Michael Richardson
After quickly acclimatizing to “the good life” of island fudge and a roof over our heads yesterday, we couldn’t resist waiting out the morning rain with my dad at a local breakfast spot, Pancake Chef. When the day starts with french toast and endless coffee, it’s hard to have any negative feelings about the weather. It’s also been incredibly refreshing to spend time with family over the past twelve hours and hear about what’s happening outside our bike bubble. I never could have imagined seeing so many familiar faces in an unfamiliar place, but it’s been a lovely visit and just what I needed to make it to our rest day this weekend.
G-Mom wishes Michael a safe and fun ride out of Mackinaw City
Usher lives the good life with a breakfast of strawberry pancakes from Pancake Chef
The radar called for strong winds and precipitation most of the day, but instead, our morning was overcast and we enjoyed the quiet roads along Lake Michigan. The trouble began when Brian snapped his shifter cable and we performed a NASCAR-esque repair to evade the mosquitoes that swarmed us within seconds. The fix involved securing his derailleur just above the center chain ring such that he could only use about 30% of his available gears. That essentially translates to “I am not in the right gear for this hill,” and we still had many hills ahead of us. Selfishly, I hoped this setback would make it easier to keep up with my brother today, but if you know Brian, you know not to underestimate his abilities. A couple miles down the road, it was my turn to face misfortune and I got my first flat tire of the trip. I was careful to inspect the tube and rim for sharp objects, but evidently, I did not do a good enough job. Ten minutes later, my tube was flat again and I had to borrow Friend’s pliers to pull a sneaky staple from the inside of my tire.
Brian’s broken front shifter cable
Michael addresses the first of his two flats of the day
Beyond the sand dunes, we arrived at the highly anticipated Tunnel of Trees (M-119) road. This 27-mile scenic highway follows the shore of Lake Michigan and winds through one of the state’s most picturesque landscapes. The route is enveloped by dense woods and a mesmerizing canopy that paired all too well with Jack Johnson playing in my earbuds. At this point, the sun came out and Lake Michigan lit up with the vivid blue we’ve heard so much about. It almost looked tropical. In Harbor Springs, at the end of the tunnel, we restocked our spare parts at a bike shop and ate lunch by the marina.
Tunnel of Trees Scenic Road along Lake Michigan
Luckily, there is a bike path all the way from Harbor Springs to Charlevoix and it kept us cruising along the shoreline. We passed by a bustling skatepark and a small airport before stopping in Petoskey to see one of Brian’s friends at Bayfront Park. He stayed with this individual during his 2019 trip, and it took only one message to reconnect—“Wanna jump off the pier with us when we reach town in an hour?” Next thing I know, I’m filming Brian, Jacob, and Marko do front flips into a very cold great lake. Smiling and unphased by a 52° dunk, Marko and Julia offered us a place to stay for the night. Absolutely! Their house was located “just up the hill” and supposedly there was a bike path that would lead us straight to it. Well, we must have made a wrong turn. Pretty soon, we were on rocky single-track and navigating an obstacle course of stairs and bridges. This section gave us our first taste of off-road cycling and we all had a good laugh trying to “walk the plank”. Out of the rain for another night, we’re chowing down on pizza and ice cream, and just enjoying the company of our enthusiastic hosts.
Cold plunge off the Petoskey Breakwater into Lake Michigan
Brian dismounts for a tricky section of the “bike path”
Usher “walks the plank”