Michigan Vacation Part 5: Mackinac Island

On Tuesday, July 19th, we all got up super early (for vacation) to head to Mackinac Island.  Mackinac Island is really the only reason why most people go to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  It's a touristy thing to do, but it was a lot of fun.  When we woke up, it was soooo foggy out.  We couldn't see anything while we were on the ferry.  I'm surprised that we didn't hit anything. 

Oh and I forgot to mention, we were the ONLY ones on the ferry that were going to Mackinac Island to visit; everyone else on the ferry was there to get to work.  Once we got there, we found out why...Nothing opens til 10am and and we got there at about 8!  (This is when you know you are on a Dill Family Vacation)  That's ok though, we just went for a quick, quiet stroll.  It was kind of nice cause no one was out yet.

Once places started to open up, we went on a horse drawn buggy tour ride around the town.  It was really interesting to learn about the city.  No motorized vehicles are allowed on the island (only a few exceptions for lawn care).  Also, they don't deliver mail there, residents have to pick it up at the Post Office.  There are only about 200-300 permanent residents that live on the island. 

One of the places we stopped at was the Butterfly House.  It was pretty awesome.  They were all so beautiful.

This blue one was my favorite:

It was a really amazing tour with a few other stops along the way and they told of lots of different stories about the Island.  Definitely worth going on.

A few of us checked out the stables of the Grand Hotel:

This would be THE Grand Hotel.  It is really expensive to stay there.  They don't let anyone walk the grounds.  The told us that we would have to pay $10/person just to walk to grounds!!!  If you stay at the hotel, women are not to wear pants after 6pm!  They have some crazy rules there...

The Bridge view from the island:

It was a HOT day, so we sat on the grass to rest for a while...that is until we got yelled at and had to move to another grassy area.

View of the Grand Hotel from the ferry:

We had a great time at Mackinac Island and would love to go back when we have all the money in the world :)  It was a really nice place though and fun going into all the little shops they had.  We went home hot and worn out from the day, so you know we had a great time. 

That night, we came home and celebrated Josh's BDay.  Happy Birthday, Josh!  I hope it was a good one for you.  Love you!

Five parts down...a few more to go :)  Then we can move on!