Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Michigan

Although Jim and I have been to Sleeping Bear Dunes several times before, we’ve never done it without kids. So we figured this time we’d explore some areas that might not have held our kids’ attention when they were little. Our first stop of the day was the Point Betsie Lighthouse which is actually a little bit south of the national lakeshore. We learned all about the lighthouse which was built in 1858 and the Life Saving Station that was added shortly after.

Point Betsie Lighthouse

Back at Sleeping Bear Dunes, we did the Empire Bluffs trail which is a 1.5 mile round trip hike that leads to a high bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. The views were spectacular with Lake Michigan being a beautiful blue-green color.

The Empire Bluffs Trail

The Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive was our next destination. It is a 7.5 mile drive that affords some of the best views of the dunes and the Lake Michigan shoreline. 

A covered bridge on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

It's a very steep drop from the top of dune to the shore. There were several signs warning that it's a $3000 fine if you climb down to the shore and then need to be rescued because the climb is too much for you. We saw one young couple who had hiked down to the water and were on their way back up. A crowd of people at the overlook cheered for them when they made it back to the top.

Our final stop in Sleeping Bear Dunes was the Dune Climb. This is the most popular attraction in the park that we’ve done before with our kids. Luckily, it was not very crowded and we had a great time climbing the dunes.

The Dune Climb

After the Dune Climb, we got back in the car and drove the 35 miles to Traverse City to enjoy an evening with my aunt, uncle, cousins, and their kids. It was a great evening of catching up!

Michigan family

The kids

Grady explaining his robotics project

Petoskey and Charlevoix, Michigan

The next morning we got an early start and were on the first ferry of the day leaving Mackinac Island. We drove along M-119 between Cross Village and Harbor Springs. This scenic stretch of road is known as “The Tunnel of Trees”. We were hoping to see fall colors, but we were a few weeks too early. We stopped at the little village of Good Hart which has a cute general store and a few other gift shops that sell unique Michigan souvenirs.

Sunrise on Mackinac Island

Our ferry to the mainland

The Tunnel of Trees

The Good Hart General Store

After “The Tunnel of Trees”, we drove into the quaint town of Petoskey. I had been there years before to visit my aunt and uncle who have a cottage by the lake there. Jim humored me as I tried to find the cottage by memory - we were successful! Since it was lunch time, we found a great picnic spot in the Petoskey Bayfront Park. Once we were done eating, we walked out on the break wall to the little lighthouse tower. A quick walk through downtown Petoskey and the cute shops rounded out our time in the city.

A gorgeous spot for a picnic along Lake Michigan in Petoskey

Downtown Petoskey

Back in the car, we set off for our next stop - the town of Charlevoix. Years ago I had seen a travel show with Samantha Brown that highlighted the Mushroom Houses of Charlevoix. When planning this trip, I knew we needed to take the Mushroom House Tour to learn more about these quirky houses. The tour bus was actually a Gem Car (similar to a golf cart) that held the tour guide, us, and one other couple - so we had very personalized attention. The one hour tour took us past over 20+ homes that the architect, Earl Young, designed and built during his 50 year career. Most of the homes were built of limestone, fieldstone, and boulders that he found all over northern Michigan. Almost all of his homes featured wavy eaves (giving it the look of a mushroom), exposed rafter tails, and cedar-shake roofs. Several of the homes can be rented through AirBnB. Once the tour was over, we spent some time enjoying the pretty little town of Charlevoix. We walked out to the lighthouse and took in the view of Lake Charlevoix, before heading to our hotel in Empire.

One of the mushroom houses

The Charlevoix lighthouse

The canal that connects Lake Michigan to Lake Charlevoix

Looking across Lake Charlevoix to another mushroom house

Mackinac Island, Michigan

In order to have a full day to explore Mackinac Island, we took the 9am ferry from Mackinaw City to Mackinac Island which took us under “Big Mac”, the bridge that connects the mitten of Michigan to the Upper Peninsula.

Big Mac

Once on the island, we rented bikes and headed along the island’s west edge - it was beautiful, albeit a bit chilly. Luckily, as we made our way to the Grand Hotel, it began to warm up. We wandered around the hotel, before enjoying drinks/snacks on the front porch of the Grand Hotel.

The west side of Mackinac Island

The Grand Hotel

The lobby of The Grand Hotel

Back on our bikes, we rode up to Arch Rock, Sugar Loaf, and Skull Cave, before riding back into town to return our bikes.

Arch Rock

Sugarloaf

Main Street

We had a yummy lunch overlooking the water at the Pink Pony restaurant and then headed up the hill to tour Fort Mackinac. The fort is perched above the town and affords a beautiful view of Lake Huron. We happened to be visiting during a demonstration canon firing which Jim thoroughly enjoyed. 

Fort Mackinac

The canon firing demonstration

The view from the fort

Once we had had our fill of Fort Mackinac history, it was time to walked down and check into our hotel - The Island House. This hotel was built in 1852 as a waterfront beach house and today is a quaint, Victorian hotel. After stowing our luggage in our room, we took advantage of the view from the front porch rocking chairs. As the sun set, it began to get chilly on the porch, so we headed into town for dinner at Horn’s Gaslight Bar & Restaurant. 

Our hotel - The Island House

The Island House's view

We wrapped up or magical day at Mackinac Island by warming up by the fire-pit in front of our hotel. This truly was an amazing day!