From Bay City, Bob and I took the scenic drive to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. We headed west from Bay City on US 10. We made a stop for gas in Cadillac, Michigan, which also looked like a nice place to spend a few days, but it was on to Sleeping Bear.
When we arrived, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the campsites that were sand on Google Earth when we made our reservation, were now paved and very level! Our site would have been great, except, the picnic table and fire ring were on the driver's side of the RV...very inconvenient.
The weather wasn't going to cooperate on our first day, so we drove Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive and did a couple of short hikes. The weather was overcast and windy, with rain expected. We were lucky and didn't get any rain while we were sightseeing.
As were were driving to the scenic loop, we came across a tree that fell on the highway. Bob and I stopped to see if we could be of assistance, but there was more tree than we could see from the road--it went back in the woods about 100 feet! Several other cars stopped, also. One man had a small hand saw and was starting to cut the tree when an emergency vehicle arrived. We let the expert finish the job and continued on our way.
The first sight on the scenic drive was a covered bridge.
Our second stop was an overlook of Little and Big Glen Lakes. If you look closely, you can see the highway between the lakes.
And yes, the leaves are starting to turn!
Next we went to an overlook of the dunes. The sand is not white like Florida dunes, but a light orange color.
Then we found a stop with a short hike--Cottonwood Hiking Trail. The cottonwood trees along the trail are much smaller than the cottonwoods we see out west.
After hiking the mile and a half loop, we continued on our way to a pull-out that had a basswood tree nearby that has battled the elements and sandy environment to become one of the most pictured trees in the area.
As we were taking photos, no one else even looked toward the tree, they just kept driving.
Our last stop on the drive was an overlook of Lake Michigan.
The dunes here are so steep, there is a sign warning people not to try to go down to the lake...there is a $3000 fee if you have to be rescued!
From the scenic drive we continued on to Glen Arbor. Connie and Larry met us for lunch at the Cherry Republic.
After lunch, Bob and I walked around town. One of the sights was a 'soleful' tree.
We enjoyed our first full day of sightseeing in the area and were looking forward to the rest of our stay.
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