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Michigan and UP-3 Day Solo Ride


FWA1200RT

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Michigan UP Trip Summary July 2011

Day 1-Sat. July 9, 356 Miles- FWA to Petoskey, MI

 

Ride to Grand Rapids was unremarkable. Route 37 thru Manistee National Forest provided some shade from hot sun. Avoided Traverse City due to Cherry Festival traffic. 31 to Petoskey was scenic. Even riding by yourself it is hard to slow down and stop to take in the scenery and the local culture; always feeling like you have to get to your destination, even though I really didn’t have a destination.

 

Observations-lots of Harley Riders on the road and at gas stops. Always friendly, showed genuine interest in places I was headed, and offered some good suggestions for sights to see. MC make ratios were 1 BMW to 25 Harleys to 5 Gold Wings. Very few “crotch rockets” on the road, no Triumphs, a few adventure riders on KTMs and “Enduro” styled bikes. 1 in 8 HD riders were female. 95% of all riders gave the MC wave.

 

Day 2-Sunday July 10, 303 Miles- Petoskey to Newberry with a couple of side trips.

 

A Day of extremes. M119 was a great twisty scenic road. 1.5 lanes wide with lots of bicycle traffic but no car traffic. Forest canopies provided relief from the 87 degree heat. It was a nice leisurely ride looking at the beautiful houses along the lake fronts. Wilderness State Park has isolated beaches and sand dunes where tourists and locals go to swim. Cars just pull off the road and head for the many sandy beach areas. Arrived at Mackinaw City around 11:30. Nothing like sitting in the shade with the Big Mac Bridge in the distance. That’s worth the trip alone. On Sunday the parking lots for the ferry to Mackinac Island were full but the village traffic was much less than I have witnessed in the past. Lunch at a local establishment and then pay the $3.50 to cross the bridge for the first time on a MC. Definitely felt the wind push me around. Rode the grates and pavement. Grates might be a little treacherous in the rain? Route 2 along the northern shore of Lake Michigan was scenic but not spectacular. Route 117 North was the straightest road I have ever ridden. No traffic and not a single curve. About half way up the 30 mile run I stopped in the middle of the road, got off the bike to take picture of the desolate straight road. As I turned around to get one looking the other way, an ambulance with lights flashing in the distance was headed my way so I had to remount and get moving. Grand Marais was my first look at Lake Superior on this trip. H58 thru Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is the “Dragon of the North”. New pavement, lots of sweeping turns (not as tight or switch-backs as the TN Dragon), but none the less a great road. Again hardly any traffic. A few groups of Harley Riders, lots of hikers, and a few bicyclists. After stopping several places and hiking to the lake shore to see the cliffs, I got back on the bike and headed to Newberry where I decided to stay for the night. Unseasonably hot in the UP-approaching 90 degrees in places with high humidity.

 

My Kind of Road-M119

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A site worth the ride.

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Nothing for miles but one long straight road M117 in UP. (Sitting still when I took this picture)

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A Bavarian Two Wheeled Thistle among the Wilderness Park Dunes.

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Day 3-Monday July 11, 498 Miles- Newberry to Whitefish Point to FWA.

 

Desolate, isolated, rural, are my description of this part of the UP. It was raining and foggy as I awoke. I left the hotel in the rain for the run up to Paradise and the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. Several time as visibility decreased with the fog and rain, I asked myself why did I head north instead of heading south for home. I decided to forgo the Tahquamenon Falls stop due to the rain. After about an hour’s ride in the rain, I reached the museum, still raining, and wondered the grounds and the museum for about 1.5 hours waiting for the rain to stop. The museum is worth the ride. The Coffee was good as I waited out the rain. I finally left at noon, still raining, to head south. The rain finally stopped in St. Ignace where I got out of my rain gear. A quick lunch after I crossed the bridge and then slab it home. I left Mackinaw City at 2:45PM and arrived home at 8:30PM. A good 3 day ride.

 

 

Whitefish Point Lighthouse and Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum Grounds.

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Edmund Fitzgerald Exhibit at the Museum.

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Miners Castle in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

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The 2011 BMW R1200RT got 49-53MPG on the 6 fill ups. Thank you’s to BMW for making a great sport touring bike that performed flawlessly, Bosch Electronics for the cruise control, it makes slabbing it home a piece of cake, Sargent for making a very comfortable seat, and Alpinestar Boots for keeping my feet dry. And most importantly the wife, for enduring this solo trip.

 

I need another 3 or 4 days to see all the great suggestions for routes I received. Many thanks.

 

Doug 7/17/11

 

PS-if the pictures aren't working, please send me a message to advise how to properly add photos to a post.

 

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Nice ride and write-up and pics to prove you went. You checked all the boxes. Wish I could've done it. Adding it to the list.

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