Day 1 - Mackinac, Upper Peninsula, Marquette

Day 1 on the road couldn't have gone much smoother. I treated myself by not setting an alarm this morning and instead woke up around 9. I packed last night so I was pretty much ready to go and hit the road around 9:30.

Driving on Rt. 31 along the western coast of Michigan was really cool and I finally got to see all of the towns I'd heard about since I moved here but but hadn't seen: Charlevoix, Petoskey, Mackinac City. I really liked Petoskey even though I only drove through. I will be returning for sure.

Driving across the Mackinac Bridge that connects to the Upper Peninsula (UP) was really an experience. It's a massive bridge about 5 miles long. After crossing, I took Rt. 2 across the southern coast of the UP for a couple of hours.

Then, I cut North through some backroads for a couple more hours to see the famous Pictured Rock Lakeshore along Lake Superior. It's a National Park that remains open through quarantine. A 3 mile dirt road brings you to a small parking lot from which the trail leads on a 3 mile loop to the beach. A really cool hike and only saw a handful of people on the trail.

Once I got to the beach, I found a spot on the sand and laid up against a log and read my book for an hour. Catcher in the Rye - I remember loving it in high school but haven't read it since. Picked it up from a local book store in Traverse City a few days before the trip.

After my hike, I hit the road for the final leg of the journey to Marquette, MI - a sleepy, brick-hewn city that reminds me of Portland, ME but smaller.

For dinner, I had a "pasty" from a small sandwich shop from Jean Kays. Pasties are the go-to favorites of the UP and looks like a little shepherds pie sandwich filled with steak, potatoes, onion, and rutabaga. Delicious!

Just checked into my hotel. Having a quick shower and rest and then heading back downtown to Blackrocks Brewery for a beer.