Jacob Usher
We woke up this morning to cooler temperatures. We were pretty excited about this after the recent heat. The first thing I thought in the morning was that the mosquitos would be gone. Apparently the UP mosquitos are different and unfazed by 50 degree weather.
Mosquitoes wait inside Brian’s rainfly to strike when he starts packing up
We packed up camp quickly, trying our best to not breathe in the bugs. Breakfast would have to wait. I was the last one to leave camp and I was devastated to find out my tire had gone flat. The tube had torn at the stem, which was probably my own fault. I fought with my bike in the worst mosquito swarm of my life. Luckily I saw Friend riding back down the road towards me with bug spray.
Usher fixes his flat tire in a swarm of mosquitoes
We found a place for breakfast and prepared ourselves for the rest of the day. We rode on Highway 2 with increasingly frequent views of Lake Michigan. The shoulder was nice and wide which made the traffic more tolerable.
The Upper Peninsula’s south shore
Eventually the Lower Peninsula appeared on the horizon and we arrived at our first stop of the day: a pasty shop called Lehto’s which had been recommended to us multiple times. We saw a family bike-touring and asked them what they recommended for us to order. They informed us that there was only one menu item, which is a great sign in my opinion. Michael and Friend gave the pasties 6/10. I leaned more towards an 8/10.
Michael chows down at Lehto’s
Our next destination was Mackinac Island. The bridge slowly came into view and traffic increased. We made our way down to all of the ferries to catch a ride over to Mackinac Island. When we got onto the ferry, the employees were required to move our bikes for us. I was slightly entertained watching a pretty strong looking man struggle to lift my bike up. I also felt pretty uncomfortable separating from my bike. I’ve spent a lot of time with it in the past month.
The gang takes the ferry from St. Ignace on the UP to Mackinac Island
Once ashore the island, we were greeted by Michael’s and Brian’s dad, grandparents, and aunt. We explored the island for a couple of hours before dinner. The four of us went on a short hike with their dad to Arch Rock.
Richardson family reunion on Mackinac Island. From left to right: Ted (Dad), Brian, Michael, Usher, Wilmer (G-Mom), Friend, Doug (G-Dad), and Great Aunt Linda
Ted takes the gang on a hike up to Arch Rock
We worked up an appetite and boarded our ferry to Mackinaw City on the other side of the bridge. We all met back up with the Richardson grandparents to eat dinner at an Italian restaurant called Nonna Lisa’s. At dinner, I had a lot of fun reflecting on the memories and stories we have made so far on this trip. We’ve made a ton, but answering questions about the trip really got me thinking about them.
Tonight we are staying in our first hotel of the trip! We are excited to get a good night of climate-controlled sleep. Big thanks to the Richardsons for making the trek up to Michigan, and for dinner and the hotel room!