Biketown, USA
March 14, 2013 1:22 PM Subscribe
My favorite vacation place as a kid, specifically because there were no cars (beyond emergency vehicles); we took the ferry over, and sadly only went once in the 70s. Thanks for the reminder.
posted by davejay at 1:25 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by davejay at 1:25 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
I grew up in Petoskey, about 45 minutes away from Mackinaw City/Mackinac Island. It's funny how you just take it for granted when you live around it.
posted by Dr-Baa at 1:26 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Dr-Baa at 1:26 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
It's a neat island, although touristy as hell. As far as I know there's no other actual industry there - it's just fudge shops and horse-drawn carriages and a swanky hotel.
posted by restless_nomad at 1:26 PM on March 14, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by restless_nomad at 1:26 PM on March 14, 2013 [6 favorites]
This place looks so awesome, but I can't help but notice that all of the pictures appear to have been taken in the summertime.
posted by Navelgazer at 1:27 PM on March 14, 2013 [9 favorites]
posted by Navelgazer at 1:27 PM on March 14, 2013 [9 favorites]
Also known as the place where they made Somewhere In Time.
posted by 41swans at 1:27 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by 41swans at 1:27 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Yes, very small touristy place. Think Cannon Beach, Matt, and other PNW'ers.
posted by Mid at 1:28 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Mid at 1:28 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I think this would be significantly less awesome riding around on bikes on ice when it is freezing with snow falling.
posted by dios at 1:30 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by dios at 1:30 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
What happened to a place in Michigan when cars were banned for 115 years?
It gets overran with fudgies?
I keed, I keed. Sort of. Seriously, if you've never been there, go. 1) It's such a beautiful island 2) It's right near my favoritest spot in the whole, wide world, Fort Michilimackinac 3) Our family cabin isn't too far from there so I've seen the island about million times from the bridge in my lifetime and I never tire of seeing it. GO! GO! Eat fudge! Lick ice cream cones! You'll have a ball!
posted by NoMich at 1:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
It gets overran with fudgies?
I keed, I keed. Sort of. Seriously, if you've never been there, go. 1) It's such a beautiful island 2) It's right near my favoritest spot in the whole, wide world, Fort Michilimackinac 3) Our family cabin isn't too far from there so I've seen the island about million times from the bridge in my lifetime and I never tire of seeing it. GO! GO! Eat fudge! Lick ice cream cones! You'll have a ball!
posted by NoMich at 1:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
It's probably a super place to visit - but that's some super excruciating copy!
"...Along with multi-season commuting, it’s a place where everyone socializes on bikes, from teens to guys in sports coats..."
posted by Jody Tresidder at 1:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
"...Along with multi-season commuting, it’s a place where everyone socializes on bikes, from teens to guys in sports coats..."
posted by Jody Tresidder at 1:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
I was kind of wondering how deliveries were made, and then I found this article.
tl;dr: Ferry (in summer) and airplane -> horse and snowmobile.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 1:33 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
tl;dr: Ferry (in summer) and airplane -> horse and snowmobile.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 1:33 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Mackinac Island. I knew the post's subject without even looking at the article. My Mom loved this place so so much.....she told me all about the no cars rule.
posted by IvoShandor at 1:34 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by IvoShandor at 1:34 PM on March 14, 2013
It's worth exactly one day of your time, unless you are addicted to fudge. It's closed in the winter, other than some year round residents. Be careful where you step, there's horse droppings all over the place...
It does get a bit exciting at the end of the Detroit to Mackinac sailboat race...
posted by HuronBob at 1:38 PM on March 14, 2013
It does get a bit exciting at the end of the Detroit to Mackinac sailboat race...
posted by HuronBob at 1:38 PM on March 14, 2013
The article doesn't mention that horses are also used very heavily on Mackinac for transport and hauling and quaintness, to the extent that there's a town poopsmith, that rides around on a bucket trike and cleans up all the horseplops.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by Cold Lurkey at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2013 [4 favorites]
Great, fun place to visit, but this article makes it look like more of a thriving bike commuting culture than it really is. It's a tourist/resort village, and it's not like they don't snowmobile in the winter, so they are not completely immune to the lure of petroleum fuels either.
posted by stevis23 at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by stevis23 at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
What happened? I'll tell you.
The bike people all ignored the traffic laws at the same time and now they're all buried in an enormous grave just outside of town. They won't tell you THAT at the visitor's center!
posted by orme at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013 [11 favorites]
The bike people all ignored the traffic laws at the same time and now they're all buried in an enormous grave just outside of town. They won't tell you THAT at the visitor's center!
posted by orme at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013 [11 favorites]
It's a cool spot. Haven't been back there in a number of years. Gotta say, though, the no-cars thing only works because it's a) physically isolated, and b) entirely dependent on tourism, which lets you put a large economic value on charm.
posted by echo target at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by echo target at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013
Another potential benefit of a car ban (and the diminished need for road lighting that goes with it) is the possibility of becoming a Dark Sky location, where naked-eye astronomy is possible.
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:40 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Well, for one thing, I damn near killed my mother.
As a single mom raising a young son, my mom did the best she could, but when we found ourselves on Mackinac Island on one of our long, rambling vacations when I was maybe seven, she realized that nobody had ever gotten around to teaching me how to ride a bike.
My mom's solution to this was to rent a tandem bike, put me on the back and tell me to just hang on to the handlebars and try to be still. This did not work. At all.
After we went down hard for like the fourth time, my scraped and battered mom finally accepted that it just wasn't going to happen (I wasn't looking so great either, frankly, but I was younger.) and we bailed on the bike tour of the island.
However, when we got home, the oversight was corrected and I was damn well taught how to ride a bike.
posted by Naberius at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2013 [12 favorites]
As a single mom raising a young son, my mom did the best she could, but when we found ourselves on Mackinac Island on one of our long, rambling vacations when I was maybe seven, she realized that nobody had ever gotten around to teaching me how to ride a bike.
My mom's solution to this was to rent a tandem bike, put me on the back and tell me to just hang on to the handlebars and try to be still. This did not work. At all.
After we went down hard for like the fourth time, my scraped and battered mom finally accepted that it just wasn't going to happen (I wasn't looking so great either, frankly, but I was younger.) and we bailed on the bike tour of the island.
However, when we got home, the oversight was corrected and I was damn well taught how to ride a bike.
posted by Naberius at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2013 [12 favorites]
The full article this is extracted from is in the latest issue of Bicycle Times, a really nice magazine that covers cycling from a non-mountain bike/non-racer perspective. Call it minimally-hipster–urban-cycling-and-touring focused.
posted by andorphin at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by andorphin at 1:41 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
The book that Somewhere In Time was based on was set at the Hotel del Coronado on Coronado Island in San Diego, but they went with the hotel on Mackinac Island instead because, due in part to the no cars rule, it was more quaint and easier to film a period piece there. And not next to a military base.
posted by book 'em dano at 1:44 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by book 'em dano at 1:44 PM on March 14, 2013
The police, fire and ambulance services are petrol powered, though the police do ride around on bikes while on patrol.
posted by lstanley at 1:44 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by lstanley at 1:44 PM on March 14, 2013
Reminiscent of James Howard Kunstler's visit to the faux carless Main Street at Disney World in his book The Geography of Nowhere. He keeps asking people why they're so blissed-out and not one of them, to his mounting dismay, mentions the absence of cars.
posted by seemoreglass at 1:46 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by seemoreglass at 1:46 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
On the last friday of every month, people show up in cars & drive around town in a bloc, ignoring all traffic signals & going as fast as they possibly can.
posted by UbuRoivas at 1:46 PM on March 14, 2013 [29 favorites]
posted by UbuRoivas at 1:46 PM on March 14, 2013 [29 favorites]
> Yeah, I think this would be significantly less awesome riding around on bikes on ice when it is freezing with snow falling.
There's hardly anybody there to mind, and by then ski-doos are going to be more effective than cars anyway.
posted by ardgedee at 1:54 PM on March 14, 2013
There's hardly anybody there to mind, and by then ski-doos are going to be more effective than cars anyway.
posted by ardgedee at 1:54 PM on March 14, 2013
I thought people on Mackinac Island were so blissed out because of the fudge.
posted by Area Man at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by Area Man at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013
My friend was run over by a biking tourist on the island and spent a couple weeks in the hospital. A nurse told her it happens more than people would realize. I don't know if there are any hard numbers available.
posted by MaritaCov at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by MaritaCov at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Monhegan Island in Maine is also car-free ("except for a fleet of pick-up trucks for utility purposes.")
posted by seemoreglass at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by seemoreglass at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
On the last friday of every month, people show up in cars & drive around town in a bloc, ignoring all traffic signals & going as fast as they possibly can.
That's what we on the mainland call "rush hour."
posted by entropicamericana at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [7 favorites]
That's what we on the mainland call "rush hour."
posted by entropicamericana at 1:55 PM on March 14, 2013 [7 favorites]
For contrast I think of the retro-twee town of Sisters, Oregon, very popular with day trippers who like shambling around an old town now largely repurposed into an Olde Towne full of what used to be called junk shops and are now called antique malls and so forth. The contrast is that lying as it does on one of the main routes over the Cascades and by far the most direct route between Salem and Bend, it's utterly choked with cars on those very weekends on which it's most popular. It's really hard to understand the appeal of weekending in what amounts to a massive traffic jam speckled with the merest residue of old Americana.
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:57 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:57 PM on March 14, 2013
I used to love that place as a kid. For senior day at Interlochen, we went to Mackinaw and ate waffles and flirted with each other. Horses, bikes, no cars. It's absolutely lovely.
posted by Lutoslawski at 2:03 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by Lutoslawski at 2:03 PM on March 14, 2013
Here is my (parents') Mackinac Island story: My parents visited once, about 10–15 years ago, and rented a pair of bikes to ride around the island. At their first stop, they parked their bikes at the bottom of a hill and walked up to an overlook. When they got back from the overlook, a tree had fallen on their bikes, crushing them. They called up the rental shop, and a guy from the shop came out to them riding one bike and wheeling another alongside him like an outrigger canoe. He handed the bikes over to my parents, who proceeding along their tour as planned.
They were never quite clear on how the guy got back to the shop or how he disposed of the crushed bikes. But they were pretty happy about getting their rental bikes replaced with a minimum of fuss and muss.
posted by Johnny Assay at 2:04 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
They were never quite clear on how the guy got back to the shop or how he disposed of the crushed bikes. But they were pretty happy about getting their rental bikes replaced with a minimum of fuss and muss.
posted by Johnny Assay at 2:04 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
What happened to a place in Michigan when cars were banned for 115 years?
It smells of horseshit, that's what happens.
Strongly. Distractingly.
The article doesn't mention that horses are also used very heavily on Mackinac
Right, but then it is a biking magazine.
the no-cars thing only works because it's a) physically isolated, and b) entirely dependent on tourism
Yeah. It's not a real place. It's da Disney version of Da Yoop, eh?
posted by Herodios at 2:07 PM on March 14, 2013 [5 favorites]
It smells of horseshit, that's what happens.
Strongly. Distractingly.
The article doesn't mention that horses are also used very heavily on Mackinac
Right, but then it is a biking magazine.
the no-cars thing only works because it's a) physically isolated, and b) entirely dependent on tourism
Yeah. It's not a real place. It's da Disney version of Da Yoop, eh?
posted by Herodios at 2:07 PM on March 14, 2013 [5 favorites]
After reading some of the more favourable first-hand comments, I suppose I'd better add that YMMV and "courses for horses", as they say.
posted by Herodios at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by Herodios at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2013
Mackinac Island is a lovely place to visit. As someone up-thread said, it's worth about a day of your time. If that. My cousin and I visited many years ago on a bike trip through Michigan--we took the ferry across to the island from the lower peninsula, spent the day there, and then took the other ferry across to the upper peninsula to continue our trip. We weren't especially touristy people and didn't enjoy wandering in and out of shops, so even though we were on a trip where we had been riding our bikes about 70 miles a day, we entertained ourselves by biking the perimeter trail. Twice. It's a really lovely trail that circles the island. Nice and flat. If I remember right, it's about 8 miles long, if that gives you an idea of the size of the island.
The next time we did a similar bike trip, we skipped the island and instead paid the Mackinac Bridge authority to drive us and our bikes across the bridge in the back of a pickup truck.
posted by not that girl at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
The next time we did a similar bike trip, we skipped the island and instead paid the Mackinac Bridge authority to drive us and our bikes across the bridge in the back of a pickup truck.
posted by not that girl at 2:12 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
I graduated high school on Kwajalein Island, a small South Pacific island leased by the US Army. There were no privately owned vehicles at all. We pedaled everywhere. I would love to live somewhere like that again.
posted by COD at 2:14 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by COD at 2:14 PM on March 14, 2013
This is so cool! I think when I envision my magical happy land of Utopia I imagine something like this only with a bus/subway system (ideally designed to be as efficient and low CO2 producing as possible)- with tons of plant life all over the town to counter whatever CO2 they do emit. And maybe less horsey poo. I think special taxi/personal car use could be fit into the picture for disabled/elderly and for rainy/stormy/icy weather.
I also think if large employers pretty much had housing establishments/shopping within walking distance it would be a really cool thing too.
This helps me in my very important task of Utopia Dreaming. Thank you for posting it!
posted by xarnop at 2:15 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
I also think if large employers pretty much had housing establishments/shopping within walking distance it would be a really cool thing too.
This helps me in my very important task of Utopia Dreaming. Thank you for posting it!
posted by xarnop at 2:15 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Mackinac Island. I knew the post's subject without even looking at the article.
Me too. It is a wonderful place and I've been there several times.
posted by marxchivist at 2:21 PM on March 14, 2013
Me too. It is a wonderful place and I've been there several times.
posted by marxchivist at 2:21 PM on March 14, 2013
They also save a tremendous amount of money that would normally go to commuting by cars.
money that gets spent on high priced real estate instead
The air is cleaner
than what? - locations in the same region? - not really - there's a reason they call it god's country - hardly anyone else lives up there
and those other locations don't smell like horseshit - my dad had asthma - on our visit to the island in the late 60s, he swore that every horse on the island conspired to follow him around and make him miserable
Islanders enjoy their night sky and navigating by treeline and moonlight
or the lights of mackinac city or st ignace or that huge 5 mile bridge between them
if you want to see a real night sky, camp out by the upper tahquamenon falls in fall - it's very dark and very quiet there
it's quaint, but the whole mackinac straits area is a huge tourist trap - the traffic jams in mackinac city at the end of the holidays rival I-696 at rush hour and most of them are the same damn cars
it's nice they don't have cars on that island - but there are better places one can go
posted by pyramid termite at 2:22 PM on March 14, 2013 [10 favorites]
money that gets spent on high priced real estate instead
The air is cleaner
than what? - locations in the same region? - not really - there's a reason they call it god's country - hardly anyone else lives up there
and those other locations don't smell like horseshit - my dad had asthma - on our visit to the island in the late 60s, he swore that every horse on the island conspired to follow him around and make him miserable
Islanders enjoy their night sky and navigating by treeline and moonlight
or the lights of mackinac city or st ignace or that huge 5 mile bridge between them
if you want to see a real night sky, camp out by the upper tahquamenon falls in fall - it's very dark and very quiet there
it's quaint, but the whole mackinac straits area is a huge tourist trap - the traffic jams in mackinac city at the end of the holidays rival I-696 at rush hour and most of them are the same damn cars
it's nice they don't have cars on that island - but there are better places one can go
posted by pyramid termite at 2:22 PM on March 14, 2013 [10 favorites]
Yeah, I think this would be significantly less awesome riding around on bikes on ice when it is freezing with snow falling.
WIhtout cars zipping by, it is not a big deal at all.
posted by ocschwar at 2:22 PM on March 14, 2013
WIhtout cars zipping by, it is not a big deal at all.
posted by ocschwar at 2:22 PM on March 14, 2013
Less than 500 people live there year round, and it is a huge tourist area.
posted by discopolo at 2:28 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by discopolo at 2:28 PM on March 14, 2013
Fort Michilimackinac
If you snuck this on my teleprompter, there is no chance I'm getting this one correct.
posted by dios at 2:30 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
If you snuck this on my teleprompter, there is no chance I'm getting this one correct.
posted by dios at 2:30 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
I grew up in Charlevoix (next to Petoskey, which as Dr-Baa says is 45 minutes away from Mackinaw City) and this article seems to be implying that this is a thriving community when it's a basically seasonal tourist attraction—BUT it's awesome to see it mentioned because, you know, it's so close to my also tiny seasonal tourist attraction of a hometown. For what it's worth, though, I think the nearby Beaver Island is way more cool, even though it allows cars, what with the Mormon King and his eventual murder by the husbands who were flogged as punishment for their wives not wearing proper underwear.
Reading this also made me think fondly of my very athletic friends, one of whom ended up in a hospital after crashing his bike on Mackinac Island—he got to ride in the (only?) Mackinac City ambulance.
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Reading this also made me think fondly of my very athletic friends, one of whom ended up in a hospital after crashing his bike on Mackinac Island—he got to ride in the (only?) Mackinac City ambulance.
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
in fact, traffic on labor day can be so bad that many people just give up and WALK across the bridge
posted by pyramid termite at 2:32 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by pyramid termite at 2:32 PM on March 14, 2013
BTW, the Mackinac Bridge (and the Labor Day walk) isn't how you get to the island, it's how you get to the ferry that gets you the island.
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:36 PM on March 14, 2013
Well, as someone whose bad knees and feet mean I can't walk far and can bike even less, this is a place I will certainly avoid. Too bad, it looks pretty.
posted by pbrim at 2:42 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by pbrim at 2:42 PM on March 14, 2013
Well, as someone whose bad knees and feet mean I can't walk far and can bike even less, this is a place I will certainly avoid. Too bad, it looks pretty.
As people have alluded to, there really are horse-drawn carriages that go everywhere - both tours and taxis. It's not inaccessible, and it's not all bikes all the time, despite the bias of this particular article. (That said, there are many pretty places in the country, and most of them are probably less annoying for the mobility-challenged.)
posted by restless_nomad at 2:45 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
As people have alluded to, there really are horse-drawn carriages that go everywhere - both tours and taxis. It's not inaccessible, and it's not all bikes all the time, despite the bias of this particular article. (That said, there are many pretty places in the country, and most of them are probably less annoying for the mobility-challenged.)
posted by restless_nomad at 2:45 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
camp out by the upper tahquamenon falls in fall
Or Monocle Lake.
Or best of all, the Porkies!
posted by Herodios at 2:48 PM on March 14, 2013
Or Monocle Lake.
Or best of all, the Porkies!
posted by Herodios at 2:48 PM on March 14, 2013
BTW, the Mackinac Bridge (and the Labor Day walk) isn't how you get to the island, it's how you get to the ferry that gets you the island.
well, no, there's ferries running to the island on both sides of the strait, so you needn't cross the bridge at all
posted by pyramid termite at 2:48 PM on March 14, 2013
well, no, there's ferries running to the island on both sides of the strait, so you needn't cross the bridge at all
posted by pyramid termite at 2:48 PM on March 14, 2013
True, but why wouldn't you go across the bridge if you could?! It's so cool.
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:52 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:52 PM on March 14, 2013
try walking across it on labor day - that's REALLY cool
posted by pyramid termite at 2:54 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by pyramid termite at 2:54 PM on March 14, 2013
Also for the life of me I cannot remember how we got there when I was a kid. You can tell I was more excited about the bridge than the island, which was basically a snooze since I was friends with the Murdick (of Murdick's Famous Fudge) family so ate it often and could get all the scenic views and horses I wanted on the mainland.
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:55 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by thesocietyfor at 2:55 PM on March 14, 2013
If you actually ride your bike for transportation in a wintry place, it can be worth the $100 investment in a pair of studded ice tires. Of course, slipping while riding a 10mph city bike with no cars around, especially onto snow as opposed to hard pavement, is a lot less of a problem than slipping into automobile traffic.
posted by akgerber at 3:05 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by akgerber at 3:05 PM on March 14, 2013
No cars seems to mean no Google Street view, in particular.
posted by louigi at 3:05 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by louigi at 3:05 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Are there really enough fudge eating people out there to support the economies of every tourist village in America? I can't even recall the last time I had fudge.
Someone needs to study the fudge shadow economy. Follow the fudge money.
posted by munchingzombie at 3:19 PM on March 14, 2013 [8 favorites]
Someone needs to study the fudge shadow economy. Follow the fudge money.
posted by munchingzombie at 3:19 PM on March 14, 2013 [8 favorites]
Oh, I dunno, when I was a kid I could always talk a relative into buying me fudge because it was tasty and also like swallowing a compressed chunk of Annoy The Hell Out Of Your Parents All Day, so that was fun. Not for them.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 3:27 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 3:27 PM on March 14, 2013
Fort Michilimackinac
If you snuck this on my teleprompter, there is no chance I'm getting this one correct.
MISH-ill-ih-MACK-inaw
(Like the Mackinac Bridge, Mackinac Island, and the Straits of Mackinac, the "c" is silent. You can cheat a little bit because the town on the south end of the bridge is spelled phonetically: Mackinaw City, MI).
Also, yes, Fort Michilimackinac is pretty interesting, what with the historical reenactors and all.
posted by dhens at 3:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
If you snuck this on my teleprompter, there is no chance I'm getting this one correct.
MISH-ill-ih-MACK-inaw
(Like the Mackinac Bridge, Mackinac Island, and the Straits of Mackinac, the "c" is silent. You can cheat a little bit because the town on the south end of the bridge is spelled phonetically: Mackinaw City, MI).
Also, yes, Fort Michilimackinac is pretty interesting, what with the historical reenactors and all.
posted by dhens at 3:31 PM on March 14, 2013 [2 favorites]
Wait, I thought the "c" wasn't silent in Fort Michilimackinac? (So it ends up being Mish-ee-la-mack-e-nack.) I hope my Michigander street cred hasn't just taken a ding. I just remember that from visiting the Fort as a grade schooler and being annoyed that it was the only "Mackinac" that should be pronounced like it looks.
posted by thesocietyfor at 4:00 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by thesocietyfor at 4:00 PM on March 14, 2013
Well, this wasn't very helpful:
posted by thesocietyfor at 4:02 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
"Mackinac": this French/Indian word confuses nearly everyone, even natives. If you're talking about the city on the south side of the Straits of Mackinac, it's pronounced "Mackinaww City". If you're talking about the island, it's pronounced "Mackinaw". If you're talking about the Straits, they're pronounced "Straits of Macinack". If you're talking about the Mackinac Bridge, it's "Mackinaw Bridge". If you're talking about the fort on the south side of the straits, it's pronounced "Michillimackinack". Got it? Never mind. DECEMBER 2001 UPDATE: I've gotten an overwhelming response from Michiganders and expatriates alike who claim it is NEVER EVER "mackinack".I guess I'll begrudgingly pronounce it your way, dhens, though now I'm sure I was taught to say it the other way!
posted by thesocietyfor at 4:02 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
the pictures are suspiciously missing the great mounds of reeking horseshit that are everywhere. but yeah, it's a cool place if you like tourist traps.
posted by quonsar II: smock fishpants and the temple of foon at 4:14 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by quonsar II: smock fishpants and the temple of foon at 4:14 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Nuts to that December 2001 update -- I'm a native Yooper and have only ever heard Michilimackinac pronounced with a hard "c" sound at the end. But Mackinac sounds like Mackinaw looks.
posted by aaronetc at 4:19 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by aaronetc at 4:19 PM on March 14, 2013
Well, as someone whose bad knees and feet mean I can't walk far and can bike even less, this is a place I will certainly avoid. Too bad, it looks pretty.
They have electric carts for rent if you don't want to ride a horse-drawn carriage.
If you drive across the Mackinac bridge, remember to pay for the car behind you. It's a tradition.
And now, a flimsy excuse for me to link to the song "Across The Bridge" by Michigan's own Great Lakes Myth Society. (Warning: contains drunken banjos & fiddles played by nattily-dressed young men & women.)
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 4:22 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
They have electric carts for rent if you don't want to ride a horse-drawn carriage.
If you drive across the Mackinac bridge, remember to pay for the car behind you. It's a tradition.
And now, a flimsy excuse for me to link to the song "Across The Bridge" by Michigan's own Great Lakes Myth Society. (Warning: contains drunken banjos & fiddles played by nattily-dressed young men & women.)
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 4:22 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
True, but why wouldn't you go across the bridge if you could?! It's so cool.
Why would I not cross the Big Mac? Because I've seen like eleventy-hundred horrifying local news videos of the goddamn thing wobbling and waving around in the wind and of cars being blown off it. That and general acrophobia.
posted by FelliniBlank at 4:59 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Why would I not cross the Big Mac? Because I've seen like eleventy-hundred horrifying local news videos of the goddamn thing wobbling and waving around in the wind and of cars being blown off it. That and general acrophobia.
posted by FelliniBlank at 4:59 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Because I've seen like eleventy-hundred horrifying local news videos of the goddamn thing wobbling and waving around in the wind and of cars being blown off it.
to the best of my knowledge, only one car has ever been blown off the bridge, and that was a yugo that had stopped over the open grate
the other car was a deliberate suicide - wikipedia
they do close the bridge if it gets too windy and offer driving assistance if you're a scardy cat
so unless you're feeling despondent or drive a yugo, you should be fine - otherwise, seek professional help, especially if you drive a yugo
posted by pyramid termite at 5:29 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
to the best of my knowledge, only one car has ever been blown off the bridge, and that was a yugo that had stopped over the open grate
the other car was a deliberate suicide - wikipedia
they do close the bridge if it gets too windy and offer driving assistance if you're a scardy cat
so unless you're feeling despondent or drive a yugo, you should be fine - otherwise, seek professional help, especially if you drive a yugo
posted by pyramid termite at 5:29 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Two cars have gone off the side of the bridge. The yugo and a bronco in 1997, a suicide. I still hate that sucker, I nearly froze to a dead stop on it once. Or, what he said.
posted by HuronBob at 5:36 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by HuronBob at 5:36 PM on March 14, 2013
For senior day at Interlochen
that's another cool destination, about 15 miles south of traverse city - you can camp at interlochen state park and walk across the road to see rehearsals and other cool musical things at the school
i did that when i was a kid
posted by pyramid termite at 5:44 PM on March 14, 2013
that's another cool destination, about 15 miles south of traverse city - you can camp at interlochen state park and walk across the road to see rehearsals and other cool musical things at the school
i did that when i was a kid
posted by pyramid termite at 5:44 PM on March 14, 2013
Well, as someone whose bad knees and feet mean I can't walk far and can bike even less, this is a place I will certainly avoid. Too bad, it looks pretty.
Oh, no, no! My RA is a righteous bitch sometimes, but I still have no problem getting around the Island (I go every year). Horsies for the win!
I've been to the Island for wine related activities, and love all the fancy-pants restaurants there. And going from place to place in a horse drawn carriage is just...fun. It feels very elegant and a little snooty.
posted by MissySedai at 5:45 PM on March 14, 2013
Oh, no, no! My RA is a righteous bitch sometimes, but I still have no problem getting around the Island (I go every year). Horsies for the win!
I've been to the Island for wine related activities, and love all the fancy-pants restaurants there. And going from place to place in a horse drawn carriage is just...fun. It feels very elegant and a little snooty.
posted by MissySedai at 5:45 PM on March 14, 2013
Why would I not cross the Big Mac? Because I've seen like eleventy-hundred horrifying local news videos of the goddamn thing wobbling and waving around in the wind and of cars being blown off it. That and general acrophobia.
Hah!
Two years ago, my MIL wanted to do the Labor Day walk. She had never done it, in spite of years of heading up to Mackinaw City and over to the Island. Her reasoning was that she was 82, wasn't getting any younger, and wanted to get across that damned thing under her own steam just to say she did.
Holy Jesus Onna Biscuit. No one informed me when I cheerfully agreed to take her across the Mighty Mac that she's not just afraid of heights, she's pants-shittingly TERRIFIED of heights.
I think I still have bruises where she clung to me.
posted by MissySedai at 5:49 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
Hah!
Two years ago, my MIL wanted to do the Labor Day walk. She had never done it, in spite of years of heading up to Mackinaw City and over to the Island. Her reasoning was that she was 82, wasn't getting any younger, and wanted to get across that damned thing under her own steam just to say she did.
Holy Jesus Onna Biscuit. No one informed me when I cheerfully agreed to take her across the Mighty Mac that she's not just afraid of heights, she's pants-shittingly TERRIFIED of heights.
I think I still have bruises where she clung to me.
posted by MissySedai at 5:49 PM on March 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
What happened to a place in Michigan when cars were banned for 115 years?
Everyone bought a cruiser bike never had to lock it up. Sounds dreamy.
posted by klausman at 6:11 PM on March 14, 2013
Everyone bought a cruiser bike never had to lock it up. Sounds dreamy.
posted by klausman at 6:11 PM on March 14, 2013
"And now, a flimsy excuse for me to link to the song "Across The Bridge" by Michigan's own Great Lakes Myth Society. (Warning: contains drunken banjos & fiddles played by nattily-dressed young men & women.)"
Oh man, I'm crazy happy to see that's up on Bandcamp. I looked for 'em a couple years ago to share with some folks, and couldn't find anything online.
(I almost lived with Scott and Greg, and was decent friends with the rest of 'em. Tim's solo album is pretty good too, and a little less chanty-filled.)
posted by klangklangston at 6:35 PM on March 14, 2013
Oh man, I'm crazy happy to see that's up on Bandcamp. I looked for 'em a couple years ago to share with some folks, and couldn't find anything online.
(I almost lived with Scott and Greg, and was decent friends with the rest of 'em. Tim's solo album is pretty good too, and a little less chanty-filled.)
posted by klangklangston at 6:35 PM on March 14, 2013
This isn't the only island like this, Hydra, in Greece has the same rule.
posted by tylerkaraszewski at 8:08 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by tylerkaraszewski at 8:08 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
For roadgeeks: this island has the only numbered state highway in the U.S. where motor vehicles are banned along its entire length; like the Sammy Hagar song, I Can't Drive M-185.
It is signposted, so you shouldn't get lost.
posted by kurumi at 8:51 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
It is signposted, so you shouldn't get lost.
posted by kurumi at 8:51 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
(Tim's solo album is pretty good too, and a little less chanty-filled.)
He's just released a second one and it's even better. But the Great Lakes Myth Society records, and the two before them by the same band under the name The Original Brothers And Sisters Of Love, are amazing, quirky, sometimes nearly perfect. And they're all about Michigan history! What is it about the Mitten that makes its musicians want to tell its story?
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 9:02 PM on March 14, 2013
He's just released a second one and it's even better. But the Great Lakes Myth Society records, and the two before them by the same band under the name The Original Brothers And Sisters Of Love, are amazing, quirky, sometimes nearly perfect. And they're all about Michigan history! What is it about the Mitten that makes its musicians want to tell its story?
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 9:02 PM on March 14, 2013
Someone needs to study the fudge shadow economy. Follow the fudge money.
Just don't bring up the packers. Nobody ever wants to talk about the people who put the fudge in the trucks for some reason.
posted by srboisvert at 9:19 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Just don't bring up the packers. Nobody ever wants to talk about the people who put the fudge in the trucks for some reason.
posted by srboisvert at 9:19 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Nobody ever wants to talk about the people who put the fudge in the trucks for some reason.
Because they'd just be going on about a bunch of trudging fuckers.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 9:51 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
Because they'd just be going on about a bunch of trudging fuckers.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 9:51 PM on March 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
The Grand Hotel... with the longest front porch in the world, 'tis said... and an absolutely incredible Sunday brunch... is by itself worth the trip.
posted by drhydro at 10:04 PM on March 14, 2013
posted by drhydro at 10:04 PM on March 14, 2013
No cars seems to mean no Google Street view, in particular.
Yeah, they should get the Street View Trike there, stat.
posted by dhartung at 12:17 AM on March 15, 2013
Yeah, they should get the Street View Trike there, stat.
posted by dhartung at 12:17 AM on March 15, 2013
The smell of horse manure trumps the smell of petrol fumes anyday.
posted by gomichild at 12:22 AM on March 15, 2013
posted by gomichild at 12:22 AM on March 15, 2013
In my neck of the country, Tangier Island used to be all big old black balloon tire bikes and one wee seventies vintage Honda Civic police car, though I see from their tourism website that they've now ruined the place with rentable golf carts. Such a shame, as it used to be lovely to climb into a rented Cessna, zip across the Bay, and spend a sunny day clattering around on clunky Schwinns in a place where the locals still had a lingering Elizabethan accent.
To be anywhere free of cars, though...sigh.
posted by sonascope at 4:08 AM on March 15, 2013
To be anywhere free of cars, though...sigh.
posted by sonascope at 4:08 AM on March 15, 2013
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