Sunset, Lake Michigan

As I sat on a bench next to the walkway at Holland State Park in mid July, the sun was moving low in the sky, and sadly before dropping to the horizon, a bit of cloud cover set in. I peered way out and saw this lone sailboat adrift on Lake Michigan. It is written in many, many articles that the western Lake Michigan shoreline with its quaint, and I might add, plentiful beach towns is America's best kept secret. And they would be right. Every beach town I visited from Saugatuck, and points south and north, there were very few tourists or visitors compared to the well known beach towns in Florida, or along the Texas or California coasts. This one aspect made for a pleasant journey in and around the small towns, not to mention the shoppes, the beaches and the restaurants.

One might ask, why would I want to travel from Kentucky to the shores of Lake Michigan in the Lower Peninsula. All you need do is visit there once to discover exactly what I did. Spending several nights in Holland, driving north and south to visit the beach towns, then driving slightly farther north to Traverse City, and again visiting more beach towns, made for the perfect itinerary. For the second time in my life, I was able to take in beautiful Sleeping Bear Dunes, and finally make the mile long hike to Empire Bluff. As I drove up and down the peninsula, I was treated to many a cherry farm with red ripe cherries, heavily laden hanging from the trees, row after row. I passed many a blueberry field resplendent with ripe blueberries as I drove north along the shore. On my initial trip to Michigan I drove to the Upper Peninsula and photographed the Pictured Rocks National Seashore. What a gorgeous area, rugged and virtually untamed. Love to get back there some day to photograph the Moose which are plentiful in that area. I hope you enjoyed my look back at my travels to Michigan. It's such a beautiful place to spend time outdoors. I hope a beautiful sunset graces your horizon today. ENJOY!

Linking to Sunlit Sundays