On day 4, a Monday, we headed out for a full day excursion. We loaded up and headed to catch the ferry to Mackinac Island...which has quickly become one of my favorite places to visit.
Waiting on the dock to board the ferry it was FREEZING!!! And we were more than happy to be first in line to be able to ride on the lower part of the ferry which was inside and MUCH warmer!
We boarded one of the earlier ferries of the day and it took us for an up close view of the bridge crossing from the Lower Peninsula in Michigan to the Upper Peninsula. The Mackinac Bridge is the longest suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere and is quite impressive!
We arrived on Mackinac Island and immediately we saw the racks and racks of transportation. No gas-powered vehicles are allowed on the island...you've got a basic choice between bicycles and horse and buggies. Such a fun way to spend the day!
We started off our day with a trek up the hill to Fort Mackinac. The views are stunning and we got to see some war-time activities and reenactments that the kiddos really enjoyed! On my bucket list is to someday travel to Mackinac Island and spend at least one night in the Grand Hotel...without kiddos of course.
After our time at the fort, we headed back down and rented bikes for the afternoon. There is an 8-mile route that goes around the entire island and that was our next planned activity. Everyone had their own bike, all 13 of us. Well, Elyse had her own buggy, but we were quite the caravan as we headed around the island!
My precious MIL had ordered family vacation shirts for all of us, and we chose this day to wear them. I failed to get a close-up shot, but they were a crossword puzzle with all of our first names...including Nora's! We got lots of nice comments on them, and it was honestly nice for us to all have matching shirts so we could easily find one another...Mackinac Island was a busy place to be!
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| A family photo along the shores of Lake Michigan! |
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| The whole group! |
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| Elyse's favorite cousin Jackson joined her a few times in the buggy, and she couldn't have been happier! |
We finished off the day with some shopping around the downtown area, and Elyse got to see more horses...that she couldn't touch! However, Mamaw & Pappy took her and managed to find the stables where she could actually pet a horse...a horse named Beaver! She couldn't have been happier!
After our ferry ride back across the straits, we decided to cross the bridge just to take in the sights. And then it was time to head home...Elyse was asleep before we ever made it out of the ferry parking lot. Poor girl, she was exhausted!
1 comment:
Love the shirts!! Someday we will go on a family vacation and all wear matching shirts like this!
What a perfect day! This sounds like the best vacation!!
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