Mackinac Island

We took another day trip back in July, this time to Mackinac island.  Lots of people recommended going there.  Even a lady in my home ward, when she found out we were moving to MI, said we have to go there.  I'm so glad we went because it was beautiful there.  

The island is about 4 miles and is located in Lake Huron.  

It's unique because there are no motorized vehicles on the island.  This means you either bike or ride a horse and buggy around town.  It's very quaint! 

And the island is pronounced Mackinac, but there is also a city called Mackinaw.  The city is located just across the island, on the top of Michigan.  The girl at the ice cream shop told me it's pronounced different because the British used to inhabit the island and they pronounced and spelled Mackinac with a 'c' but the Americans pronounced mackinaw with a 'w' at the end, so they named the city Mackinaw, instead of Mackinac.  (I think that was the story?)  ANYWAY....

It was such a fun day trip, we drove up on a Saturday morning and we took a ferry across.  

We spent the day on the island and then spent the night in the Upper Penninsula in St. Ignance.  

We would have loved to stay on the Island but it's really pricy!  

The island and its Grand Hotel, was featured in the movie Somewhere In Time. 

We rented bikes soon after we got there and that was the best and most fun way to see the island, at least in my opinion.

Someone was a little sleepy on the ferry ride over. 

This is the Mackinac Bridge, it connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan. 

We crossed the bridge, in our car, to get to our hotel in St. Ignance.

Lots of cute houses on the Island, it reminded me a little of Catalina Island. 

It was so green!  The perfect combination, besides peanut butter and chocolate, is mountains/trees and water.  So I loved biking through this amazing scenery.  

See what I mean, you've got the water, the green mountain (or in this case hill) and that handsome guy isn't too bad either! 

Arch

A majority of the island is a state park and it's very woodsy.  We took our bikes up through the woods to reach the top of the island so we could look out.  It was a tough bike ride, especially since I haven't been on a bike for years, but it was well worth it.  

Looking out.

A fort on the top of the island.  The island was a part of the American Revolutionary War (the British used it) and it was the scene of two battles during the War of 1812. 

The Grand Hotel

Would have loved to go inside of it, but it cost $$ just to get close to it. 

The island is also famous for their fudge, they had lots of fudge shops!  We sampled some fudge, it was good, but none of us are really huge fans of fudge so we splurged on ice cream instead.  The ice cream was soooo delicious.  I've been craving it since. 

If you find yourself in Michigan, you must go to Mackinac.