Tunnel of Trees fall drive

Legs Inn at Cross Village, above. On the road on the Tunnel of Trees, left. 

  One of my favorite Michigan drives in the fall is M 119 between Harbor Springs and Cross Village. The slow, winding road through the Tunnel of Trees offers a stunning view of the Lake Michigan shoreline, and there are also the upscale homes along the road to see. There are places to stop and have a coffee or cider, like Primitive Images Rustics, above. Another good stop is at the Good Hart General Store. If you're up for lunch, try the Legs Inn at Cross Village, which was built by a Polish immigrant and wood workers, who fashioned the restaurant with local logs. Plan a long afternoon for the ride, so you can take your time. At Cross Village drivers can cut over to US 31, if they don't want to take the winding road back. Lodging is available in Harbor Springs and Petoskey.

Misty sky over Lake Superior

     I'm yearning for a few days of blue skies. It seems like we've been hanging out under a mist for about a month now. The sun can come back anytime it wants. We'll see enough gray soon enough this fall.

Beaches of Frankfort

There's nothing more inviting that a boardwalk leading to a Lake Michigan beach. It tells you to leave your cell phone or device in the vehicle and saunter on it until you get to the water. This beach is a bit hard to find. It's on the south side of the Betsie River in Elberta just off M 22. The search is worth the effort, as there are few people on the beach. 

Frankfort Gateway

Back in the 1950s when I was a kid, you'd see a lot of  these types of welcome signs over roads leading into a town. But over the years they've lost favor with the local town fathers. I like them, they give you the feel of entering enterting a place with defined boundries. On my travels through Michigan I can't remember seeing another of this type. There is something like it in downtown Houghton in the U.P., but you're already in town when you see it. Anybody know of any others like this one in Frankfort on Lake Michigan.