The ferry ride that totes cars and people from one side of Lake Michigan to the other rocks. It's a four-hour mini trip that will get you in shape for a longer ocean cruise. And, it's a heck of a lot simpler and faster than driving around the lake through Chicago if you're headed from Wisconsin to Michigan or vice-versa.
We purchased our tickets online for the S.S. Badger and boarded in Manitowoc, Wisconsin for the trip to Ludington, Michigan, arriving forty-five minutes ahead of time for the 2:00 departure time, but we didn't do any departing until 2:45. Oh, well. We explored the ship and relaxed in lounge chairs watching sea gulls and people, so it wasn't too bad---until the air horn behind us sounded our departure, knocking our ears off and blasting our blood into high gear again.
The ferry has two decks and offers much to occupy time when you reach mid-lake and see aqua blue every which way you gaze. Bingo, movies, TV, video games, two restaurants, a lounge deck and cabins to rent are the fare. The ferry does a run at night too, so I suppose some passengers want to get some shut-eye "or something."
Older kids ran around investigating the nooks and crannies, while younger ones napped in strollers. Many passengers were reading actual books. I was impressed. Beware, though, the food and drink is expensive, like anyplace where they know you can't really go anywhere else. They've got you, and they know it.
When you get to the ferry, you leave your keys in your car and they park it on the boat, while a drug/bomb-sniffing dog inspects your vehicle for safety purposes. The poor dog barked almost the whole trip; I don't know if he was seasick, scared or mad, but I felt sorry for him nonetheless.
When we docked in Ludington, we stood on the second deck and watched the "runners" as they drove the vehicles from the ferry. They whisked it off, parked it, and ran back for another one, a process that took about 45 minutes, total. The boat was full, and apparently there were about 400 passengers that day. Many of them rode bicycles and took off immediately when we docked.
I wanted to make reservations for a hotel, but my husband said, "Oh, there're always hotel rooms. Let's go see what there is instead of booking ahead." He's just not a reservation type of guy.
Right.
After seeing a bevvy of no vacancy signs posted, we stopped anyway, and the innkeeper said there was not a room to be had from Ludington up to Traverse City. Hmm. So, we thought, we're sleeping in the car tonight. Well, we drove a few miles up the coast and stopped to get a pizza. Apparently, there was a big casino up the road; one would think they would have ample rooms to keep their clientelle captive and satisfied.
Wrong.
Yes, I was disgusted, but I held my tongue, pretty much. The lady at the casino desk said she'd call an out-of-the-way resort outside of Onekama, about twenty minutes away. She did, and lo and behold they had one "doll house" left. (A doll house is a cabin with a bed and bath and a front porch.)
"We'll take it," I said. Ha. It's only right my husband get to sleep in a doll house tonight.
Portage Point, it was called, and it was pretty cool, I must say. There was a lake, a lodge with a restaurant and bar, hiking trails, shuffleboard, a dance hall, boat and jet ski rentals, and all the amenities a summer vacationer would want. It reminded me of the resort in the movie Dirty Dancing. And, we never would have found it had we made reservations. I guess it pays off---sometimes.
We had a relaxing breakfast and spent the rest of the morning sunning ourselves on a sandy beach of Lake Michigan a few miles away. It was a perfect day: sunshine, gentle breeze, and, we had it pretty much to ourselves. Awesome!
The next night we spent in Traverse City at a time-share hotel. We went to the beach and then had a meal at a Mexican restaurant across the way. Very relaxing.
The next day we bought fresh Michigan cherries and peaches at a roadside stand. (Delicious!) And, we stopped for a piece of pie at a little diner in a small town, and my husband and I agreed it was one of the best, if not THE best, we'd ever had. (Not counting mine, of course. But, it came pretty close.) He sampled the blueberry, and I, the raspberry. Yum!
We spent the last night in Green Bay, and I took a dip in the hotel pool in the morning, and we headed off for home. All in all, a delightful four-day get-away, with no reservations!
No comments:
Post a Comment