Welcome to our blog! For our first post, I (Gabby) will be posting the itinerary of the one week trip we took through the natural beauties of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. We also did parts of the Seven Hour Plane Crash overland trail. Our starting point was our current home in O’Fallon, IL (next to St Louis, MO) and we took a total of 8 days, May 16-23. We tend to move quickly, so many would prefer longer to explore these places to the fullest. If I don’t mention where we ate for a meal, it means we cooked with our camp stove or just had a snack. I also want to urge you to be flexible, because all of these places are pretty reliant on the weather. Scroll to the bottom to see a map of our journey. Thanks for requesting this write up and I plan on posting more itineraries we’ve done soon!
Day 1: Drove 9 hours from Illinois to Sleeping Bear Dunes NL, Michigan. We like to get long drives out of the way so we can enjoy as many days as possible. We also like to get to our next destination in the evening to maximize the sunlight. We were advised to visit The Tunnel of Trees on the way there, but the road was closed. We did get out an enjoy the view near the lighthouse in Manistee, MI. We arrived in the evening and stayed at Platte River Campground in our trusty rooftop tent. Basic wooded campground close to the water but we did not have a view.
Day 2: Sleeping Bear Dunes NL. We hit the visitors center and got our beloved national parks passport stamped. More than any guide book or forum, we plan most of our trips based around the map that comes with the passport – through this method, we’ve gone so many fantastic and less visited places! We began the Piece Stocking Scenic Drive and stopped to do Cottonwood Trail, which is a moderate but short hike over several sand dunes. We skipped the Dune Climb because the trail went right by it and we’d had our fill of climbing. From there we drove to Sleeping Bear Point where we were greeted by a view that fully validated the area’s National Park status for us. This is where our best pictures came from. Absolutely amazing. You can climb down the steep dunes but be prepared for the hour plus long hike back uphill.
The day was still young, so we drove 2.5 hours to Mackinaw City and got the last boat to the island. We used Shepler’s Ferry. Their overnight parking lot was $10 per night and was in a gated area that felt secure. Bikes and horses filled the streets on Mackinac Island! We stayed at Island House Hotel which was nice, though the layout is confusing inside. Our attic room was a “budget” option because there is no elevator to the fourth floor. Dinner was at Horn’s Gaslight Bar & Restaurant, a completely non-authentic Mexican place with delicious spinach artichoke dip.
Day 3: We went to the visitors center where we got a hidden passport stamp – while no longer listed in the NP system, Mackinac was the second national park in history before it returned to being a state park. We then rented a tandem bike from the island’s main bicycle renters, they have kiosks all over the main street. We pedaled the perimeter of the island called M-185, the only US highway where only bikes are allowed. Totally worth it! Even if you don’t rent a bike, at least make it to the awesome Rock Arch. It took us about 2 hours to circle the island because we were taking our time and stopping frequently to enjoy the crystal clear water. Back in town, we made sure to buy the famous Murdick’s Fudge. We aren’t fudge people, but I’m telling you it’s worth the price.
By evening we were done admiring the island and took an afternoon ferry back to Mackinaw City. Then we drove 2 hours to Pictured Rocks NL, where we settled at Pine Bluff Campground and got the amazing spot #9 which sits right on a ledge overlooking the beach. We took an evening walk on the beach before bed and enjoyed looking at the colorful rocks.
Day 4: The plan was to explore Pictured Rocks NL all day, but weather won. It was too choppy and rainy to kayak or boat, and the visitors center was closed due to the pandemic. Thank goodness we got to see the beautiful shoreline the prior night at our campsite. We packed up and drove 3 hours to Keweenaw NHP. With that visitors center closed too, we sat down for lunch at Offshore Fish and Chips in Calumet – they had excellent clam chowder. The plan for the next day was to do a tour with Adventure Mining Company, because mining is what this site is all about. Unfortunately I got the dates mixed up and this tour wasn’t open yet for the season either! (However when I called the owner answered the phone he seemed like a great guy.) So instead we decided to drive the additional hour to Copper Harbor. Warning, there’s no signal in Copper Harbor, so text your family that you’re going off the grid before you get there (oops). We booked two nights at the Bella Vista Motel which was small but perfect – affordable, simple, clean, and comfy. No AC or elevators.
Day 5: Our bonus day in Copper Harbor allowed us to do the tip of the Seven Hour Plane Crash overland trail in the 4Runner. Find the GPX file here. The goal was to get to the tip of Copper Harbor. You need a tall/minimally lifted vehicle and unless you’re in for some offroading, stay on the main path. Even so, there were quite a few water crossings that a low vehicle would not make it through. We took a detour to do a little hike and had to do one fairly significant rock climb in the car. The view we got in the end at High Rock Bay was great. There seemed to be plenty of dispersed camping spots here, but it was very windy. You can also see the Keweenaw Rocket Range here. On the way back to town we stopped at the Brockway Mountain viewpoint. For dinner we ate at The Mariner North Restaurant – pretty good. We also stopped at Grandpa’s Barn which is a cute, small bookshop. We slept a second night at Bella Vista.
Day 6: Early start to catch the 800 AM Queen IV ferry to Isle Royale NP. It was either stay for two hours or four days in complete wilderness due to the time of year – so we opted for two hours. And boy was it worth it. This is definitely a plan ahead stop. While two hours was not enough time, we weren’t prepared to stay on the island. During non-COVID times there is a lodge and restaurant which would make it much more doable, but for the summer 2021 season nothing is open, setting you up for a fully primitive camping/backpacking experience. Later in the season the ferry takes trips daily instead of twice a week, so that would make an overnight less intimidating. If you’re a serious backpacker, this place is paradise. The island is far larger than it looks and many backpackers stay for weeks at a time. With our limited time, we got our stamp for the least visited NP in the continental US. And then we saw a wild moose right on the trail! It made the 7 hour round-trip boat ride worth it, no matter how uncomfortable and cramped those seats were… Most people were sleeping or playing cards in the boat. Upon reaching land, we drove 3 hours to stay at Quality Inn in Ashland, WI. It was a comfortable and nice place to spend the night in preparation for Bayfield the next day. Note, there are several inns in Bayfield that simply did not show up in a quick Google search, so if you’d rather stay right in Bayfield it shouldn’t be a problem.
Day 7: After a good old hotel breakfast, we drove half hour to Bayfield for our 1000 AM “grand tour” with Apostle Islands Cruises. Never underestimate the local old guy driving the boat. It was slow going at first and we thought the coolest thing we’d see was an eagle until we reached Devil’s Island and the captain steered our double decker basically into the wall of the sea caves! So many great views. The cruise then looped around and arrived back at the port around 1330 PM. We drove 3 hours towards Minneapolis, MN to sleep at Rice Creek Campground right outside city limits. It was a busy but very safe feeling campground with local police presence as well as park rangers.
Day 8: We drove to Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis and took a nice walk around this very active city. We then got our passport stamp at Mississippi NRRA before heading back home in earnest. We had a nine hour car ride back to the St Louis area and stopped at Akame Sushi in Eau Claire, WI – pricy but highly recommend! (Side note, Wisconsin was also home to the Trump themed gas station that I never imagined existed.) If you’re not from Illinois like us, I would recommend beginning/ending this trip in Chicago and stopping by Indiana Dunes NP on the way up to Michigan. Indiana Dunes has many great hiking routes, but when we went last summer for a quick stop it was an underwhelming, crowded beach. However it is one of the full fledged national parks so it’s worth the stop.
That concludes the itinerary for our trip! Like I mentioned, we tend to go at top speed. But you could easily spend 2-3 nights in each park to more closely explore each park, especially if you’re an avid hiker or kayaker. We have our military NP pass which saved us money in entrance fees, but even if you don’t have that privilege, it was a very affordable trip. Thank you so much for reading and liking our photos! Below are maps for your convenience. In the future I plan to post more itineraries of trips we’ve done like this one in other states/NPs. Happy travels!
