John was able to get half price tickets on the Mackinaw City Trolley Tour, so we opted to take the trolley tour. A first for John and Carol and for Esther, Jim, Ed and me too.

The trolley driver was very informative. One thing that always confused me was the Mackinaw Bridge vs. Mackinac Bridge. The driver explained that Mackinac is French and is pronounce "Mackinaw", the "ac" is pronounced as "aw". The British heard the word "Mackinaw", so wrote it with an "aw". So however it is spelled it is pronounced Mackinaw.

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The trolley driver showed us one of the Mackinac bridge under passes that is clearly marked as being 10' 6". Unfortunately, a lot of people don't know the height of the vehicle they are driving. The trolley driver told us a number of stories of people getting stuck, removing air conditioners from the top of RVs or converting their vehicle to a convertible. The underpass has a lot of scrapes and dents in it to verify his story. Ed and I felt pretty good, as this should never happen to us as Ed keeps a piece of paper with the height of the trailer on it on the window visor. The trolley is only 10' 4" so the driver drove down the road.

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There are a number of carved figures around Mackinaw City. These can be attributed to local resident, Jerry Prior. After his retirement and a few years of travel, Jerry and his wife became residents of Mackinaw City. His hobby of carving small animals grew to included life size carvings of important historic figures.

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Old Mackinac Point Light house in Mackinaw City.

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Driving over the bridge.

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The happy trolley passengers.

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Esther and Jim are a very cute couple. I ask you, who has the cutest backside, Ed or the statue of the iron worker? This is a park on the north side of the bridge. The statue commemorates the iron workers that lost their lives or were injured during the construction of the Mackinaw Bridge

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The tour took us to St. Ignace in the Upper Peninsula. First time Ed and I have been in down town St. Ignace. We were let out to wander at the Museum of Ojibwa Culture. The statue is of French explorer and priest Jacques Marguette who founded the St. Ignace Mission on this site in 1671.

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Part of St. Ignace harbor.

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We missed the big truck show in St. Ignace over the weekend but did see a couple of big rigs. Ever see a gravel truck so shiny and clean.

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After the tour ended, we drove across the bridge to pick up fresh baked pasties for lunch. Mmm, mmm, good. When I said we drove across the bridge I actually meant that I drove the RAV with the ladies in it across the bridge. I've walked the bridge and been a passenger many times but let me tell you driving it was very different. I was very happy for the low speed limit as I don't think I could have driven any faster. Going back was a lot easier. Guess I haven't been driving over a lot of bridges lately.

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The view from one of two lighthouses that we climbed to the top of.

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Don't know who put the swing in, but it was in a perfect spot.

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Lots of freighters pass under the Mackinaw Bridge every day.

Panoramic views of the Mackinaw Bridge from two different angles.
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