Mackinaw City, Michigan

We took a family vacation to Michigan this summer. It took us 2 full days of driving to reach our destination - Mackinaw City. Mackinaw City is located on the northern tip of the lower Michigan peninsula on the shoreline of Lake Huron. It is a tourist town, filled with hotels, beachfronts, shopping and dining.

One day we took a ferry ride to Mackinac Island. The boat ride took 18 minutes and we traveled through the Straits of Mackinaw to reach the island. Mackinac Island became a favorite vacation destination during the Victorian era. The Grand Hotel, featured in the 1980 film "Somewhere In Time" with Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, and Christopher Plummer has helped make the island famous.

The island boasts an old military fort from the late 1700's, lavish victorian hotels, museums, a variety of restaurants, fudge stores and gift shops, and beautiful natural scenary like Arch Rock. There are many hiking trails and the island even has a butterfly conservatory. The island does not allow automobiles. The only method of transportation is by foot, bike or horse. There are carriage tours around the island for visitors. In the summer months, there are over 500 horses on the island. Most are shipped off the island for the harsh winters.