|
|
Give me the solitude of |
||||||||
|
Home
The U.P.
Roads
Trips
Motorcycles Welcome Just
Ride
July 2007 It was a warm Saturday morning when my wife and pulled out of the driveway headed for Upper Michigan's Copper Country. We'd been there many times, but this time we were pulling our motorcycle behind us. Since my wife was joining me on this trip and I only have a light cruiser for a motorcycle, we decided to trail the bike up. We picked a lodge in Twin Lakes as sort of a base camp and figured we'd do all of our riding from there.
A year after I bought my bike, I bought a folding bike trailer knowing we might need it trips like this. It's a unique little single bike trailer that can be easily folded up and and stored in the corner of a garage during the winter. I haven't used it very often, but when I do, it's proven itself a handy little trailer. It wasn't long before we turned up Highway 51 headed up through central Wisconsin. I thought there would be more traffic, but it was still early and not much on the road. It funny how even though I'm in my truck I still have a biker mentality. I find it very hard not to hang my hand out the window and give a wave to a passing bike. It was about two hours before we exited on to Highway 70 and then took Hwy 45 north up into the U.P. It's probably the quickest way to the Copper Country from Central Wisconsin It didn't take long watching the trailer bounce around in my review mirror to realize that Hwy 45 may not be the best road for biking. Lets hope it gets repaved before next summer. Up the road when you pass over the Baltimore River and the road gets a lot better. As we passed by the Lac Vieux Desert Resort Casino, I spotted a group of about 50 motorcycles parked in the lot. It looked like they were just getting ready to start their ride. I've never ridden with a large group of bikes, but it's on my short list of things I want to do. Not long after we were sitting in a rest area, I could hear them coming. You knew from the sound, they were mostly Harleys. In fact most of the bikes I saw in the U.P. during our stay this time were Harleys. Since there is only one Harley Dealer in the U.P., I figured many if not most were probably rolling up out of Wisconsin and Illinois. A little further up the road we passed through the little town of Paulding. We didn't have the time, but if you turn right at the Spur Station (Bond Falls Road) it'll take you Bond Falls. They are one of the coolest set of waterfalls in Upper Michigan and had we the time, it would have been a nice ride. Eventually we left Highway 45 linked up with Hwy M-26 near Maas City. From there its a short ride to Twin Lakes, MI. They were working on the road, having paved some and preparing to pave more. Part of the road was "raked", something I hate riding on with the bike. It's like riding across bridge grates that cause your front tire to slip and slide. I decided to use Twin Lakes as our base camp because I'd found a place that seemed to fit my requirements. It's called the Parkview Lodge. I found them on the internet. During the winter they cater to a large snowmobile crowd allowing riders to park their snowmobiles right outside their room door. Since I wanted to do the same with my motorcycle it seemed like the right place. Of course having a place with a pool, bar and restaurant didn't hurt. I'm getting soft in my old age. There was a day when I would have camped in the Twin Lakes State Park across the street and slept on the ground, but not anymore.
I later emailed the owner telling him he should hang out a "Motorcycles Welcome" sign. Considering how many motorcycles I saw and heard go by during our time there I'm sure he would draw more motorcycle business to the lodge. Page 1 of 7
To continue to the next
page or return to a prior page,
Home The U.P. Roads Trips Motorcycles Welcome Just Ride Events About
|
Motorcycle Friendly
Motorcycle Service
U.P. State Parks - there are at least 19 good reasons to buy a annual Michigan State Park sticker. U.P. Chamber Websites See local area Commerce of Commerce websites for more info on area.
|
