Mission Point Lighthouse

A Historic Break from Winetasting

On this Family Road Trip, it was time to take a break from winetasting, so we visited a nearby lighthouse. Did you know navigating the Great Lakes is actually more dangerous than sailing on an ocean? The weather is more unpredictable, sand bars and shoals are constantly shifting and underwater outcroppings lay hidden beneath the surface. From the legends surrounding La Salle’s Le Griffon to Gordon Lightfoot’s ballad about the Edmund Fitzgerald, the Great Lakes have a claim on infamy.

These days, technology has replaced the lighthouses and their faithful lighthouse keepers, but the Great Lakes still take their toll. On this particular sunny day the lighthouse was just a lovely place to relax. There’s a tour available for a small fee, but they were just about to close, so we just enjoyed the scenery instead.

Shad and Maggie were involved with the kids, but Bill and I found a few Adirondack chairs to relax in. It was a lovely way to pass some time. Nearby was a historic cabin which had been moved to the property. We did take a promenade around it and gazed into the rooms furnished to reflect the lives of early settlers to the area – though I’m sure the Indians who lived in the area already thought they were settled without any cabins.

Here’s a few pictures we took as we lazed around the historical park.

Traverse City Area

I’ve always thought of Michigan as a sort of oversized mitten. The Traverse City area would be close to the nail on the ring finger of your left hand, if you were looking at the backside of the mitten. My mom had once taken a bus tour around the shores of Michigan, but over the years, I had forgotten exactly what she’d seen on the trip. She wasn’t much into wine tasting and with all the other magnificent lighthouses still standing, I doubt Mom’s tour bus detoured up into that small peninsula, but I’m glad we went up there. It was just the right size for a day trip.

If you are in Michigan and looking for a fun and relaxing way to spend a day, I would certainly recommend the Old Mission Peninsula with it’s lovely old lighthouse, beautiful scenery and delightful wineries, but I would not have made a special trip from Texas just to go there. Speaking of wineries. We tried one more before calling it a day. Join me next week to find out about Chateau Chantal.