Agawa Canyon and Mackinac Island
Date: October 11-15, 2017
We have recently returned from a wonderful five-day coach tour of Mackinac Island and Agawa Canyon. With 39 PROBIANS in our group, we split our time travelling equally in the U.S. and Canada, exploring historical sites and witnessing picturesque nature as we travelled.
The first day we departed Mississauga, crossing the border at Sarnia before enjoying a beautiful drive up through Michigan state to St. Ignace (close to the divide between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan) where we stayed two nights.
Day 2 started with a short ferry boat ride to famous Mackinac Island where we spent the day enjoying the charm and beauty of this unique place. No motorized vehicles are permitted here, so we enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage tour of the island followed by a sumptuous buffet lunch at the landmark Grand Hotel. This (very grand!) hotel is family owned, built in 1887 and is considered the largest summer hotel in the world.
Our Day 3 was a travel day. We stopped at the Great lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point light station, Lake Superior. The museum complex is a somber reminder and a testament to the over 6,000 ships lost on the Great Lakes over the years – including the story of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The afternoon took us back across the border into Sault Ste. Marie with a stop at the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre. A guided tour of this fascinating facility gave us all a new insight into the achievements of the Ontario Provincial Air Service (O.P.A.S). It also gave us a glimpse into the accomplishments and history of our bush aviation pioneers as well as what the fire fighters have both endured and achieved for us over the years.
Day 4 was the highlight of the tour for many of us. It began with an early a.m. departure to the Algoma Central station where we boarded our tour train bound for Agawa Canyon. A long 4 1/2 hr. scenic train ride was mostly incident free, though we had one unscheduled stop along the way due to “wet leaves” clogging the tracks. After a 30 minute delay we were back on track and arrived at Agawa Canyon Park around 1:00 pm. We were off the train quickly. For the next 80 minutes we were given “free time” to explore the many trails and hill climbing options the canyon area offered us. Time moved quickly. Many pictures were taken, including one of a young couple newly engaged at the top of the Canyon. We were then summoned to return to the train for the equally long journey back to “The Sault”. Back to the hotel just before the rain started up, we were extremely lucky with the weather throughout the entire trip.
On Day 5 we began the long trek home via Sudbury, around scenic Georgian Bay and home again to Mississauga. A quiet bus ride to be sure. Many thanks to our Great Canadian Tour Director “Bob” and our wonderful driver “Phyllis” for watching out for us and keeping the group safe throughout the journey.
All in all, a fabulous trip! Check out the photo gallery on our club’s website to follow our journey and enjoy the rich fall colours as we did.
Rick Palmer
Director – Travel
Credit River PROBUS