Pedal Pushers
By Leslie Dickstein
What comes to mind when you think of Michigan? Snow? Cars? Football? How about summer vacation? Tucked away in the northwest corner of Michigan's Lower Peninsula are some of the country's best-kept secrets: white sandy beaches, turquoise lakes, towering dunes and a premier training center for young musicians, dancers, artists and actors.
This summer, take it in from a perch on your bicycle seat (or on your Burley trailer, for those too young to pedal) with Michigan Bicycle Touring's Interlochen/Lake Michigan Sightseer. The family friendly outfitter offers three five-day tours (departing June 28, July 12 and Aug. 23), each blending art with moderate aerobics to create a unique family learning experience.
Geared for beginner and intermediate riders (on average, you cycle 25 to 35 miles each day), the tour coasts past lush countrysides, beautiful lakeshore and fragrant orchards, stopping along the way at artists' galleries to view block prints, batiks, Native American pottery, weavings and watercolors. Overnight at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, there's a campus tour and ample opportunity to attend student and faculty performances. You may also get to hear one of the international artists who play at Interlochen each summer (past performers include Yo-Yo Ma, Marvin Hamlisch and Itzhak Perlman). The last night of the trip is spent at the Crystal Mountain Resort, a luxury property adjacent to Michigan Legacy Art Park, a 30-acre sculpture gallery actually built into the forest. Bike-tour rates are $809 a person for a double room. Discounts for children are available.
After the bike tour, you can continue your Northern Michigan visit at Sleeping Bear Dunes, a few miles to the north. (For lodging, extend your stay at Crystal Mountain or move to the Homestead, another top-of-the-line family facility in nearby Glen Arbor. If you're primarily interested in taking in more performances, you can book a room in the guest lodges at Interlochen. Keep in mind, however, that the fairly rustic accommodations have no air-conditioning or television.) With 30 miles of lakeshore and massive dunes towering hundreds of feet over Lake Michigan, Sleeping Bear is a sight you don't want to miss. Kids will love the Dune Climb, a 350-ft. mountain of sand, and the Pierce Stocking Drive, a seven-mile scenic drive with spectacular views of Lake Michigan.
From Sleeping Bear, cross the peninsula and head north toward Mackinac (pronounced Mackinaw) Island, on U.S. Route 31. Stop at the Music House, a 1906 barn that has antique, automated musical instruments in a reconstructed, turn-of-the-century museum. Continue north through the charming towns of Charlevoix and Petoskey and past the outstanding collection of 400 Victorian homes in Bay View. Another site not to miss: the scenic drive up State Road 119, between Harbor Springs and Cross Village.
You'll know you're getting close when you see the Mackinac Bridge, the world's longest suspension bridge. Since no cars are allowed on the island, you'll have to park your car at Mackinaw City. Those who do not want to cross the bridge can take one of the ferries from St. Ignace, just across the straits. Before you go, be sure to visit Colonial Michilimackinac, a reconstructed French fur-trading village and military outpost.
Once on Mackinac Island, park yourselves at the historic Grand Hotel, built in 1887. A major resort in its own right, Mackinac Island has plenty to keep the whole family busy, including the Butterfly House, a walk-through greenhouse filled with live butterflies and flowers, and Fort Mackinac. For starters, though, grab a taste of the island's world-famous fudge and take a carriage tour to get yourselves oriented. Then curl up in one of the hotel's porch rockers with a book by Ernest Hemingway or Edward Everett Hale: both writers found inspiration here many summers ago.