Hike 22

Starting point—Two Rivers
Ending point—Two Rivers
Distance—2.2 miles
Cumulative Distance—112.2 miles

With temperatures in the mid-40s, it was the perfect day to catch the section of Ice Age Trail through Woodland Dunes that we had to skip last time. (This portion of the trail was closed due to hunting season, so it was the first time we had to go out of order by skipping it.) It was a sunny day and absolutely gorgeous for a February hike.

In hindsight, our ice grippers would have been helpful for this hike because there was more ice than we expected (which was really none). We did a bit of slipping and sliding but no falls, so it worked out fine. 

The trail went through the woods, across a dune that looked like a meadow and then wove back through woods until we got to the hospital, which is where we had started our last hike. We saw a woodpecker and plenty of fake owls used to mark some of the other trails.

AJ enjoyed crossing the bridges and had fun narrating the hike. He got a chance to see how hard we were working when he hiked across the meadow on the way back. "Oh, this is slippery!"

Aside from Teddy being crabby the first half of the hike, it was a great way to spend time together enjoying the unseasonably warm winter day!

Hike 3

Starting point—Algoma
Ending point— Algoma
Distance—2.5 miles
Cumulative Distance—25.5 miles

The weather was warm—almost 30 degrees—which compared to the negatives we had just a few days ago, it felt great to get out and hike.  Technically, it was more of a walk, since our adventure today brought us from the northern edge of Algoma's city limits to the "heart" of the beautiful city.  Regardless, it felt great to get back out on the trail!

Unlike our previous trips, we took only one car up and planned on doing a "loop" through the city.  We left the car by a ice skating rink by a park on Division St.  We walked up through the city and then the Anahpee State Trail, to get to the point we last saw in October.

From there, we followed the "official" path back into town passing and reading the history of Algoma and seeing the many sights including old lumber mills, Von Stiehl Winery, and our first official view of Lake Michigan from the IAT.  We took the boardwalk trail that runs along the harbor, and Kerry found a playground in the park along the lake.

 Someone in snowshoes broke a path for us along the boardwalk. However, by the split of 42, the path was covered in snow, and our wants turned to delicious hot chocolate.  

 

Kerry had found a place going through Algoma one time for work.  We left the trail and walked up "downtown" Algoma to Caffe Tiazo, where we ordered hot chocolate and enjoyed a great drink to end our hiking for the day.  

All said and done, it was a great day to go for a hike through Algoma.  We look forward to our next chance to get back on the trail... snow or not!!

Happy Hiking!!!!!

~Dave