July 1, 2018
Today we went to Charlevoix to see the Mushroom Houses built by Early Young. They are sometimes referred to as …Hobbitland … mushroom homes … elf space … gnome houses … Smurfsville … whatever they are, they are known world-wide. They were fun to see!
(click to enlarge photos)
Charlevoix is on US 31, a scenic route that follows the shore between Petoskey and Traverse City. We could see that it had beautiful beaches and lots of boating opportunities.
Leaving Charlevoix, we reversed our direction and drove to Mackinaw City to get a better view of the Mackinac Bridge. Since we opted not to go to Mackinac Island, there was nothing else that we wanted to do in the area.
(click to enlarge photos)
On our return trip to Petoskey, we stayed along the shore and drove through Cross Village. Cross Village is maybe the oldest continuous occupied settlement in Michigan. Today, it is a quiet community overlooking Lake Michigan. We saw the Leggs Inn, a Historic Landmark dining destination serving authentic Polish & American cuisine. It was a very busy place but too late for lunch and too early for dinner.
As we passed the restaurant, we saw the giant white cross on a bluff overlooking the lake. The story of the cross has its roots back in the seventeenth century, when a Jesuit missionary supposedly planted a white cross on the bluff before he died.
(click to enlarge photos)
On our return trip, we unexpectedly found ourselves on the scenic route of the Tunnel of Trees. It was a 20 mile scenic route that skirted Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful drive under the tree canopies.
(click to enlarge photos)
We had a great day exploring the area!