On the Road 8 x 30; 24 x 7

07-10-2005 Empire Bluff and Point Betsie Light

We packed a cooler around noon and headed to Sleeping Bear Dunes to hike the Empire Bluff Trail. This 1.5 mile round trip trail goes through the shady hardwoods out to a 400-foot high bluff above Lake Michigan where you can see Sleeping Bear Dune off to the north and South Bar Lake just behind the sleeping bear. The lake was once part of Lake Michigan. Longshore currents deposited the sand bar that now separates the two lakes. The view was fantastic. Once again the water was clear and a sparkling aqua with deep blue where the depths dropped off. We could see kayakers along the shore but they looked very small on that huge expanse of water. The entire National Lakeshore includes about 105 square miles. We were disappointed that you couldn't go down the dune to the beach. It looks like you used to be able to but they are trying to control erosion, especially after the recent collapse of a nearby dune. We walked along the 500-foot boardwalk along the shoulder of Empire Bluff. Then we hike back to the truck and barely worked up a sweat. It was nothing like that grueling trek over the dunes in the hot sun and sand at the Dune Climb.

We stopped in Empire and browsed through one small antique store. They had some postcards but I didn't find anything in their $2.00 box. We decided to head south on M-22 and find Manitou Cafe just past the Platte River. Hundreds of canoes and kayaks are on the river paddling downstream to Lake Michigan! Unfortunately the cafe is not open until 4:30. So we continue south on M-22 to Frankfort and eat at The Fusion, contemporary Asian cuisine located downtown. The lunch menu was limited but the prices were good. I tried he Chicken Garlic Black Bean with veges. Bob had Moo Goo Gui Pan. The iced tea was very flavorful but I thought my entree lacked pizzazz. The vegetable soup did not arrive until after we had finished eating. Some kind of snafu in the kitchen. We walked across the street to get a treat at the Crescent Bakery but it was closed so we opted for The Cool Spot down the street where Bob got a Mouse Chip cone and I got Coconut Fudge, thus fulfilling my destination and becoming a 'Fudgie.' The gal who cut Bob's hair the other day said they call the summer tourists 'fudgies' because they all pile in to the local shops and buy fudge. Later today we saw the term used in the Travel section of the Sunday paper.

We drove north on M-22 again and stopped at Point Betsie Lighthouse. For $2.00 each we got a tour of this charming lighthouse and an "I Saw the Light! Pt. Betsie, Michigan" sticker. In front of the gift shop behind the light, a guy had a huge motorcycle stuck in the sand and a guy in a pickup was pulling him out with a strap. They made a huge production of it. It seemed to me the guy could have gotten off the bike and those four hefty guys could have picked the back wheel up out of the sand. Whatever!

Benzie County now owns the Pt. Betsie Lighthouse on its surrounding 4.05 acres.. They have recently received two grants. The first was a Michigan Lighthouse Assistance grant for $30,000, of which $10,000 in matching monies was supplied by the 'Friends of the Lighthouse' group. The second grant was one of the larges-ever grants from the state of Michigan's Clean Michigan Initiative Program. It was for $575,000 ($430K from the State, and $145K from 'The Friends.') This generous grant will now fund exterior restoration of both the lighthouse and the fog horn/signal buildings. Scaffolding was covering the lakeside turret that houses the spiral staircase up to the Frensel lens. More grants have been funded to cover the costs of the interior restoration as well. After Phase I of the exterior renovation, the site will return to its 1940's look, which differs a little from the way it looks today. It will return to a version of a slightly older, historical site. The very top of the light tower, the "cap," will be painted black again as it was until the 1950's.

The Friends have a strong organization here as evidenced by two volunteer docents on site; one downstairs to greet visitors and one upstairs in the tower. Built in 1858, the lighthouse will be 150 years old in October, 2008. They are looking forward to the Sesquicentennial Celebration. The older gentleman who was in the light tower today freely shared facts and stories of the Light and maritime activities. He said earlier, just before we came up, a lady was here whose grandmother lived in the lighthouse. She was a cook. We talked about what a lonely existence it would have been before the road was put in around 1929. All supplies and visitors had to come by boats, called tenders, including the whale oil used to keep the light lit until it was switched to electric and eventually automated in 1983. Until then it was the last manned light station on the east shore of Lake Michigan. It is still a functioning lighthouse today. The Coast Guard owns and maintains the Frensel lens that guides ships to make the course correction to navigate through Manitou Passage. I got a kick out of the list on the wall of all the keepers of the lighthouse showing the years they served and what happened to them. Most listed 'died' or 'moved to another lighthouse' but one said 'removed.' The docent said they were removed for one of three reasons: 1) they let the light go out, 2) they didn't keep a record of the ships that passed, and 3) they were drunk on the job. She laughed and said the third one often resulted in violiations of numbers one and two!

Bob and I continued north again to where the Platte River empties into Lake Michigan. Literally boatloads of people were still hanging around on the River and down at the beach. We found a parking space somehow and walked down the beach for a bit. But it just wasn't the same with the hordes of people around so we hopped back in the truck and headed home. We cruised nearby Loon Lake, a perfect small spot for fishing. Maybe we'll make it back here sometime.

We were home by 6:00 and sprawled out with the Sunday paper. The lady from Indian River RV Resort had left a phone message again. I called her back, she's had a cancellation and we can stay for a month. We talked it over and decided to go for it since the monthly rate is a breakeven after 15 days of the daily rate. So we're all set to blast out of here on Tuesday.