As we were quickly approaching the Mackinac Bridge, which is sometimes closed because apparently powerful winds can blow cars right off it, we got off to get gas and should have stopped at the Subway right down the road. Instead, we went over the very long and pretty majestic bridge, which has a very reasonable $4 cash toll, taking the first exit off to stop for lunch. Abe had read glowing reviews of a drive-in burger establishment but found nothing but chaos and incredibly long lines inside, deciding to give up on the idea. Back at Subway, Arielle couldn’t believe the slowness of the operation there, as the one woman working was barely moving. The forty-five-minute stop was highlighted by the submaker remarking that Abe’s choice of a plain cheese pizza was boring and that you couldn’t trust someone who doesn’t know how to eat. Though she was rude and the line was endless, the pizza was decent and Arielle also met two women from our destination of Marquette who gave us a restaurant recommendation for dinner.
We drove a little more than an hour to Tahquamenon Falls State Park, which Noah’s parents Bruce and Nancy had raved about, though it wasn’t quite as exciting because of the rain. We paid the $9 entrance fee, grabbed umbrellas, and walked along the mostly accessible Upper Falls path. The temperature was in the mid40s but didn’t feel too cold, though Arielle could have used an extra layer. We descended the 94 steps to the brink, where we walked right up to the falls. They were very brown because of the tannins from the trees but otherwise very impressive. We went back up the steps and walked over to the gorge, which was 116 steps down and didn’t offer anything new in the way of views – the brink was more than sufficient. We weren’t going to do the four-mile hike to the Lower Falls due to the mud and signs that warned some trails might be underwater, but we did opt to drive over to see them. The walk to get there from the parking lot wasn’t long, and though they were smaller than the Upper Falls, Arielle marveled that the water just keeps coming and never stops. We returned to the car to continue along to our destination after getting hot water from the little store in the park and putting in our own hot chocolate packets in the car.
We began to experience what Noah had told us we would, which was driving for minutes without seeing another car. The trees were pretty incredible, though it was raining the whole time. We eventually ended up right next to the water, which was beautiful, and briefly experienced some insane fog.
We drove up the water at one point so that Arielle could get a few pictures, though it’s hard to capture the beauty. We arrived at the Landmark Inn in Marquette around 8pm, and were very pleased both with the room and the hotel in general.
When our room keys didn’t work, Abe went back down to have them rekeyed and the clerk, Seth, had someone from maintenance come up to the room right away just to make sure we got in. He was also able to bring us a refrigerator and it turned out that he was also the shuttle driver! Even though the restaurant was only a few minutes away, we decided to take the shuttle. Every time we had mentioned Casa Calabria, which the women in line at Subway had insisted we try, whoever was in earshot raved about the garlic bread, which is soaked in butter. It was indeed incredibly delicious, and we considered getting more than just the two slices that came with our main courses. We ate about half of the stuffed shells and fettucine alfredo that we got, packaging up the rest to have for lunch tomorrow. The food was decent, but this place is most worth it for the insanely good garlic bread. The highlight of the evening was Arielle dropping a stuffed shell from a high height as she was trying to transfer it from the serving dish to her plate, splattering it all over the table and Abe’s sweatshirt.
Even though it was still raining, we decided to walk the seven or so blocks to Frosty Treats, the only ice cream place in town aside from a Dairy Queen. Arielle regretted that decision almost immediately because she was wearing flip-flops. We called the shuttle to come get us as soon as we ordered, and we took the ice cream home to eat in the hotel. We were immensely disappointed by Abe’s vanilla ice cream cyclone with cookie dough and brownie pieces (the ice cream wasn’t too good) and Arielle’s vanilla frozen yogurt cyclone with peanut butter and s’mores (it was liquidly and unappealing), but at least the hotel was nice!
We got some work done, watched some TV, and went to bed.
Approximate number of miles covered: 297
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