National Parks visited: Three Cuyahoga Valley NP in Ohio Isle Royale NP in Michigan Voyageurs NP in Minnesota
11-Day Great Lakes Road Trip
We meandered along the shores of Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Superior for 2432 miles of driving in 11-Day road trip. What a breathtaking drive along The Inland Seashore!
We enjoyed the Cuyahoga National Park that’s right smack in the middle of the urban jungle between Cleveland and Akron. As a matter of fact, it was given the national park status only recently in 2000. We took the ferry out to the wilderness in the remote northwest corner of Lake Superior to admire the solitude of Isle Royal National Park and for a little self-reflection…J. We lazily rode on a pontoon boat among little islands, inlets, in the picturesque Voyageurs National Park, loons soaking in the sun on a calm water surface while we passed by, further down the water way, a mother Bald Eagle perched on top of a tall green tree protecting her babies in the nest nearby.
We dined at the world famous Chicago style Pizza in the windy City. We danced around with the 60’s rock and roll tunes at the Rock & Roll Museum in Cleveland. For a second, we felt like we’re in Germany while enjoying the beer and bratwurst in the Bavarian village of Frankenmuth. We took the high speed ferry over to Mackinac Island to visit the world famous Grand Hotel. We were star-struck at the grandeur of the Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island. Never were we in any danger of being run over by an automobile while we walked on the auto-less highway on the island. The Michigan State Hwy. 185 on the island is the only state highway in the country that has no car accident…heheh. We were among a throng of thousands other people hanging out to watch life’s simple pleasure of the Draw Bridge raised its span for the big container ship to go by in Duluth, Minnesota. We stopped by a cheese store along the highway in Wisconsin to window shop its famous product. I were tempted to take home the fancy tin can that contains Wisconsin Cow Poop Mints at the check-out counter…J
WOW, what a road trip!
Day01 - Traveling Day We traveled in a group of 6. After everyone arrived at O’Hare International in the morning, we took the hotel shuttle from Shuttle Bus Center door #2 to our hotel. It was only about a five-minute shuttle ride from the airport.
After checked-in, we took the free hotel shuttle back to the airport, then took the blue line subway to downtown Chicago for a quick visit. The weather was nice and the forecast was not so good for the next day, so we tried to take advantage of it. You just can’t control the weather but you sure can control your enthusiasm…heheh. We walked to the millennium park with its famous Cloud Gate, a mirrored, bean-shaped structure that everyone was clowning around taking pictures with Chicago’s skyline reflected in it. We then walked along The Magnificent Mile with its famous, expensive store fronts.
We stopped at Giordano pizza for the world famous Chicago style pizza. It was thick and filled with gooey cheese. It was hot and fresh. The place was jammed pack with people. The wait was about 1hr. It was quite a lively place.
Day02 – Exploring Chicago, IL We were lucky that the weather turned out good. We started the day late, bought a day-pass subway ticket for 10$ per person. We then went to visit the Fed Museum inside the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. It was an interesting place. We learned a thing or two about the monetary system and how the government raises/lowers the interest rate to help stimulate the economy. We walked to Willis Tower (used to be called The Sears Tower) that is not far from the Federal Reserve Bank. It was the world tallest building back in the seventies. As you look up, you had a feeling that it sways back and forth a little bit. What a sensational feeling. We strolled among the city's most impressive architecture along the Lake Michigan waterfront. Downtown Chicago is a nice, walkable city during good weather, of course.
We then hoped on the subway back to Washington Station before walking to Michigan Station where water taxi would take us to China Town. It was a nice, cool, breezy day to enjoy the Chicago’s city skyline by boat. China Town in Chicago is small and isolated compare to other china town places that we visited in other major cities. This seems to be a tight knit community where the sign posted on the fence surrounding the children park was all in Chinese only.
Day03 – Traveling from Chicago, IL to Cleveland, OH We drove from Chicago to Cleveland today. There were quite a lot of corn fields as we passed thru Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio on our way to Cleveland. No wonder they call this part of the country The Corn Belt region where corn has been the predominant crops. The Midwesterners are super friendly as we encountered people at many rest stops along the way. We stayed nearby the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, the world renown for heart surgery.
Day04 - Visiting the Cuyahoga Valley NP & Rock and Roll Museum Between the sprawling cities of Cleveland and Akron, there is a patch of nature’s oasis called Cuyahoga Valley National Park. What a surprise! The NP hasn't existed for long. Cuyahoga Valley was given national park status only in 2000.
We spent the morning hours at the park. We walked the secluded trails through rugged gorges that seem far removed from civilization. There were a lot of private houses dotted the landscape of the park. It was unusual, but as I understood, it’s the shared effort of preserving the nature by the government and the local citizens that make this park unique. This effort was started with a lot of controversies at the beginning.
We then went to the Rock and Roll Museum. We saw a few interesting movies of these rock & roll icons. We checked out images, artifacts, instruments that belong to the rock stars. We listened to the songs that shaped rock and roll. It was a fun visit.
We then had lunch at Pho Thang, hidden in an office complex in downtown Cleveland. It was surprisingly good. We got to Ann Arbor at around 6pm to spend the night there. For dinner, we went to Dalat restaurant in Ypsilanti, near Ann Arbor. The owner has been here for a long time, very nice family that runs it.
Day05 – Traveling from Ann Arbor to Mackinac Island, MI It was about a 4-hour (273 mi) drive from Ann Arbor to Mackinaw City, on the shore of Lake Huron, south of Mackinac Bridge.
We started the day at around 7:30am. We went to see the Henry Ford Estate located on the campus of UofM in Dearborn. Ford entertained people like Charles Lindbergh, Duke of Winsor…etc in this sprawling 32000-square-foot estate.
We then traveled to the picturesque Frankenmuth, a "Little Bavarian" village founded in the 1840s by German immigrants. We checked out the town, walked across the 19th century covered bridge, listened to the hoof beats of horse-drawn carriages…clip-clop-clip-clop in the near distance. We enjoyed the Glockenspiel playing its tune, and then had lunch at the Frankenmuth Bavarian Inn. German beer and bratwurst went well together in a festival-like atmosphere. We window-shopped a little bit then head on north to Mackinac city at the tip of Michigan. The Shepler Ferry runs every half hour to/from the island from Mackinac City.
Day06 - Mackinac Island, MI We took the carriage tour on the island in the morning. It was a nice, relaxing 1:45-minute ride around part of the island. The Mackinac State Park on the island once was designated as a National Park, the second one after The Yellowstone NP. The tour guide was quite a character, thus made the tour even more enjoyable.
After the tour, we stopped by the Grand Hotel for a visit and had lunch there. The Grand Hotel has a rich history, and very well kept up with the times. It has the world longest porch overlooks Lake Huron. The movie “Somewhere in Time” starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve was filmed here. We enjoyed the sumptuous buffet lunch at the hotel in its grandeur Salle a Manger. We were star-struck at the hotel’s ambiance, it is the reflection of the relaxed atmosphere of Mackinac Island, where cars are not allowed and the horse and carriage and bicycle are favored modes of transportation.
We crossed the Big Mac, nicknamed for the Mackinac Bridge, world’s longest suspension bridge, on our way to Houghton. On the way, we spotted a black bear observing us from the bush; we later spotted two deer running from the distance. The state highway to Houghton was well maintained and in good condition.
We had dinner tonight at Joey's Seafood Restaurant on the main street of this small college town. The food was quite delicious. We had excellent local beer from Keweenaw Brewing Company to go along with our meals.
Day07 - Ferry to Isle Royale NP We left Houghton early this morning to get to Copper Harbor for a ferry ride to Isle Royale National Park. It’s about an hour drive from Houghton to Copper Harbor. We took a day trip to visit this NP. It was surely an unparalleled solitude in this rugged, isolated island, far from the sights and sounds of civilization. The park is surrounded by Lake Superior. It’s a haven for backpackers, hikers, boaters, kayakers, canoeists.
As we headed out to the park in the early morning hours, the fog covered the water most of the way, I found myself a little time for reflection, of life and its twists and turns, of what it was and what it is…heheh, of what it is and what it may be!.
Our day trip to Isle Royale NP from Copper Harbor to Rock Harbor on Queen IV ferry took about 3:15min to cross over. We spent about 3hrs on the island hiking around on short trails, including lunch. We then took the 3:15min ferry ride back.
The drive from Copper Canyon to Houghton was beautiful and peaceful. There were few cars on the road, tall green pines and birches along the highway and the roads were well maintained.
For supper, we dined at Bambu Asian restaurant. The restaurant has a very nice ambience, but hard to find. The food was excellent that made the effort to find it worthwhile.
Day08 - Scenic drive from Houghton, MI to Duluth, MN We had breakfast at the top floor of our hotel. It offered a great view of the river, ski slope and the old copper smelter in Houghton.
Before leaving Houghton, MI, home of Michigan Tech University Huskies, we went to see the historic Quincy Copper mine. It was very educational. Back in the 1900s, this area was thriving with mining industry, and a major reason for large groups of European immigrants migrated to this area to work in the mines. The girl that drove the cog wheel train down the steep slope of the coal mine was also driving the lawn mowing tractor to mow the grass to keep the place tidy. She is a student at MTU, a typical pretty blond, blue-eyed Nordics girl who works hard for her college expenses.
We stopped by the smoked fish store which is common in this part of the world. But it was too early in the day for lunch so we just browsed around. We stopped at Wakefield, MI for a great home-made lunch at Ma’s Place.
We got to Duluth at around 4:45pm, after check-in, we went to downtown Duluth around the Aerial Draw Bridge’s area for a quick visit. It’s a nice section of town; there are lots of eateries and shops. We saw a big tanker navigated thru the area so we actually saw the bridge raised for the ship to go by and lowed for cars to cross. Life’s pleasure is sometimes just a simple thing…heheh.
Day09 – From Duluth to Voyageurs NP in Minnesota We left the hotel at around 7:00am. It took us about 2:30min to get to Kabetogama Lake Visitor Center, one of many visitor centers around this Voyageurs National Park in the heart of the North American Continent. We left our car behind and set out on the water highways of the North Woods by hiring a private tour boat at one of the resorts dotted along the shore. The National Park also offers boat tour, but you have to reserve in advance in order to be on it.
It was fun and relaxing. Larry gave us the tour. He and his wife Betsy were very sincere and nice couple, true to its “Minnesota Nice” image. We had a chance to soak in the sun, the cool breeze in an open-air pontoon boat. We immersed ourself in the sights and sounds of a boreal forest, ply the interconnected water routes. I just can’t imagine the hardship that those voyageurs endured long ago in this part of North American Continent.
The highways that lead to the Voyageurs NP were clean and well maintained. The scenery was spectacular. There were quite a lot of birch trees in this part of the country.
After the Voyageurs NP’s experience, we headed to St. Paul, MN. Minneapolis/St. Paul, as they nickname it the twin cities is the hotbed of the Hmong/Cambodian ethnic group. We drove to the downtown area where many of the shops with familiar name like Pho, Lao Thai restaurant, Trieu Chau Restaurant…etc. We ate at Cheng Heng Cambodian Restaurant. As we sat down, we observed many tables with large group of Laotian families, at least 10 or more on one table enjoyed the family meal. Over the corner, we saw three caucasian girls, comfortably ordering foods, spike their favorite dishes with condiment Siracha sauce on the table, one savoring the Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk, another one, had “Che Ba Mau”. At another table, mom, dad, and two young babies slurping down noodle soup. We felt at ease. The waitresses look Cambodian with their dark complexion. The menu was quite extensive with Cambodian, Vietnamese, Chinese dishes. A gentleman seemed to be the owner came over and chat with us. Nice service indeed.
Day10 & 11 - Traveling from St. Paul, MN to Chicago, IL We wrapped up our road trip by traveling from St, Paul, MN to Chicago, IL with a lunch stop in Milwaukee. We had lunch at Milwaukee Public Market, a thriving area full of restaurants, shops. It was quite a lively place.
It took us about 4:30 min. drive to Milwaukee with a rest stop at a Wisconsin Cheese Outlet along the highway. I was temped to buy some of the Wisconsin Cow Poop Mints. It comes in a nice little tin box…heheh. From Milwaukee, it was an easy drive of little over an hour to Chicago.
Overall, we drove over 2400 miles on this trip. We got to see how truly “America the Beautiful” is. But most of all, the camaraderie between us made the trip unforgettable.
Indeed, “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide