My youngest sister Di and my brother-in-law Jeff have a log cabin in Hessel, Michigan which is across the Mackinac bridge in upper Michigan to the right. It's located on the north shore of Lake Huron around the Les Cheneaux Islands chain. Being shared with Jeff's brother and a cousin they must schedule the times they can use the cabin in the summertime and this year they invited Alice and I to join them in July. It just happened to work out where we could go from July 15th through the 21st the same week Alice retired from her job. So, we said yes to the invite, loaded the 3 yorkies and headed up north. Since we left on a Friday, and they were not coming in from Montana until Saturday, we decided to pull our cargo camper and spend the night in Indian River, Michigan in the lower peninsula.
We left home at 8:37 am but had to stop in town for some supplies finally getting on the road at 9:50 am heading north on St Rt 23. Traffic was Ok but gas prices were anywhere from $4.69 to $4.99 per gallon. Ouch. I was driving my 2011 Dodge Ram 1500 with the Hemi engine in it and pulling the trailer, I only averaged 8.9 MPG for the whole trip. We stopped for lunch at the Block Brewing Company in Brighton, MI and enjoyed a good lunch, beer, and time out of the vehicle. A few more stops for the dogs and us at rest areas rounded out the afternoon.
A couple years ago I joined a program called "Harvest Hosts" where you pay a yearly fee to camp for free at certain businesses and farms. There are working farms, churches, wineries, and breweries that you stay at for free as long as you're completely self-contained, camp for just one night and then patronize the business, spending an average of $20.00 in exchange for the camping. We choose the Northland Brewery in Indian River which is a drive of 5.5 hours from our house. We made it in 7 hours after pit stops, etc. There was plenty of space on the 4-acre brewery and we were told to just park anywhere. We went in and met the owner Matt at the 2.5-barrel brewery. Matts beers were very good, and the place was very busy. They had food trucks, a DJ, plus a craft fair was going on. We ended up spending $80.00 there. The dogs were doing really well so far and after beers, food and a short walk we went to bed waking up at 5:30 am. I took the dogs for a walk, and it was so calm and peaceful in the little tourist town that early in the morning. Breakfast was at Christopher's Cafe which has been there since 1942. The food was really good.
Since we where only 29 miles from the U P and Di and Jeff were not coming in until evening, we decided to go the Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point. To me it was a real somber place documenting the lives lost on Lake Superior. I still remember when the Edmond Fitzgerald sank with 29 men losing their lives. But the educational aspect of the tour was great and the view of Lake Superior from the sandy beach was wonderful. Between Whitefish point and the cabin is Tahquamenon Falls which I saw 40 years ago. I remembered it as beautiful and wanted to show them to Alice. When we pulled into the lower falls the parking lot was packed. Of course, it was a Saturday, but the place was so much more commercialized than it was 40 years ago. We were able to take the dogs on the short trails to get to both the lower and upper falls and people just loved seeing 3 yorkies on leashes walking about and lots wanted to pet them. There were a lot of foreign speaking folks which surprised me in that area. We got quick glimpses of the falls then had a relaxing picnic lunch before getting out of there and back on the road to the cabin.
Fessel was 91 miles away and the nice drive got us there at 6:15 pm where Di and Jeff greeted us. The "Cabin" is a neat little cottage surrounded by other cabins, cottages and houses in a vacation setting and Lake Huron was only about 75 yards away down the yard and across the small village street. There is an association of 5-6 cabins that share a well and the boat dock and EVERYONE is so friendly and helpful. We left our 3 dogs in the cabin with "Frankie", Di's dog and headed the 3 blocks uptown for supper at "The Islander" and to Cedarville 3.3 miles away for gas and beer. I was on empty, and it hurt to pay $110.00 to fill up. Back at the cabin we just relaxed, socialized, and watched a beautiful sunset on Hessel Bay. The cabin has 2 bedrooms and Di and Jeff tried to get us to sleep in the cabin, but their full-size bed was no match for the queen size bed we have in the trailer, so we parked the trailer behind the cabin and settled in.
The village of Hessel has been a fishing vacation getaway since the 1950's for people from the Marion and Prospect, Ohio area. Jeff said his grandparents used to go there, then his parents, him and now his son. I have found lots of local connections to the area including a guy I work with (I really don't know him very well) who was vacationing the same week as us only two cabins down. Lots and lots of Ohio license plates littered the town.
Sunday 7-17-22 I was up at 5:38 am with 3 dogs who had enough sleep and wanted to walk. We did 20 minutes then I went back to bed until 7. It was a beautiful, sunny warm day up north and after Alice and I cooked French toast and bacon for breakfast we all piled in the pontoon boat where Jeff gave us a scenic tour of the bays. Then we just sat and drifted for a long-time enjoying life. As we were floating by a dock on an island that had a water slide, Di dared me to jump on the dock and slide down since no one was watching. Then Jeff double dared me with a case of beer at stake. The water that close to shore was kind of deep but I edged myself into the water enough to get my suit wet so it wouldn't stick to the plastic slide, got on the dock really quick, climbed up and slid. I hit that damn cold water, surfaced, and lost my breath. My testicles drew up into my throat as I swam to the boat and hurriedly climbed aboard. I'm just really glad the sun was shining brightly to dry and warm me back up.
We motored over to Cedarville Bay where we docked and had drinks at The Tipper Bar. Rob Malaski was playing great acoustical music and taking requests. We had a wonderful time and could have stayed longer but Rob was finished playing so we motored back to the cabin. Alice and I cooked spaghetti, bread, and salad, then we just lounged and watched as the bay grew darker in the evening twilight.
Monday after morning drinks Jeff and I went kayaking around the corner of Hessel Bay into Mackinac Bay and saw some nice water lilies and some type of vining plant with pretty pink blooms. The water was very still, the air warm and the sun bright. Arriving back at the cabin, we got dressed for an afternoon back on the boat. Jeff took us to a nice, sheltered cove where we swam in shallower water that was warmed by the sun. It was tolerable compared to the deep lake. Other boats were in the area doing the same. We relaxed on the moored boat by having beverages with background music and playing euchre. Di and Jeff whooped our asses bad. After a while Jeff motored over to Cedarville and the Cattails Bar where we had more drinks and appetizers. It's so easy to strike up conversations with the people you see. Everyone is just so outgoing and friendly and the 2 older ladies we were talking to were pretty entertaining. Back on land we went shopping in Cedarville for a case of beer and the IPA Jeff bought me was good payment. After a dinner of Mississippi Swamp Roast and baked potatoes Alice and I challenged Di and Jeff to more euchre, and we even won a game. Jeff brought out caramel whiskey and with the beer and the late hour we were feeling no pain. (Until morning).
Tuesday 7-19-22 Alice and I got to watch Di and Jeff cook breakfast as our duties were over. 2 days for each couple and we took the first days. The boat dock had some winter damage and we got to watch the repair crew come in and drive big posts into the lakebed with a grade-all being transported on a barge. Later Jeff and I fixed a light on the boat. We then went back to Cedarville, did some shopping, and got ice cream. The next stop was Snows Bar and grill where Alice and I shared a pasty. A pasty is a regional food of flaky dough enclosing a filling of meat, potatoes and rutabaga then drizzled with brown gravy. It was delicious. From there we went just north of Hessel to the Kewadin Casino which was just a small place, but they still took $62.00 of my money plus one beer for each of us that Alice paid for. From there it was back to the cabin to relax and play more vacation. In the early evening Jeff and I went paddle boarding. He borrowed one neighbors board and I borrowed the other neighbors' board. I have never tried stand up paddling but have wanted to for quit some time. I strapped on a life jacket, adjusted that long paddle to size and hopped on board. I was doing pretty good but had that fear of falling in that damn cold water so much that my legs got weak. I paddled around better after taking my bomb shoes off and just being barefoot. I never fell and must chalk it to the yoga practices I have been doing. We had a later supper then played some more cards, but it was an early night for me after the whiskey the night before.
Wednesday warm, 70 degrees but windy. The breeze off the lake felt good to me but rain was predicted so we planned to go to Sault Ste, Marie, to watch the big ships go through the Soo Locks. Ran by the US Army Corps of Engineers, the volunteer lady told us 90% of the iron ore for the world goes through those locks and if a terrorist would damage the locks, it would disrupt iron production worldwide. Security was kind of tight around there. We watched 4 tour boats go thru then went to Karl's Cuisine to have a beer and watch the lock from their upstairs open patio. The rain let loose, and we had to run for cover downstairs where the air conditioning about froze us. As the rain quit, we went outside and saw a ship go thru and it was huge. Next was the 1668 Brewery who also had an upstairs open patio and the same scenario happened to us again. The rain quit again and after some small shopping we found the correct bar for DI. It was "The Twisted Sister." After pictures in there and a quick beer it was time for food, so we went to Antlers. Jeff has fond memories of eating there and hearing them shooting off some horns. After a request they let loose on the horns, and it was loud but fun. I had a fish called Hake which was very good, but Alice didn't like her whitefish that well. Drove home to the cabin and played more card games and had adult beverages.
Thursday 7-21-22 was going home day for us. We had to be in Marion, Ohio for a 12-noon theater performance on Friday for our grandson so after helping Jeff with a couple chores we got packed. Said our goodbyes and was on the road at 11:30 am. After crossing "The Bridge" we stopped in Mackinaw City at a Harley shop then headed south into a strong head wind. The gas gage dropped fast as the truck pulled that boxy trailer into the wind the best it could. We stopped in Findlay, Ohio at the Findlay Brewery for supper then made it home at dark. The dogs did great the whole trip, Alice did great until halfway home, being tired of riding and I learned not to say, "Does someone need a snickers bar?" ever again. The poor truck went through $490.00 of gasoline but it is a smoother ride than both of our cars. Now I am waiting for another invite to go back to Hessel, Michigan again next year!!
View All Pictures From our Michigan Vacation
Video on me sliding into Lake Huron