Michigan UP help

[patperry2766]

I'm struggling this year. With Covid closing everything down and having to have shoulder surgery a month ago that was delayed two months because they shut down elective surgeries, I can't get mentally motivated to get to planning anything this summer.

Usually I already have something set in stone by now, but not this year. Wife has been pushing for the UP this summer. I've still got 2 more months at least till I can return to work and I have no idea of what's open and where to go.

What we like is 30A elect, some place with shower/bathroom facilities (if possible) . We typically gravitate to state parks because sites are bigger and often times in a more secluded areas with fewer people per square foot.

With the exception of Destin FL, everything else has been west of the Mississippi. Glacier NP, Big Bend, Black Hills, Colorado and NM.

Help

[patperry2766]

rexlion wrote:
No reason why you have to stay at one state park the whole time, unless that's what you prefer. If you are at Lake Gogebic, from there you can take some day trips to the Porcupine Mountains (east and west units are both nice, and not alike) and the Keweenaw Peninsula.

If you're over at Muskallonge or Tahquamenon, you can drive to Munising and take a boat tour of Pictured Rocks, or go east to visit the Soo locks, or check out the shipwreck museum at Whitefish Point.

From Indian Lake it's easy to go see the Big Spring (Palms Book SP, no camping), the historic old buildings at Fayette SP, the wildlife refuge north of Engadine, and the 5 mile long Mackinaw Bridge. Cross the bridge to Mackinaw City and you're right by 2 old forts, 2 lighthouses, and a tourist island with no motor vehicles.

If you're at J.W. Wells, you might head west to Stephenson and sample the wines at ThreeFold Vine winery; the same folks have a place across the street with craft beers, too, and the smoky one they had last year was quite good IMO.

Still working on plans. We camp in a BIG pop-up. I had rotator cuff surgery 5/12 and wife is having carpal/cubodial surgery tomorrow, so we're both gonna have an ineffective wing so the idea of poping the camper up and down multiple times is less than ideal this year

[CFerguson]

Geo*Boy wrote:
Tahquamenon Falls State Park has 30 amp and nice showers.

That one and Bishop Baraga (sp?) are my fav UP state parks.

[Geo_Boy]

patperry2766 wrote:
Is there still enough "touristy" things to do to make the drive worth it this year? Lighthouses, historical places, etc

Yes, the UP is nice.

[GordonThree]

patperry2766 wrote:
Is there still enough "touristy" things to do to make the drive worth it this year? Lighthouses, historical places, etc

There's trails to hike, beaches to walk, lakes to fish, I'm sure some of the tourist stuff is still open but I don't have a concrete answer for you.

There could be limited hours, reduced capacity, that sort of thing... Call ahead if you can.

[patperry2766]

Is there still enough "touristy" things to do to make the drive worth it this year? Lighthouses, historical places, etc

[GordonThree]

patperry2766 wrote:
Is the state starting to open up? SP campgrounds aren't suppose to open till 6/21, but what about the rest of the businesses and sight seeing areas? I know some of the cities here in Texas (Dallas, SA, Houston) are still pushing big time about wearing masks in public and in businesses?
Restaurants started opening up, but are limited to 50% capacity, movie theaters are still closed and a lot of the businesses are limiting entry.

The UP and northern lower has been "open" for a while. Masks are required indoors statewide by law, not a suggestion. Lots of people ignore the law, like seat belt I guess?

However it's not mandatory that businesses reopen. A lot of them didn't make it, and the UP was probably hit hard. The gov is still paying people more to stay home than they get paid to go to work, so *shrug* on that one.

Still no large sporting events or other gatherings. Pretty much every festival, indoor concert, fair, etc has been cancelled through years end.

[patperry2766]

Is the state starting to open up? SP campgrounds aren't suppose to open till 6/21, but what about the rest of the businesses and sight seeing areas? I know some of the cities here in Texas (Dallas, SA, Houston) are still pushing big time about wearing masks in public and in businesses?
Restaurants started opening up, but are limited to 50% capacity, movie theaters are still closed and a lot of the businesses are limiting entry.

[dedmiston]

theoldwizard1 wrote:

dedmiston wrote:
That sounds heavenly right now.

First frost in the UP can be in September, October for sure. Most of the UP will have had snow before Thanksgiving, and most places it will stay until spring.

We were supposed to be just passing through Michigan last fall, but then we fell in love with the Sleeping Bear Dunes area and dropped anchor just east of Empire for almost a week. From there we moved up to Sault St. Marie on the Ontario side and used that as our base to explore the UP and the Canadian side before we continued on around Superior and down through MN.

We couldn't have loved the area or the people more, but we were glad to beat it out of there before the weather showed up. We didn't see any snow until Wyoming. The weather in Wyoming always beats us up, no matter what time of year. We've been snowed in more than once in May/June when we've gone up to Laramie for our kid's college graduations. And as far as mosquitos go, I don't hope to ever see them worse than the ones in Wyoming at the beginning of the summer.

[GordonThree]

JoeH wrote:
Munising Tourist Park in Munising 9 near Pictured Rocks) has large spaces, some on the lake with 30 amp

Are they open this year? I hadn't confirmed, but my neighbor was there over M-day and read a sign said they weren't opening until 2021 because of the boogeyman.

[JoeH]

Munising Tourist Park in Munising 9 near Pictured Rocks) has large spaces, some on the lake with 30 amp

[afidel]

Geo*Boy wrote:
Tahquamenon Falls State Park has 30 amp and nice showers.

And the 2nd worst mosquitos I've ever encountered, killed 52 on the 1/2 mile hike from the campground to the falls and back. To be fair they didn't really bother us IN the campground. The worst mosquitos was that same trip Grand Isle, my poor younger son looked like pig pen he had so many around him.

We also stayed a week a Pictured Rock RV Park just outside Munising. Very, very nice new park with pretty large sites and impeccable shower house. Owner's were very nice.

[rexlion]

No reason why you have to stay at one state park the whole time, unless that's what you prefer. If you are at Lake Gogebic, from there you can take some day trips to the Porcupine Mountains (east and west units are both nice, and not alike) and the Keweenaw Peninsula.

If you're over at Muskallonge or Tahquamenon, you can drive to Munising and take a boat tour of Pictured Rocks, or go east to visit the Soo locks, or check out the shipwreck museum at Whitefish Point.

From Indian Lake it's easy to go see the Big Spring (Palms Book SP, no camping), the historic old buildings at Fayette SP, the wildlife refuge north of Engadine, and the 5 mile long Mackinaw Bridge. Cross the bridge to Mackinaw City and you're right by 2 old forts, 2 lighthouses, and a tourist island with no motor vehicles.

If you're at J.W. Wells, you might head west to Stephenson and sample the wines at ThreeFold Vine winery; the same folks have a place across the street with craft beers, too, and the smoky one they had last year was quite good IMO.

[azdryheat]

A few years ago we spent a wonderful week at the Aune Osborne rv park in Sault Ste Marie.

[GordonThree]

Every state park I've visited in the UP (most of them) has had 30 amp hookups, hot showers and a central fill/dump station.

Most even have paved 50 amp pull-through for the monster rigs.

The parks further West are less busy, more than a few hours away from I-75 seems to discourage people. Regarding the weather staying near Lake Superior ... watch the wind. Temps can swing 30 degrees several times a day, and the bugs vary a lot. Wind from the South will bring warm air and BUGS from inland, from the North will bring cold air off the lake and shoo away the bugs.

Favorites: Indian Lake in Manistique (near Lake Michigan), Lake Gogebic outside White City, Muskallonge in Deer Park (on Lake Superior), Fort Wilkins in Copper Harbor (on Lake Superior)

Honorable Mention: Tahquamenon Falls near Paradise, Straits SP in St. Ignace (on Lake Michigan), Wells SP outside Cedar River (practically Wisconsin, on Lake Michigan)

Ask me anything, I make several trips each year to the UP, it's my favorite place in the state.