Sometimes we get so focused on the far away places that we want to travel to that we forget to slow things down and explore our own back yards. While I am very excited for my trip to Egypt, Jordan, and Israel this autumn, I decided to stay closer to home for my summer trip and explore the beautiful Great Lakes region of the United States. If you follow my blog closely, then you probably know that I have been planning this Great Lakes road trip for some time. I have done a lot of scouring of Google Earth and other maps to find as many places to explore along my route as possible. Some of the destinations on my Great Lakes road trip itinerary, like Mackinac Island, I have been to before. Others, like the enchanting Turnip Rock in Lake Huron, I have dreamed about visiting for some time.
The goal of this trip is to hit as many of the places I have not been to along the shores of Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, and Lake Huron as I can so that I can finish putting together a comprehensive American Great Lakes Road Trip itinerary later this summer. That itinerary will be chalk-full of useful guides, travel tips, and recommendations that you can use to plan an amazing road trip thru one of America’s most underappreciated regions. There are some truly breathtaking places in the Great Lakes region, and I want to share those all with you. However, you don’t need to wait until I release my travel guides and itineraries to start learning about these amazing places. Throughout my Great Lakes Road Trip, I will be posting more journal entries, photos, and videos to share my journey with you. So stay tuned to my blog as well as my Instagram and Facebook accounts for updates!
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| The Ultimate Mackinac Island Visitor Guide |
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| Apostle Islands Visitor Guide |
My Itinerary
Over this long weekend, my Great Lakes road trip will take me to some of the most beautiful spots along the shores of Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Lake Huron. Some of these spots, like Mackinac Island, I have been to many times in the past and have developed in-depth visitor guides on my blog. However, other spots, like the beautiful Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, I have unfinished business with. While I have visited Pictured Rocks in the past, I have yet to get out on the water and explore the gorgeous painted sea cliffs and sea caves for myself. On this trip, I plan on doing a lot of kayaking so that I can really get the full perspective of these wonderful destinations.
On my Great Lakes road trip, I will also be doing quite a bit of hiking at some destinations that I have driven thru in the past, but have not had the opportunity to stop and thoroughly explore. One of these locations is the incredible Porcupine Mountains State Park in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Located on the shores of Lake Superior, Porcupine Mountains State Park has some of the most beautiful forests and coastline on the shores of Lake Superior. In addition to the epic hikes, I also plan on photographing some of the park’s many incredible waterfalls.
My final stop on my Great Lakes road trip will be to a destination that I have dreamed about visiting for quite some time. There are a lot of pretty stretches of coastline in the American Great Lakes, but Turnip Rock in Lake Huron might be one of the most beautiful. If you haven’t see pictures of this incredible sea stack before, you are in for a real treat when I post pictures from my trip. Because the rock is located off the shores of private land, the only way to get to the rock is by a 7-mile round trip kayak expedition. I plan on renting a kayak in nearby Port Austin and kayaking to the rock to photograph and explore it.
If you are interested in learning more about my Great Lakes road trip itinerary, I have included a map for you to review below. No doubt, there will be other unscheduled stops along the way, but this itinerary is what I will use to guide my explorations. So again, be on the lookout here on my blog and my social media pages for updates this weekend!
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Have a wonderful trip! I haven’t been to the Porcupine Mtns. for years. Skied there occasionally as a kid.