand carved out of stone – which makes this a picturesque lighthouse – however the most intriguing fact maybe that George (the old caretaker) is said to haunt this tower on occasion. The lighthouse has been disconnected from power sources for some time, and the volunteer said she has seen a phantom light coming from the tower on numerous occasions. So George may be present – making sure the ships come safely home.

 

Our final stop of the day was in Alpena – not exactly a hotbed of culinary options – but we used Yelp to guide us to the Courtyard Restaurante. Perhaps one of the most memorable meals of the year for us (and believe me that is no small feat with the restaurants we have explored). This local place has an eclectic decor and the menu features some locally sourced ingredients with a commitment to scratch-made italian dishes. The owners travel every year to find inspiration for their menu – and our pesto ravioli was truly inspired. A great ending to a beautiful weekend!