MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS
FROM
THE HOLOGLOBE PRESS
(The 50th Edition)by
Victor Edward Swanson,
Publisherwww.hologlobepress.com
RULES OF USE
The reports and stories contained on this Web page have been put together with information taken from "The Victor Swanson Fabulous Files of Places to See in Michigan and Wisconsin" and with information obtained from operators and staffers of tourist attractions and from press releases, Web sites, and other sources. The reports and stories are provided as a public service by Victor Swanson and The Hologlobe Press. Almost all persons and entities, such as staffers of radio stations, may freely use the materials; neither AAA Michigan nor any employee of AAA Michigan may use, distribute, download, transmit, copy, or duplicate any of the material presented on this page in any way or through any means.
- - - Travel Thoughts for Everyone - - -
From summer-tourist season to summer-tourist season, I notice changes that take place with museums, tourist attractions, and businesses in Michigan. For one, it looks as if there is now a new sign at Historic Mill Creek, which is near Mackinaw City and which I have talked about in the past. The sign notes: "Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park." Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park is located along US-23 a little south of Mackinaw City, and I passed by it twice on Wednesday, May 29, 2008, on a trip to Mackinaw City--I went in to Mackinaw City and I left--and the trip was made to stop in at several shops. At one shop, a friend of mine and I talked with the owners, and one subject that we talked about was how a particular food-type shop in town seemed to be doing poorly or seemed to have been losing customers for a while, and we determined, for one, it was because the somewhat young owner had changed and cheapened recipes of product and did not understand rules about keeping up a reputation through offering quality and by maintaining what quality has existed for decades. At another shop at Mackinaw City, which is Krueger's Fish Market, my friend and I talked about various subjects with the operators till a couple--a husband and wife--entered the shop. The couple was from Edinboro, Pennsylvania, and they were heading back home after being on a trip that included seeing much of the west side of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan--particularly from Holland to Mackinaw City. The husband--Charlie Sink--noted that, during the recent holiday, they were at Muskegon for, in essence, the groundbreaking for a monument or statue related to flyers who had flown Corsairs during World War II or really a pilot named Ira Kepford. Charlie noted that a replica of a Corsair was being built and would sometime in the future be displayed at Muskegon. The Sinks did not stay long at the shop, and they noted they hoped to be home the next day. Not only did the chance meeting with the Sinks give me something to watch for in the future but also the meeting gave me an opening for this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, and it has given you information about something being done in Michigan that you might not otherwise have become aware of.
Officially, I note that the monument to Ira Kepford will be set up sometime in the future near what is called the "LST-393 Museum," which is at Muskegon. That museum is run by the LST Preservation Association, and the main goal of the association to oversee The LST-393, which was a "Landing Ship Tank" used in World War II, but the association does do more. The LST-393 is at Mart Dock.
Muskegon has other ships that were used in World War II that people can see today. Really, one of the ships is a submarine and should not be thought of as a ship. That submarine is The U.S.S Silversides. The submarine is part of the Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum. Another ship that is part of the memorial/museum is The USCGC McLane, which was a U.S. Coast Guard cutter. For this report, I will only say that the memoral/museum is located at "Muskegon," because soon--probably by the time you read this--the memorial/museum will exist in a new building along the Muskegon Channel (associated with the Muskegon River). In the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips, I will present a few more notes about the Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum, especially about what the new home or new building has.
By the way, The LST-393 was once associated with the Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum.
Before the Sinks went on their way, I did note that Michigan is the state for, for instance, the National Museum of Tuskegee Airmen (in Detroit of Wayne County in the Lower Peninsula), and I noted how there were several Hueys on display around the state, but I did not note so many other military-themed museums that exist in Michigan. If I would have time, I could have talked about the Yankee Air Museum of Willow Run Airport, which is in Wayne County of the Lower Peninsula. In addition, I could have talked about the Air Zoo at Kalamazoo (in Kalamazoo County of the Lower Peninsula), the K.I. Sawyer Heritage Air Museum, which is at Gwinn (of Marquette County in the Upper Peninsula), and the Fighting Falcon Military Museum, which, for one, focuses on the gliders used to get Allied troops behind enemy lines in Western Europe around the time of D-day.
I did not ask the Sinks whether or not they made a visit to the museum at Manistee Lake of the Manistee area (in Manistee County of the Lower Peninsula) known as The S.S. City of Milwaukee National Historic Landmark. The landmark is a ship that once carried trains across Lake Michigan; trains were carried on the freight deck, and up to about three-hundred persons could be on the cabin deck. The S.S. City of Milwaukee was a replacement vessel for The S.S. Milwaukee and was put into service on November 25, 1930. Generally speaking, The S.S. City of Milwaukee was used from 1930 to 1981, mostly by the Grand Trunk Western Railroad and a bit by the State of Michigan (in the 1979-1981 period). I did pass along the Web site for my editions of Michigan Travel Tips so that the Sinks can learn about the ship and plan to see it on another trip to the Muskegon/Manistee area of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. As a rule, the ship is open for tours from April through September, and, really, it is open for tours for only a few days a week in April and May. For now, I can report that The S.S. City of Milwaukee is open for tours on a Monday-through-Sunday basis in June, July, and August (generally speaking, it is open from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Saturday and from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the other days), and when September comes, it will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
When I was at Mackinaw City, I did not realize, very soon, there was going to be a Grand Opening related to the "resurfaced" Gaylord-Cheboygan-Mackinaw City Rail Trail. On June 7, 2008--the day also known as the "National Trails Day"--dedication ceremonies took place along the like-new 62-mile-long Gaylord-Cheboygan-Mackinaw City Rail Trail. The entire rail trail can be used, for example, by hikers and bicyclists at least till late fall or early winter, and the trail may be used by snowmobilers--when there is enough snow on the ground--from December 1 through March 31.
Also, when I was at Mackinaw City, I did not report to the Sinks that the old or original icebreaker known as The Mackinaw is open for tours this summer and that I would be doing at least one day of duty as a volunteer on the ship. In the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips, I should have a few notes about what I did as a volunteer on the old Mackinaw. All that I will say now is that I am supposed to be on the ship on Wednesday, June 11, 2008, and I am supposed to do "security"-type work, and what "security"-type work means to me is I am supposed to protect the ship and watch over her, as numerous Coast Guard officers and crew members did for about sixty years.
On the trip back home from Mackinaw City, I did not notice any other changes with tourist attractions that I can passed along now. However, I did not drive by, for example, any museums, since I was not on the right roads (the roads on which museums are located). On the trip home, I did see trillium along US-23 between Mackinaw City and Cheboygan--trillium regularly show up in the spring along US-23 between the two places (the ones that I saw had white petals). Mostly, though, I saw hundreds and hundreds of yellow flowers along US-23 between Mackinaw City and Cheboygan, and these flowers with yellow petals only exist on the right side of the road (as seen when a person goes south). The yellow flowers are not dandelions! I have been told that they seem to be marsh marigolds. Whether or not they are marsh marigolds is unknown to me for sure, but they are something to see. Of course, when I travel to do duty at The Mackinaw, the flowers--or all the yellow petals--may be gone, or, at least a little, the scenery along US-23 will have changed.
Your travel tips of Michigan in this edition of Michigan Travel Tips are:
The Gaylord-Cheboygan-Mackinaw City Rail Trail, Otsego County and Cheboygan County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum, Muskegon, Muskegon County, the Lower Peninsula.
"Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park," near Mackinaw City, Cheboygan County, the Lower Peninsula.
The LST-393 Museum, Muskegon, Muskegon County, the Lower Peninsula.
The S.S. City of Milwaukee, Manistee, Manistee County, the Lower Peninsula.
- - - Public Service Copy for Broadcasters (four pieces) - - -
Number One:
Every month, The Hologlobe Press publishes a free Internet-only
publication entitled Michigan Travel Tips, which has information
about museums and other tourist attractions in Michigan. Over the
last several years, editions of the publication have talked about ships
that can be toured around the state, such as the old icebreaker
Mackinaw, which is at Mackinaw City. The current edition of
Michigan Travel Tips talks about another ship to see--The S.S. City
of Milwaukee. This ship, which once was used to moved trains over
Lake Michigan, is now based at Manistee of Manistee County in the
Lower Peninsula. Since 2004, The S.S. City of Milwaukee has been
based on the northwest end of Manistee Lake and near US-31,
which is a main road along Lake Michigan. The ship is open to tours
every day this summer and on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in
September. Remember: On the way to Manistee, enjoy your safe
traveling.
###
Number Two:
When you travel in Michigan by car, you can miss out on
seeing things, because you ride by things so fast. When you travel
in Michigan by foot, it can take a long time to get to things. Instead
of seeing Michigan on foot or by car, see it on a bicycle. For example,
plan on seeing the resurfaced "Gaylord-Cheboygan-Mackinaw
City Rail Trail," which was celebrated through Grand Opening
dedications this past June 7th. Of course, if you travel by bicycle,
you might sometimes have to deal with dogs. The Michigan Department
of Community Health issues a publication called What Every Michigan
Bicyclist Must Know, and it has tips about how to deter dogs from
bothering you when you ride a bicycle, one of which is to carry a
"dog training whistle" with you and use it when necessary. Remember:
The "Gaylord-Cheboygan-Mackinaw City Rail Trail" is a 62-mile-long
bicycle trail in the North of the Lower Peninsula, and enjoy your safe
traveling in Michigan.
###
Number Three:
During World War II--which took place in the 1940s for the
United States--one of the important airplanes was the "Corsair,"
and one of the famous flyers of that airplane was Ira Lepford,
who had lived in Muskegon as a youth. On Saturday, May 24,
2008, a groundbreaking ceremony was held at the site of the
"LST-393 Museum," which is at Muskegon, and the groundbreaking
was for a forthcoming statue of Mr. Lepford. Before that statue
will be set up--probably not till next summer--plans are in the works
to soon set up at Muskegon a reduced-in-size replica of the plane
that Mr. Lepford flew. If you go to Muskegon soon to see The
LST-393, which is "Landing Ship Tank" of World War II, the plane
might be there. By the way, the plane is being built in Ohio. To find
The LST-393 and all that is associated with it, head to Mart Dock.
And take children there, and make sure they are always buckled up
to enjoy your safe traveling.
###
Number Four:
In the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, a traveler will find many
towns and cities, but most of the towns and cities are small--in fact,
it is easy to find a city or town with not even one traffic light. Escanaba
is one of the big cities in the "U.P.," and since Escanaba is big, it has
much for a traveler to see, such as the Bay College Art Gallery, the Delta
County Historical Museum, and the William Bonifas Fine Arts Center.
Really, Escanaba is part of what can be called a "metropolitan area," so
if a person were to go to Escanaba to see things, the person could end up
seeing things in, for instance, Gladstone, too. One of the attractions at
Gladstone, which can be called a "big city" in the "U.P.," is the Kipling
House, and Gladstone is also the site of a Michigan State Police Post.
Remember: State police troopers do work to catch bad drivers not only in
big cities and towns in the Upper Peninsula but also small towns and
cities. Enjoy your safe traveling!
###
- - - Contact Information - - -
The Hologlobe Press
Postal Box 20551
Ferndale, Michigan 48220-0551
The United States of Americacopyright c. 2008
File date: 10 June 2008To see the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #51.
To see the previous edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #49.
To see the catalog page for Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel.
To go to the main page of The Hologlobe Press,
click on: www.hologlobepress.com.###