Great Lakes Suggestions

[ronjhall]

Originally Posted by mo5er

Several of you have mentioned the Soo. I Goggled it and got Soo Township. Is this what you are talking about?

Sault Ste. Marie

[Possum]

Originally Posted by mo5er

Several of you have mentioned the Soo. I Goggled it and got Soo Township. Is this what you are talking about?

The twin cities of Sault Ste Marie Michigan and Ontario.

[Pepper2]

Sterling state park in Monroe MI. Site #81 for a great view of the bay and shipping vessels.

[mo5er]

Thanks for the Soo info, and the Sterling campsite. Checking them out right now.

[ahicks]

Are you coming down through the lower, or continuing through Canada? If coming down through the lower, will you be hugging one coast line or coming down the center (via I75)?

[BobThompson]

The Aune Osborn RV Park in Sault St. Marie, MI is great for watching Freighters. So is a small park (not RV) beneath the Blatnick bridge (I 535) in Duluth, MN. Walk out to the end of the old wood bridge. They're 50 feet from you. Visit the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Assoc. in Mackinaw City. Maybe even tour the over 150 lighthouses around the Great Lakes. Tours available in Alpena, MI Oct 9 - 12 (Lighthouse Festival). Erie Beach and Goderich, both in ON are pretty places to see, as are the islands in the south end of Georgian Bay. Make sure to be stocked up with food as it's expensive in Canada. Not Great Lakes related, but Greenfield Village in Dearborn, MI is worth the trip. Bob T

[wnytaxman]

One other item to keep in mind is that here in Upstate NY the schools do not open until after Labor Day. If you are thinking you will avoid weekend crowds you'll find many campgrounds still pretty crowded on weekends.

That being said, you can add Niagara Falls to your list as well as Letchworth State Park, Watkins Glen State Park, the wineries in the Finger Lakes and much more. I'm not sure how far into NY you plan on coming but there is a ton of things to see and do here in Upstate NY.

[Possum]

The Chautauqua Institute in the area of Jamestown is a super place to go walkabout. If you time it right there are usually some pretty fantastic programs offered at the outdoor theatre. The Atrium is worth at least a dinner in. Nearby there are paddle-wheel boat tours to ride on. Jamestown has some interesting places like the "LUCY" museum. Fredonia has the UNY arts complex and the student shows are always great to see.

In Youper (upper Peninsula MI) there is always the shipwreck museum at Paradise. Very eerie place to walk through.

[Steve N Sal]

If you're heading to lower MI don't miss Traverse City State Park. Great area and as far as places to eat????? WOW there are a ton. One of our favorites is Mackinaw Brew Pub right downtown. Great Beer and Great Food. Have fun and Be Safe.

[BobThompson]

While you're in Minn. you might want to visit the Iron Range interpretive center in the Hibbing area and the museum devoted to the origination of the Greyhound bus co. There's a giant open pit Iron mine nearby. You need to stop in Bemidji and see the Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox statues. Campy but cute. Voyageurs National Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are about as wild as you can find. There is a tourist train north of Duluth, I believe. Lake Itasca (?) is the origin of the Mississippi and you can step over it at that location. something to tell your grandchildren. Make sure you take pictures or they'll never believe you. There's a rest area west of Duluth somewhere where the water flows in 3 directions, depending upon where in the rest area it falls. weird. Not really Great Lakes, but you might be able to catch Prairie Home Companion at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre in St. Paul. Some tickets are available on a first come, first served basis on Sat. Depends on cancellations. Bob T

[mo5er]

Thank you everyone for all of the great suggestions. This will be a very busy trip!!

[michealwhela]

Coming out of Wisconsin if you take the North route toward Marquette and Coper Harbor you have some excellent State Parks. You will need a State Park Pass (cheaper to get a regular pass than just a day pass if you are going to use the Michigan park system) to enjoy many of the places on the South shore of Lake Superior. I would suggest to run that route to Sault Ste Marie (the Soo) visit the locks eat at Antlers (a long time local and tourist favorite) . Then drop South to Mackinaw City area (some great state parks such as Wilderness and Old Mill Creek). Then run the Lake Huron coast (great fall fishing if you feel so inclined). Last cut out to I-75 and switch to 23 to head into Ohio. I could also give you the Lake Michigan route if you want more of a dune experience through Petotskey and Traverse City (Sleeping Bear National Park is great). We live here and can never make up our mind which way to go next. Headed to the Soo in two weeks for the fall color tour. Have fun.

[ahicks]

Originally Posted by BobThompson

The Aune Osborn RV Park in Sault St. Marie, MI is great for watching Freighters. So is a small park (not RV) beneath the Blatnick bridge (I 535) in Duluth, MN. Walk out to the end of the old wood bridge. They're 50 feet from you. Visit the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Assoc. in Mackinaw City. Maybe even tour the over 150 lighthouses around the Great Lakes. Tours available in Alpena, MI Oct 9 - 12 (Lighthouse Festival). Erie Beach and Goderich, both in ON are pretty places to see, as are the islands in the south end of Georgian Bay. Make sure to be stocked up with food as it's expensive in Canada. Not Great Lakes related, but Greenfield Village in Dearborn, MI is worth the trip. Bob T

Born and raised in Mi, but didn't know about Aune Osborn RV Park, so we tried it last week. Giving it a

Great people at the desk, clean, maybe 2 miles to the park at the locks, close to shopping and restaurants, great stay for a day or 2. Park is all about watching the freighters going by. Pretty busy when we were there and the leaves were only at about 20%. Wawa, on the Canadian coast of Lk. Superior not to far north of there had snow one morning!

If you want a site along the river (recommended!) you'll likely need to make a reservation. River sites are all back in (pull throughs available elsewhere).

There's a site map available (http://www.sault-sainte-marie.mi.us/...unesitemap.pdf). If you look, you'll see sites that you can back a motorhome into and watch the freighters from your windshield. Other sites, you can back a 5'er into and watch from the back.

[George Schweikle]

The OP has probably completed the trip by now, but I'm surprised that nobody mentioned Legs Inn. Legs Inn - Cross Village, Michigan