Travel Diary: Michigan, Part 1

Michigan typically isn’t the state most people look to for a week’s vacation. If you’re one of those people that think that Michigan doesn’t have anything to offer, well, this blog is my opportunity to change your mind. Breweries, solitude, nature, lighthouses… what more do you need?

Our adventure began in Holland, MI. Known for it’s tulip gardens and an authentic, working Dutch windmill, Holland is a town out of a painting. Our camp was set up at the state park, which boasts a beach within walking distance (1 mile) and a very photogenic lighthouse. There are 2 sections to the campsite. We chose the more wooded area away from the beach. The actual campsites are what you would expect from a state park, small and packed in tight. The shower house was a nice surprise - private shower rooms that look fairly new…or, at least, very well maintained. Most people there were in large RV’s, so finding an open shower room wasn’t hard to do. Our couple of days there consisted of rain and me working on my computer in the Vanagon. We did treat ourselves to a few brews at the New Holland Brewery while in town. We tried to take a visit to the windmill and gardens but the rain had the area closed. I suppose we will have something to check out next time!

Camp: Holland State Park

Eat/Drink: New Holland Brew Pub

Due to the rain cutting into our time in Holland, we left a bit earlier than planned for Grand Rapids. Three words can describe Grand Rapids: SO. MANY. BREWERIES. If you love beer, this is your city. We had fantastic lunch at Founders Brewery. Most breweries tend to serve snack foods, but Founders has a full deli to choose from. Even if you’re not drinking beer, the food is worth the stop. Before we left there, our server recommended our next stop should be Brass Ring Brewery. This little gem specializes in ports, stouts and English ales. Everything about this brewery felt comfortable and friendly. We filled our growler with their Red Ale. After getting our fill of beer, we decided to get down the road before we drank so much we couldn’t drive. Heading toward Dearborn, we decided to find a place to set up camp for the night. Stopping in at a Walmart, good ol’ Brakayla decided she’d driven enough for the day. One of the wires to our brand new starter relay kit had broken. Thankfully, since we were at a Walmart, Andrew was able to purchase some electrical connectors, and he had her fixed in under an hour. But because of the late hour, our sleeping accommodations ended up being in the parking lot of a Homewood Suites (shout out to the old drunk lady in the hotel parking lot who couldn’t find her shoes at 1:00am).

Eat/Drink: Founders Grand Rapids

Brass Ring Brewing

Dearborn started pretty eventful with the starter trouble, and the trouble continued the next morning. Driving into the Detroit area we started to notice cars piled up on the side of the highway. What I assumed was Detroit garbage were actually cars that had been abandoned due to major flooding on the Interstate. Traffic was a mess! Cell towers were knocked out, so GPS wasn’t an option for directions. PRO TIP: always bring a paper map with you. You never really know when you’ll need it. So, with our trusty paper map in hand, we finally found our next destination, the Henry Ford Museum. I had been looking forward to Greenfield Village located within the museum compound. It’s a legit village full of old cars, old homes and old trains. I won’t go into the history of the village, but it’s worth looking into if you enjoy historic (old) stuff. The actual Henry Ford Museum indoors is full of vintage cars, farm implements and other historical items. While we were there, the Jim Henson exhibit happened to be showing there. As two adults that still watch old Muppet Show’s on a regular basis, I can firmly say this was a top experience. If this exhibit comes to your town, GO.

Finally, after getting our fill of the museum, we drove north to the Bavarian town of Frankenmuth. For anyone who enjoys German food and beer, this is overload. We chose to have our meal at the Bavarian Inn. We had a giant meal of sausage, chicken, schnitzel and pork. We have made a note to return here in the near future just to eat. Again, we had to be on the move. Leaving town, we drove across their covered bridge in the rain and were on the hunt for camp again. With public land being so little in the east, we, once again, ended up in a parking lot (Walmart) around Traverse City. Every camp can’t be epic, but who cares when you got a belly full of beer and sausage??

Visit: Greenfield Village

The Henry Ford Museum

Frankenmuth

Eat/Drink: Bavarian Inn Lodge

Next up was a stop in a town called Leland, which has a historic district called Fishtown. A sleepy village looking like it’s out of a movie set, Leland is a great spot to sit and take in the sights and sounds of a true working dock. There are small restaurants and shops in the area but we chose to keep moving on. Driving on the M22 we saw the Grand Traverse Lighthouse at Leeanau State Park. Of course, we had to stop for a beer at the local brewery in Northport, MI called The Mitten Brewing Company. Since most of this day was once again sprinkled with showers, we did not take the time to explore Traverse City. Our day ended with us finding a great camp in Wilderness State Park where we showered, relaxed and took in a great sunset.