Headed out to Mackinac Island for the day. A little history, the area was first established by the French doing fur trading with the Indians. In 1763, the French turned the area over to the British who built the fort on Mackinac Island. Then in 1796 the fort was turned over to the US. During it’s time as an America fort, it was looked at as a vacation destination for the officers, yes the winters were harsh, but the summer time was very pleasant. In 1875 Mackinac Island become the 2nd National Park, but in 1895 the island was transferred to the state of Michigan. In the 19th century, the island became a favorite resort destination.
Most of the buildings on the island appear to be from 19th and 20th century. Lovely architecture. Now, there are only 3 modes of transportation, feet, horse, bicycle. I chose feet, had a great walk around the island. I rode the ferry to and from the island, was a nice sunny day, around 65 degrees, so very pleasant for a walk about. The fort itself, was not much different from the other forts I have visited, but one thing stood out, was how they heated the water for the showers, using the wood stove. The tulips were blooming which surprised me. I did visit the Arch rock, which is basically a rock with a hole in it, but you climb up 209+ stairs to see this rock. A couple of churches that are still active today are almost 200 years old. BTW, one of my pictures looks like it came from a Pink Floyd album cover.
