Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Seven, Pyramids, Powerlines and Endless Sunshine

The next day was yet another sunny, gorgeous day, though the wind was picking up. Marty and I explored some of the highlights of The Sleeping Bear Dunes State Park. This is the teaser view from Pyramid Point Dunes. We are hundreds of feet above Lake Michigan.
Breathtaking!

Birch trees are not too common in northeast Ohio, but are plentiful in northern Michigan. I love the texture of the bark.
Ah, another typical view, this time of the Michigan state shrub; Poison Ivy. It was everywhere. This is just off the sandy path. It should be noted that we are still hundreds of feet up- this sandy path is actually the top of a massive sand dune. Marty found an intriguing wiggly line on his map- that usually means a hill or two. We were not to be let down, we climbed this wiggly line to the top, despite it narrowing and steepening and degrading into little more than a gravelly, sandy 4-wheeler track. As always, the reward at the top; LUNCH and a spectacular view! Those are the Sleeping Bear Dunes in the distance.

This the delightful sandy trail that wound its way along the top of this high ridge that we rode after lunch.

The laid-back, mellow vacation mood has finally enveloped us.


A dockside nap beckons. Glen Lake was as clear as it was picturesque.
I didn't resist the urge to nap, though Marty chose to stand and soak up some rays and views. Neither of us knew yet of the ice cream stand just around our next bend. "Laker Shakes" was its name and not deliberately a play on Cleveland's Shaker Lakes, but I was amused anyway and mentally repeated both names in sort of a jump rope rhyme rhythm as pedalled up the next few hills.

Six, Forecast: clear and sunny

The scenery on the Leelenau Peninsula was magnificent. Whadda view!
And not just this road!
Just outside of Glen Arbor and The Sleeping bear National Park.



Cherry orchards

Winery and vineyard.

Our lunch spot overlooking Leland's fishtown.


Fishtown.
Air mail!


The next day was a beautiful as the previous was grim.
We were to ride back down the peninsula to the famous Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Along the way, we were rewarded with one bucolic view after another, more homegrown whimsy and a delicious sandwich lunch overlooking Leland's Fishtown waterfall.

We enjoyed just about all that's good about bicycle-touring that day, from natural beauty to quaint tourist towns.