Yesterday we were “Fudgies”, today we are “Yooppers”! Yes, we are in the Upper Peninsular of Michigan (the UP to locals!). We headed north out of Mackinaw City this morning and drove the 5 miles across the Mackinac Bridge to the town of St. Ignace, established in 1671 when Father Jacques Marquette established a mission to convert the native Americans. Except for a few more motels, the town hasn’t changed much since Bill used to come up here about 50 years ago!
Looking at a map of Michigan one has to wonder why the Upper Peninsular is part of Michigan rather than Wisconsin because, until the bridge was built, it wasn’t even connected to Michigan! Well, here’s the story ... It came about as a result of an unpopular compromise that won Michigan statehood in 1837. There was a dispute about a strip of territory along the Michigan-Ohio border and Michigan grudgingly accepted the UP instead. As it turned out, this ‘deal’ turned out to be a ‘steal’! The area contained large copper deposits, and today tourism and recreation create excellent revenue for the State! It is really beautiful up here!
On our way to our destination,Tahquamenon Falls State Park, we drove along US2, crossing the Carp River, an area that Bill and his brothers knew well during their childhood visits to their Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles who lived in the area. On the way north the fall colors became even more vibrant. We had lunch at a Micro Brewery at the entrance to the Park and then walked a short distance to the Upper Falls. The water is very brown, due to the run off from the Hemlock, Cedar and Spruce trees in the surrounding area as well as peat lands.
We continued our journey to the town of Manistique where we checked in to our motel, ordered Pizza and spent the evening getting our blog up to date. Despite the fact that we have Wi-Fi, we are facing challenges sending out emails so it is taking more time than we anticipated. That’s what life on the road is all about! We’d better get used to it!
Looking at a map of Michigan one has to wonder why the Upper Peninsular is part of Michigan rather than Wisconsin because, until the bridge was built, it wasn’t even connected to Michigan! Well, here’s the story ... It came about as a result of an unpopular compromise that won Michigan statehood in 1837. There was a dispute about a strip of territory along the Michigan-Ohio border and Michigan grudgingly accepted the UP instead. As it turned out, this ‘deal’ turned out to be a ‘steal’! The area contained large copper deposits, and today tourism and recreation create excellent revenue for the State! It is really beautiful up here!
On our way to our destination,Tahquamenon Falls State Park, we drove along US2, crossing the Carp River, an area that Bill and his brothers knew well during their childhood visits to their Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles who lived in the area. On the way north the fall colors became even more vibrant. We had lunch at a Micro Brewery at the entrance to the Park and then walked a short distance to the Upper Falls. The water is very brown, due to the run off from the Hemlock, Cedar and Spruce trees in the surrounding area as well as peat lands. 
We continued our journey to the town of Manistique where we checked in to our motel, ordered Pizza and spent the evening getting our blog up to date. Despite the fact that we have Wi-Fi, we are facing challenges sending out emails so it is taking more time than we anticipated. That’s what life on the road is all about! We’d better get used to it!
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