Unsalted Beaches

May 20, 2021 - Harrisville State Park to Alpena, Michigan

Sunrise brings some morning warmth and the air is still with only the tiniest breeze.  Tom is up early to start the fire for toast-making and to prepare our goose egg breakfast. 

Chef Tom made an omelet with mushrooms and cheese and the enormous goose egg.  I made some perfectly toasted bread and we breakfasted on something other than oatmeal.  It was delicious.

We left camp early and proceeded to ride through two miles of construction.  The crew was working on complete reconstruction of the road.  It was a bumpy, rocky, dusty mess.  Shortly after the construction zone we turned off to Sturgeon Point State Park and visited the  historical park featuring the Sturgeon Bay lighthouse.  

Below is a one room schoolhouse which was in use until 1941.  I guess it is possible there are still alumni living who would remember attending this school.  The log structure was built by the men in the local logging camp to serve as a school for their children.   
 

Daffodils are just now blooming this far north

We change our plans and decide to stay in the town of Alpena so that we can ride for awhile on the Northeastern State Trail.  We will get off at some point and head up to Hoeft State Park on the water.  The trail extends for 71 miles along the former Detroit and Macinac rail line.  The surface is crushed limestone and looks pretty nice.

May 21, 2021 Alpena, Michigan to Hoeft State Park near Roger's City

The Northeastern State Trail is lined with cedar and fir and pine trees.  Every so often there is a stand of aspen or maple or an old orchard dripping with blooming apple and cherry trees.  I hear a ruffed grouse, a sandhill crane and every sort of songbird.  Indigo buntings are everywhere.  

Exactly two other cyclists pass us in the 20 miles we are on the trail.  One is an older guy who tells us all about his brother.  His brother has cycled across the USA five times (!)  and has kayaked the shore of EVERY Great Lake!  I feel like a slacker after hearing about this guy.  The other person we pass is a man with a big turkey feather stuck upright in his handlebars.  He is intent on the trail and doesn't even nod in our direction.  I guess he is probably scouting for more turkeys.  

The trail surface is great and road crossings few and far between.  This was a railway linking logging operations to the distant cities.   Not much has been developed since the logging days in this part of Northern Michigan.

no traffic for miles

We stop for lunch is a very nice town park in the town of Metz.  There really isn't a town of any kind.  It is just a wide spot in the road.  The park was created to memorialize the fire victims from a terrible fire that occurred here in 1908.  project.geo.msu.edu/geomich/fires_ii.html

The story is heart wrenching.  A forest fire started nearby and became a raging inferno  fueled by all the cedar logs stacked along the railline.   In the Metz area 84 of 110 families were left homeless in the aftermath of the horrendous fire.  The worst tragedy of all was that of the relief train.  It was sent to evacuate women and children from the area but was derailed in the middle of the raging flames.  The rails on which it was traveling were warped from the intense heat.  Read the link and you will get a sense of this awful day. 

the logging industry is still thriving here

I feel exhausted and sad after reading all the historical markers 

We get off the trail and head toward Hoeft State Park.  It is a pretty park with a very nice sand beach.  The cool air is coming in off the water and it is very quiet for a Friday night.  We cook some soup and walk along the shore looking for good rocks in the sand.  We go to sleep and a gentle rain moves in as expected.

May 22, 2021 - Hoeft State Park to Cheboygan State Park- 36.4 very very hard miles

It rained all night and we wake to a soft rain.  This is the first rain we have had the entire trip.  That is pretty amazing for May in Michigan.  Tom packs up the wet tent and we head out.  The rain stops and the sun comes out shortly after we start our ride.  It is 72 degrees by 10:00 am.

A wet tent after a night of rain

We stop at forty mile point  lighthouse which is really well restored.  It looks like a keeper might live there year round to take care of the grounds.  

Forty Mile point lighthouse

In order to stay off the busy state highway, Tom designs a route using back roads.  It turns out to be a big mistake.

Some of the way we can actually ride - slowly and with care.

We were on these dirt roads for more than half the day.  It was like riding (and sometimes walking) on a beach.  There was no plan B and we were in the middle of nowhere.

  

Why am I even out here?

Eventually the dirt road got a little bit firmer and we made it to Cheboygan State Park.  Thank God there are hot showers and the weather is actually gorgeous.  We are out of food (except oatmeal).  We had planned to stop at a grocery, but we passed nothing except a few gun ranges and sportsman clubs back on those dirt roads.  A neighboring camper overheard Tom on the phone calling places and asking about delivery.  There is no such thing around Cheboygan.  He actually walked over and offered to pick up a pizza for us in town. So we put in an online order and feasted on pizza and breadsticks thanks to this unexpected act of kindness.  Michigan is a pretty great place all in all.