Segment 6, Day 1 Suttons Bay->Traverse City 12 miles

High of 57, rainy.

This was the first day where I walked through some heavy rain, but it only lasted for the first hour of this day's walk. The shoreline south from Suttons Bay to Traverse City is marshy and rocky, so I had to walk on the road that skirts the West Traverse Bay. There were many times where I had a good view of Old Mission Peninsula which bisects the bay.

The rain had cleared off by the time I reached Traverse City. It was great to return to the Lake Trek, and it is in this segment that I will reach the halfway point (500 miles) in my journey.

Inland Seas Education Center

Segment 6 began up in Suttons Bay. Before I began walking, I stopped in at the Inland Seas Education Center to meet the director, Tom Kelly, and the center's dedicated staff. This group has the following mission:

"Inland Seas Education Association (ISEA) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to help people of all ages experience the science and spirit of the Great Lakes through shipboard and on-shore programs. The knowledge gained through these experiences will provide the leadership, understanding and commitment needed for the long-term stewardship of the Great Lakes."

The organization has a 77 foot schooner designed for their mission. They can take groups of 30 school kids out onto the lake to study things like the pH of water, zooplankton, invasive species, and stewardship of the lakes. The center also has an onland facility with interactive displays.

I was so impressed with this organization and their work. Find out more at: www.schoolship.org

Train Car Ferry Across Lake Michigan

I have enjoyed exploring the history of Lake Michigan and finding books in the independent bookstores that I've visited about all aspects of the lake. One fascinating book I found in Frankfort, Michigan, tells the story of the fleet of massive ferries that for 90 years took loaded train cars across the lake. Beginning in 1892, the Ann Arbor Car Ferries ran between Frankfort and Kewaunee, Wisconsin, a distance of 62 miles. These ferries even continued during the winter, breaking the ice as they crossed.
Grant Brown, Jr., is the author of this book, Ninety Years Crossing Lake Michigan, a fascinating account of these boats and their crews.

Many of these ships are at the bottom of the lake, victims of ice or storms on the unforgiving lake. One of the ships still survives, though, and is docked in Manistee, Michigan. The 'City of Milwaukee' is over 70 years old but is still in great shape and is open to tour.

Details at www.carferry.com
This summer, the crew quarters on the top of the ferry will be converted into a bed and breakfast. You can stay on board overnight in this piece of floating history and learn about the ship and the history of taking trains across the water.




I had a great time touring this living piece of history, and was pleased to meet the people who so lovingly continue to restore the ship and share it with all who visit.

Black Sand

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and Great Lakes speaker. She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has written three books about the Great Lakes [A 1,000-Mile Walk on the Beach *a Heartland Indie Bestseller*, A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk *winner of the Great Lakes Great Reads Award*, and A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure]. To learn more about her work, or to book her as a speaker, go to http://LakeTrek.com

The wide stretches of beach on Lake Michigan usually appear tan or even whitish in color, but if you pick up a handful of sand and look closely, there is a mixture of colors. Silica and quartz give the sand its light color, but there are specks of black from the mineral magnetite. This mineral is heavier than the other grains, so it often gathers in bands or patches on the shoreline, sorted by wind and waves.

























Right at the waterline, magnetite often looks like a smeary, oily stain. On the face of dunes the patterns can approach art. And when blown around an obstruction, the black lines lend definition and depth to the shore.





The glaciers ground rock to these tiny grains. The wind has lifted these grains into lofting dunes. And the water continues to sort and smooth the shoreline.





The next segment of the journey will be some of the rockiest I will encounter in my adventure. The geology of the lake is interesting to study, but even more fascinating to walk step by step.

Black Star Farms: An Agricultural Destination

Usually, my brother drops me at the lake, then picks me up at the end of the segment and drives me home. At the end of Segment 5, though, the distance from home had elongated to the point that it made sense for us to stay the night, then head home the next day. I wanted to treat Phil (and myself) to a nice place after this

longest segment so far, so I made a reservation at Black Star Farms.

This unique property has an inn, an equestrian

center, a tasting room, a creamery, gardens, orchards, vineyards, and some farm animals. It bills itself as ‘An

Agricultural Destination’ where guests can watch cheese being made, taste the products of the vine, and eat an amazing breakfast direct from farm to table. This may make it seem like a busy place, it was actually the most relaxing place I’ve ever stayed.

I had a long, inland hike in over 80 degree weather to reach Suttons Bay, and when I finally got off route 22 and turned into the driveway of Black Star Farms -- bordered by a terraced vineyard and shaded by large trees -- I felt my pack lighten on my sore shoulders. I walked the curving drive up to the stables and the red inn. Several horses noted my arrival by raising their heads before resuming grazing. Maybe they hadn’t seen people arrive on foot.

Inside the inn, the marbled foyer was much cooler than outside, and Kellie, the manager, greeted me and showed me to my room so I could drop off my backpack. Then she showed me the rest of the small inn (including the stash of cookies in the breakfast room and the Jacuzzi/sauna room upstairs). I grabbed a cookie and returned to my room to sink into my own Jacuzzi tub. When I emerged and slipped on the sumptuous robe in my room, I felt reborn and ready to explore the rest of the property.

Phil arrived and we visited some of the horses before strolling to the tasting room. Guests of the inn are able to sample wines for free and also get a sample of the mild raclette cheese produced in the creamery housed behind glass in the tasting building. Phil and I worked our way through the whites and reds and then sipped at the dessert wines and even tried some of the spirits distilled there. The wines, overall, were quite good. Phil loved the Riesling. The Sirius Maple Dessert Wine was a unique flavor we had not experienced before. When our server mentioned that she used it to finish her grilled salmon and even poured it over vanilla ice cream, we thought it brilliant and purchased several bottles.

We had dinner in nearby Traverse City (the inn will soon begin serving dinner on the weekends, but didn’t when we were there), then returned to our room and a wonderfully restful night. In the morning, we had a delicious gourmet breakfast featuring a fresh vegetable torta with herbed crème fresh circling the wedge of egg and veggie delight (all of the ingredients came from the property). It was topped with two slices of cherry wood smoked bacon that were so perfect they continue to haunt me.

Don Coe, managing partner of Black Star, joined us at our breakfast table and spoke about what he and his partners were trying to accomplish with this idyllic place, the marriage of agriculture and tourism, the offering of ‘An Agricultural Destination.’ And the concept of ‘adding value’ to products from the farm. For example, instead of trying to compete with other maple syrup producers in the region, they add their syrup to the unique dessert wine we had tasted the night before.

After a few minutes with Don, you realize that he is a bit of a visionary. He’s retired from the corporate world and could have just relaxed, but, instead, has helped build Black Star Farms into a place that now employs 30 people, preserves the land for agriculture (it almost got sold off for a subdivision before becoming Black Star), and supports ancillary businesses (the creamery and farm market).

It is a place where you can relax and feel connected to the land once again, relax and stroll the many acres of hiking trails on the property, relax and watch the fruits of the land and farm be gleaned and transformed for your consumption, or merely relax and relax.

Segment 5 Complete!

Segment 5 took me from Ludington to Suttons Bay, May 14-20. It mapped out at 107 miles and took 7 days. A gear mishap on day one of this segment necessitated me omitting some miles from Ludington to Manistee. I will head back north this coming week to cover those missed miles.

I passed the 350 mile mark in the trek, and the total now stands at 355.

The lake has a wild side and I got my first real taste of it in this segment. There were bobcat tracks and deer who had been taken down by a larger predator. While camping in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore I heard owls and coyotes and deer and one extremely loud raccoon.

I visited one new bookstore in this segment. Check out the link for Brilliant Books in beautiful Suttons Bay. And I stopped in at The Bookstore in Frankfort again.

UPDATE: On June 3, I went up to Manistee and covered the missing 18 miles between Manistee and Ludington.

Segment 5, Day 7 Leland->Suttons Bay 13 miles

High of 86 degrees!

This was by far the warmest day of the Lake Trek so far. And, since I was running out of time on this segment, I had to cut across the Leelanau Peninsula instead of hugging the shore to the tip and then back down. I was sorry to miss the town of Northport, and hope to get back to this lovely area in the fall to cover these miles if time allows.

The first photo here is of Lake Leelanau (the north portion), the second photo is where I crossed between the north and south parts of the lake at the narrows.

I stopped in at Brilliant Books in Suttons Bay. This bookstore had a great selection of Great Lakes books. And, even though I had to carry it for several more miles, I bought a book that I had not seen anywhere else.

This segment ended just south of the town of Suttons Bay at the Inn at Black Star farms. I'll post about this idyllic place soon.

Segment 5, Day 6 Glen Arbor->Leland 21 miles

High of 70 degrees, breezy.

I hiked from Glen Arbor up to Good Harbor Bay where I got out to the lakeshore once again. The orchards along the way were in bloom, along with the trillium and many other flowers.

The lake was fairly calm this day and I made good time covering the 21 miles up to the city of Leland.














Leland (bottom photo) has preserved its historic fishing village and it is also the departure point for the ferries to North and South Manitou islands

Segment 5, Day 5 Platte River Campground->Empire 9 miles

High of 59 degrees.

After a long, cold night, I packed up camp and hiked the two miles back out to the lake and walked the length of Platte Bay up to the city of Empire.

Though I only traveled 9 miles this day, it was a tough hike because the wind pushed the lake up on shore for the last 6 miles and I had to hike in the rolling dunes.



It was a gorgeous day, and the meticulous stone pyramid on the beach was an interesting sight (below).

I was glad to reach the city of Empire, though, and was able to catch a ride to Glen Arbor from George, a crafter of fine writing instruments (he gave me a lovely wooden pen) and an enthusiastic kayaker. I didn't have the stamina this day to trek the middle part of Sleeping Bear Dunes, but this section is the one that I had explored many times before.

I had a restful afternoon in Glen Arbor so I could put in a long day on day 6.