In October we toured the upper Midwest to take in the vibrant fall colors. We circumnavigated Lake Michigan by driving through Wisconsin, around the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, ending in Holland. Our timing was perfect, and the sugar maples, birches and ash were in full autumnal splendor.
Our first stop was Door County, Wisconsin where we spent most of a week exploring the Door peninsula’s back roads, small villages, lighthouses and beaches. Everywhere we went the colors were amazing. For sentimental reasons this is one of our favorite places to visit.
Driving from Door County we entered the Upper Peninsula of Michigan which surpassed the scenic color in Wisconsin. We drove hour after hour through unbelievable vistas on two-lane roads along Lake Michigan, stopping often to take in the majestic display. At St. Ignace we took the ferry to Mackinac Island. This island has a charm and in some ways is lost in time as there is no motorized transportation with residents and visitors relying on horses and bicycles to get around.
From Mackinac we crossed the Mackinaw Bridge heading south to Petosky and Charlevoix, making Traverse City our base for further exploration. Exploring the many small harbor towns and local sights and their varied dining options kept us busy for days. After four nights we headed down the coast to Holland to see friends. Another lovely town located on Lake Macatawa with a strong Dutch influence dating from its inception, Holland is an interesting and beautiful place to visit on the west coast of Michigan. Our friends took us on a tour of the Lake by boat pointing out the interesting and historic homes and businesses on the waterfront.
So, after two weeks touring around Lake Michigan it was time to head back home to Tahoe, leaving the car in Indianapolis for our next adventure. If you live in the Midwest, you know how beautiful Wisconsin and Michigan are in all seasons. If you’re from the West Coast like us, it was a wonderful surprise seeing how scenic the countryside can be.
So, if a leaf-peeping tour is on your list of things to do, consider Wisconsin and Michigan as an option. Friendly, helpful people, amazing scenery, varied and innovative dining options along with a 150-year-old history of fishing and logging make this a must visit destination.
All images were taken with Fuji X-T50 with Fuji XF 27mm f2.7 lens or Fuji XC 15-45mm f3.5-5.6 OIS lens in RAW format, processed in Adobe Lightroom Classic CC 14.0.1