[stinkytofu10]

Originally Posted by skyl4rk

Superior has a lot more rocks than Lake Michigan. But be aware, it is a long drive through endless forests. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

H-28 west of Seney for 20ish miles is brutal. It's literally a straight shot with nothing going on (somebody up there told me it's the longest stretch of straight highway in the country or something). I love trees and forests, but that stretch is ridiculous.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by stinkytofu10

H-28 west of Seney for 20ish miles is brutal. It's literally a straight shot with nothing going on (somebody up there told me it's the longest stretch of straight highway in the country or something). I love trees and forests, but that stretch is ridiculous.

Ha! It seems like it. There are stretches of I-80 in Iowa and Nebraska that go over a hundred miles without a curve though. I hate that stretch of 28. You can get lulled into a trance on it.

[cosmicrowbar]

Originally Posted by Sillypups

Are these beaches easily to get to ???
How far is the parking to Leland beach ?
Any certain beach names we need to know ???

I have a prosthetic leg & can't get it wet, it has a C-leg (no pun) LOL...
It has a computer in the knee.

My hubby can get in the water if need be, I just can't. Wish I could. I'm sure it will be hot.

We will have drinking H2o & juice with us if we have a good distance to walk, but if we do, then I won't be able to walk that much on the beach.

I'm just trying to figure out beach names, & where to find the best rocks & the shorter the distance to walk to the beach the better for me.

So since several of you said the mackinac bridge...how far is it going across, just curious ???

Where is Pictured Rocks national seashore ? Is it easy to get to ?
Sames goes for Upper Tahquamenon Falls...is it easy to get to ?
How far away are these 2 places ?

I've been told Lake Supieror is the place for nice rocks also. Once again, any good rock places that is easy to get to ?

Thanks guys your doing great.
I'm geting very excited. Our vaca is just 2 weeks away.................YEA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At Good Harbor Bay in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park you can park very near the beach. The same is true in Leland where you can park almost ON the beach, at Van's Beach (south), South Beach (a few blocks farther south on Reynolds St) or North beach (north of the harbor) You'll find it not as hot as you might imagine. Inland can be 90, but the shore will be 80 because of the lake. The rock picking will depend on wave action...big waves, not many rocks but lots of great sand, calm water, more stones, but there are always stones in a foot of water. The entire Leelanau peninsula is made of glacial spoils..rocks rounded and smoothed in all sizes.
info
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore travel guide - Wikitravel
America's Lakeshore: The Comprehensive Guide to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Inspiration

‪Michigan Moments - Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore‬‏ - YouTube

‪Pure Michigan Traverse City TV, "True North"‬‏ - YouTube

‪Leland, Michigan - it's magical!‬‏ - YouTube

An indispensible guide to rock picking on Lake Michigan. Because of it's creation by huge glaciers pushing down from the North, Lake Michigan has the largest variety of rocks you'll find anywhere in the world. The glaciers picked up rocks for thousands of miles, crushed and ground them into smaller pieces and deposited them, along with trillions of gallons of water, in the Great Lakes. The best rock hunting anywhere. Lots of fossil corals, some agates, quartz and chalcedony, Leland Blue (only at Leland beaches), puddingstone, granites of all types and lots more. Have a great trip!
Amazon.com: Lake Michigan Rock Picker's Guide (9780472031504): Bruce Mueller, Kevin Gauthier: Books

The Mackinac (pronounced MAK in naw) bridge is 100 miles North of Traverse City. If you have a bunch of time, by all means hit the UP of Michigan. If you're limited, concentrate on the coastline of the lower peninsula and plan a second trip!

[NATIVEYOOPER]

Originally Posted by stinkytofu10

H-28 west of Seney for 20ish miles is brutal. It's literally a straight shot with nothing going on (somebody up there told me it's the longest stretch of straight highway in the country or something). I love trees and forests, but that stretch is ridiculous.

Brutal is driving the seney stretch in whiteout conditions. It does become utter boredom quickly though, especially when travel solo. I did see a train engineer once and he must have felt the same, we were both waving to eachother until we could no longer see eachother. This was in November when I only encountered a few passing cars and trucks the entire stretch.

[Sillypups]

Here's the scoop...
Last night & this AM Hubby & I went over everything all of you have posted.
We made some changes so we could pretty much do it all. Well... maybe not ALL.... but everything we really wanted to do.

We are still starting out in South Haven & staying the night.
We will get there early AM, so we'll have that day & evening in SH.

Then North up the coast we go. Stopping along the way here & there.
Major stops...Platte River, Empire, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Lake Leelanau, Leland, Northport Point, Traverse City, Torch Lake, Charlevoix & Petoskey.
Then from there heade for the UP all the way to Whitefish Point.

Instead of coming back down thru MI. We decided to head for Pictured Rocks National Seashore and almost all the way across to Marquette. Take the 41 all the way down along the coast to Green Bay & start heading SW back home.


I know we won't be able to stay long at many of the places , but at least we can hit the best ones (my luck they'll all be the best ones. LOL). At least we'll be able to do both Lake Michigan & Lake Superior.


So now you know our itinerary... are we crazy or what ??? LOL... This is the plan.
So now that you guys know our route...any special places that weren't mentioned before because we didn't really know we were going to the UP & Lake Superior.

We figure & hope if all goes well with my health... we can always come back to our favorite spots.

I am so excited............. I just can't wait.We haven't been on a real vaca in 18 years until this past May to Co. Springs, CO & Taos, NM.
Now to Michigan. I am just thrilled.....
Warn the rocks & beach glass... cause here I come

Thank you all so much for the info. the videos, the maps, the messages... everything. If you think of anything else we missed... please post it or DM me.
I'll be on here daily until our trip starts in about 2 weeks.

[michmoldman]

Originally Posted by Sillypups

Here's the scoop...
Last night & this AM Hubby & I went over everything all of you have posted.
We made some changes so we could pretty much do it all. Well... maybe not ALL.... but everything we really wanted to do.

We are still starting out in South Haven & staying the night.
We will get there early AM, so we'll have that day & evening in SH.

Then North up the coast we go. Stopping along the way here & there.
Major stops...Platte River, Empire, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Lake Leelanau, Leland, Northport Point, Traverse City, Torch Lake, Charlevoix & Petoskey.
Then from there heade for the UP all the way to Whitefish Point.

Instead of coming back down thru MI. We decided to head for Pictured Rocks National Seashore and almost all the way across to Marquette. Take the 41 all the way down along the coast to Green Bay & start heading SW back home.


I know we won't be able to stay long at many of the places , but at least we can hit the best ones (my luck they'll all be the best ones. LOL). At least we'll be able to do both Lake Michigan & Lake Superior.


So now you know our itinerary... are we crazy or what ??? LOL... This is the plan.
So now that you guys know our route...any special places that weren't mentioned before because we didn't really know we were going to the UP & Lake Superior.

We figure & hope if all goes well with my health... we can always come back to our favorite spots.

I am so excited............. I just can't wait.We haven't been on a real vaca in 18 years until this past May to Co. Springs, CO & Taos, NM.
Now to Michigan. I am just thrilled.....
Warn the rocks & beach glass... cause here I come

Thank you all so much for the info. the videos, the maps, the messages... everything. If you think of anything else we missed... please post it or DM me.
I'll be on here daily until our trip starts in about 2 weeks.

Awesome trip...wow!!!! Maybe the most exciting part is your trip to Whitefish Point, then over to Marquette. This is a beautiful drive, and Marquette and surrounding area is just unreal.

[Sillypups]

Originally Posted by michmoldman

Awesome trip...wow!!!! Maybe the most exciting part is your trip to Whitefish Point, then over to Marquette. This is a beautiful drive, and Marquette and surrounding area is just unreal.

Totally Cool....

Hope the drive from Whitefish Point to Marquette has rocks, beach glass, driftwood, also.
Hubby told me to settle down otherwise I'll never make it 2 more weeks, or he won't. LOL... He's such a funny man.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Sillypups

Here's the scoop...
Last night & this AM Hubby & I went over everything all of you have posted.
We made some changes so we could pretty much do it all. Well... maybe not ALL.... but everything we really wanted to do.

We are still starting out in South Haven & staying the night.
We will get there early AM, so we'll have that day & evening in SH.

Then North up the coast we go. Stopping along the way here & there.
Major stops...Platte River, Empire, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Lake Leelanau, Leland, Northport Point, Traverse City, Torch Lake, Charlevoix & Petoskey.
Then from there heade for the UP all the way to Whitefish Point.

Instead of coming back down thru MI. We decided to head for Pictured Rocks National Seashore and almost all the way across to Marquette. Take the 41 all the way down along the coast to Green Bay & start heading SW back home.


I know we won't be able to stay long at many of the places , but at least we can hit the best ones (my luck they'll all be the best ones. LOL). At least we'll be able to do both Lake Michigan & Lake Superior.


So now you know our itinerary... are we crazy or what ??? LOL... This is the plan.
So now that you guys know our route...any special places that weren't mentioned before because we didn't really know we were going to the UP & Lake Superior.

We figure & hope if all goes well with my health... we can always come back to our favorite spots.

I am so excited............. I just can't wait.We haven't been on a real vaca in 18 years until this past May to Co. Springs, CO & Taos, NM.
Now to Michigan. I am just thrilled.....
Warn the rocks & beach glass... cause here I come

Thank you all so much for the info. the videos, the maps, the messages... everything. If you think of anything else we missed... please post it or DM me.
I'll be on here daily until our trip starts in about 2 weeks.

You MUST post pictures of your trip here, after you go. I love seeing what visitors see. They pick up a lot of stuff that we lifers miss.

[Sillypups]

I will.
Did I happen to mention...I can't wait to get to MI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[skyl4rk]

have a great trip!