Day 69: Escanaba, MI to Manistique, MI

Aug 11 blog

59 miles

2,844 miles so far

We managed a very early start leaving in the dark at 6am in order to try to get a head start on the forecasted wind and rain for today. We headed out of Escanaba with our lights on, and as we turned toward the coast we were rewarded with a beautiful sunrise and a lingering fog on the Escanaba River.

As we had only a quick oatmeal and instant coffee in our room, we decided to stop at Jake’s Cafe in Rapid River at mile 15 for a breakfast burrito and some real coffee. My burrito was so large, I saved half of it for lunch later.

Unfortunately, the forecast turned out to be pretty accurate. We battled a headwind for most of the day, and it finally started to rain which lasted for the duration of the final 20 miles.

We spotted a Catholic Church, St. Mary Magdalene, where we pulled off and sought refuge from the rain under a stoop while I ate the second half of my very large breakfast burrito. No one seemed to mind.

We eventually made it to the Quality Inn in Manistique just a little waterlogged and tired. The city lies on the north shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Manistique River for which it was named.

Sunrise on the Escabana River