Earlier this month Linda and I had a weekend away to celebrate her birthday. (Thanks, Beth!) We went to the little town of Saugatuck, Michigan. It’s the first time we have even been there.
We spent two nights at the Twin Gables Inn. The room was very nice and the people were friendly. It’s a bed and breakfast inn and the breakfast was good both days. We didn’t start our days hungry.
Saugatuck is known for it’s art. It’s a small town, but the amount of art is large. We checked out a lot of it. There were galleries dedicated to single artists, art co-ops with their local members work on display, larger stores with art from different areas of the country, and one that we decided was of the “starving artist” variety.
Downtown is meant for tourists. In addition to the art galleries there is an eclectic collection of shops. We had a look at a lot of them. Some of it was practical, some of it was not. Taking it all in made for a fun weekend together.
Do you know what a chain ferry is? I didn’t. According to the information we saw in town, the only operating chain ferry in the country is in Saugatuck. There’s a chain stretched across the Kalamazoo river in downtown. When the ferry is at either side, the chain is laying on the bottom of the river so boats can pass over it. When somebody turns the crank on the ferry, it is pulled long that chain to the other side of the river. We didn’t ride it, but it’s fun to watch. Especially when they are cranking fast and furious to try and get out of the way of busy river traffic.
We took our bikes along with us. Saturday morning we wanted to put them to use. So we rode around the lake and over the river to Mount Baldhead. Since this is Michigan, it isn’t really a mountain. It’s 282 wooden steps that you can climb to a very scenic spot overlooking town. The chain ferry would have gotten us their quicker, but we had bikes so we rode. Once you get to the top you can go down the sand dunes on the other side and arrive at Oval Beach on Lake Michigan. We didn’t want to do that because it would have involved going back up those dunes. They’re pretty steep. However, we found a hiking trail along the top and headed out along it. It ends at a very nice overlook on Oval Beach and the big lake. The lake breeze is always great.
Here are some pictures from our mountain adventure.
This is the 282 steps of Mt. Baldhead from the bottom.
Heading out along the hiking trail
See the snake we encountered along the trail?
After about a half-mile we came to the end of the trail and a beautiful view of Lake Michigan.
Smile!
This strange tree was along the trail.
Linda with Saugatuck behind her.
This is the view looking down the stairs. It’s a long way down.
This is what Mt. Baldhead looks like from across the river in town.
If you get the chance to visit Saugatuck, I’d recommend it. It’s perfect for a weekend trip.
