In a recent blog post featuring Lake Michigan sunsets, we showed a photo taken while attending a dear friend’s wedding reception at a site overlooking Lake Michigan in upper, lower Michigan not far from the Mackinac Bridge. The event was held just off a stretch of road which is aptly named The Tunnel of Trees (aka Route M119). It is considered one of Michigan’s most scenic roads, with the most spectacular section covering about 30 miles between Harbor Springs, Michigan and the Mackinac Bridge.
We started our Tunnel of Trees journey at Good Hope, Michigan. The plan was to travel about half of the most breathtaking 30 miles, by driving south to the town of Harbor Springs. M119 hugs the eastern shoreline of Lake Michigan and Little Traverse Bay on a picturesque bluff overlooking the water. The road is surrounded by a dense forest of hardwood and evergreen trees, which crowd up to the edge of both sides of the road, their crowns meeting to create a canopy of branches and leaves. Overhead, instead of the dark gray and black of a mountain tunnel, we were treated on this fine sunny summer day to a sun-drenched brilliant green with a hint of yellow, similar to budding willow leaves in the spring. The colors reminded me of our Peridot Line Bracelet In 14 KT White Gold. Along the roadsides were the dark browns and forest greens of tree trunks and the forest floor. Periodically, through small openings in the trees, we could catch glimpses of the sapphire blue water of Lake Michigan and the sparkling diamond-like reflections of the sun off the water, reminiscent of our Diamond and Sapphire Dangling Earrings in 18 KT White Gold.
The road is very narrow, often without shoulders and in some sections there is no center line and only one car can pass. It meanders along, twisting, turning, and winding along in an effort to follow the bluff’s edge. It can be very slow going at times, particularly in places where the twist backs are very sharp and you have no idea of what’s ahead. As you’re maneuvering blind curves, you have be on the alert not only for other cars, but for campers, motorcycles, bicycles and even a few critters attempting to cross the road (obviously to get to the other side). Occasionally, scattered among the huge hardwood trees, you can spot a driveway leading up to an old summer cottage tucked back from the road. Driving on such a road, with abrupt twists and turns, made me think of our Green Tourmaline and Diamond Cocktail Ring in 18 KT White Gold, because it has a similar shape.
After a few miles of weaving back and forth, in what appeared to be near desolation, we spotted hand-painted signs leaning against trees by the side of the road proclaiming cappuccino for sale. That sounded pretty good, so we pulled into the gravel parking area and there sits, slightly hidden from the road, a small, dark brown log-style building with a porch along the front holding brightly painted metal tables and chairs. It turned out the business not only sold cappuccino, but also antique jewelry and household items. The young lady who was working that day made a pretty good cappuccino, which we enjoyed while sitting in the shade of the trees on the porch in front of the store.
While sipping our cappuccinos, we chatted with other tourists in need of a shot of caffeine. We were amazed at the number of people who stopped, but after thinking about it, it made sense, since it wasn’t like there was a Starbucks on every corner, or on any corner, for that matter.
Before getting back in the car to brave the rest of the journey to Harbor Springs, I had to use the restroom. One of the people sitting nearby heard me mention I was going inside to see where it was and she told me it was around the back. I walked along a path in the forest floor around the building looking for a door or sign. I saw none and was about to give up when out of the corner of my eye, I spotted this:
An outhouse! Other than an occasional port-a-potty at various outdoor events, I couldn’t recall the last time I actually went into an outhouse. But go, I did. I have to admit, it was actually quite modern inside. I would even go so far as to say it was cleaner (and smelled better) than some big city coffee house restrooms I’ve been in!
We completed the trip through the Tunnel of Trees with a simple, but memorable lunch in the quaint village of Harbor Springs. We ate our lunches while relaxing on wooden fan-back chairs basking in the sun on a grassy bank at water’s edge of a marina filled with summer boaters. We could daydream while staring off into the deep blue waters of the bay or watch the people coming and going at a nearby bed and breakfast.
Our only regret from the trip was we weren’t able to see the Tunnel of Trees in the fall, when the trees are ablaze with fall foliage. Maybe there’s a fall road trip to northern Michigan in our future!