One of the generous wedding presents we received was a return flight for two to Beaver Island, courtesy of the wonderful folks at Fresh Air Aviation. Ben (my hubby) used to fly with them and became good friends with Keith and Rachel, who have been running this great airline for the last few years. So early one morning we drove to Charlevoix and boarded a plane that, after a short and pleasant flight, landed us on “America’s Emerald Isle”.

This quaint little island has quite an interesting history, but in the present it is a haven of tranquility and relaxation.

And home to several turkeys as well!

We drove around for a bit and decided to take some time to enjoy one of the sandy beaches on the island. Looking out at the water it was easy to imagine I was looking at the ocean instead of a fresh water lake.

After our time at the beach we decided it was time to check out the two lighthouses on the island. First we visited the Beaver Island Head Light on the south part of the island.

It was interesting to be able to go inside and take these steps up to check out the view.

We then proceeded to visit the Beaver Island Harbour Light on the northern end of the island. It’s also called St. James Harbour Light and was built with cream city brick.

By the way, this was our sweet ride, thanks to our friends at Fresh Air, a great way to tour this unique little island 😉

Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Charlevoix. We drove back to the airport, boarded the plane and proceeded to enjoy a great flight back thanks once again to the great folks at Fresh Air Aviation.

Isn’t this a great view of Round Lake? A wonderful way to end a great day of wandering around Beaver Island.

The day after our wedding in Petoskey our wanderings around Northern Michigan continued with a 3-day visit to Mackinac Island. After a quick 16-minute ferry ride from Mackinaw City (yes, spelled different but pronounced the same, not confusing at all) we arrived, feeling immediately transported back in time and, at the same time, feeling like we were walking on Main Street Disney World, minus the castle.

The entire island is a designated National Historic Landmark, with approximately 80% of it preserved as Mackinac Island State Park. It is also known as the setting for the film Somewhere in Time, which was the only time an exception was made to the ban on all motorized vehicles, in place since 1898. This means that to wander around the island you can either go on foot, rent a bicycle, or take a horse-drawn carriage; I am happy to report we tried all these means of transportation. Probably the two most interesting transportation-related sights were the ‘moving truck’ carrying a washer

and a dog on a golf cart 😉

The days that followed were absolutely relaxing. We had breakfast at The Chuckwagon and walked around town admiring the variety of architectural styles.

We played a round of mini-golf with the family where my mom, who had never held a golf club in her life, got a hole-in-one on the first stroke on the first hole, leaving us quite amazed! We rented a tandem bicycle and rode around the island, which was so much fun! Do keep in mind the the “puddles” on the road are most likely not water (lots of horses walking around everywhere, you figure it out ;)).

We had a great family dinner at The Woods and tried the fudge, which I must confess I didn’t like, I hope that means I can’t be called a fudgie! We also went for a carriage tour around the island, where we learned among other things that there are around 600 horses in Mackinac, so basically there are more horses than people (population is around 500), which explains why there is only one doctor and yet there are several veterinarians on the island 🙂

One of the stops on the carriage tour was Arch Rock, which we had seen the day before form a different point of view on our bike ride (we were all the way down there where you can see those people on the road).

Our tour ended in Fort Mackinac, one of the few surviving American Revolutionary War forts.

This island is not just quaint and laid back but also has a wealth of history and interesting facts around every corner.

Mackinac is definitely a great little island (maybe I just have a soft spot for islands, seeing as I lived on one for about 7 years). It has a relaxing atmosphere and yet many options for things to do and see, making it perfect for a family get-together like we had, where everyone finds something they like. I look forward to visiting it again in our future trips to Michigan.

Soon after we arrived in Alaska we headed to Petoskey, Michigan to spend two wonderful weeks with family and celebrate our wedding. I absolutely loved the area with its Great Lakes, never-ending fields, fresh produce, sunny and warm summer weather and wonderful people. We rented a cabin on Lake Pickerel which gifted us with this view every morning:

We gorged on fresh fruit and produce from Bill’s Farm Market:

We visited laid-back towns and saw beautiful lighthouses

and we got ready for our wedding! The ceremony was held in Bay Front Park, right by the water with a wonderful natural background.

We then headed to this quaint barn for a delicious dinner catered by Crow’s Nest:

With everyone’s help the vision we had for our reception came to life, adorned with crisp local apples from Friske Orchards beautifully arranged by Flowers by Evelyn (a flower shop in Gaylord) and small favour boxes containing Venezuelan goodies.

Instead of the traditional wedding cake we went for tasty pies from Grand Traverse Pie Company, it was hard to decide which one we liked best!

What a wonderful celebration it turned out to be, exactly what we wanted: laid-back, surrounded by nature and our loved ones… we couldn’t ask for more!

What a blessing it is to find the one person who you want to walk with for the rest of your life… what wonderful wanderings we will have together! 😀

The day after we arrived in Anchorage we set out for an experience of a lifetime: a week at Lake Clark National Park and Preserve. This was intended to be a male-bonding experience planned many months ago by my fiance and his buddies (graciously hosted by one of them who has a beautiful lodge in the area), however since I happened to be in Anchorage I was lucky enough to tag along. We headed to Lake & Pen Air located at Merrill Field, boarded a plane and off we went, looking at breathtaking scenery as we flew through Lake Clark Pass.

There are no roads connecting Lake Clark with the rest of the world, so a small plane ride is pretty much the only way to get there (you could take a boat, depending on weather and tides, but I much prefer the plane!). About an hour later we arrived in Port Alsworth, where our wonderful host and his boat were waiting to take us to the beautiful Stonewood Lodge.

The days that followed were incredible, with lots of fishing adventures for the guys, including a 2-day salmon fishing trip that turned into a 3-day one. They came back from that one with the greatest stories and the biggest grins on their faces. I tagged along a couple of days and got to go on some great hikes to a couple of beautiful waterfalls. One day we hiked to Tanalian Falls:

and another day we went to Cave Falls:

taking a boat ride through waters with colours too beautiful to describe in words.

I was also lucky to go on an exhilarating jet boat ride that was so much fun! I enjoyed watching them fly fish for grayling while taking in the beautiful scenery.

Such vastness and we were the only ones there… absolutely amazing!

The week went by fast and before we knew it the time came to head back to Anchorage. We said good-bye to our wonderful hosts and their team, so thankful for their hospitality and so grateful to have been able to experience the real Alaska!

On our flight back we were able to see Cave Falls from the air… I can’t believe we hiked there, what an amazing experience!