For years many people thought that a bridge could never be built across the treacherous Straits of Macinac, where the cold waters of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan converge. When the five-mile-long, structure opened to traffic on Nov. 1, 1957, it was by any standard one of the great enginering feats in the world. Between the approaches on each end, it contains the longest suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere, 8,614-feet-long and 252-feet-high.
Today the bridge not only connects the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan, but via Interstate 75, it is a major artery for traffic across North America, from Ontario to Florida. The bridge itself has become something of a tourist attraction and a popular subject for photographers. Best views may be had from the Fort Mackinac State Historic Park at the south foot of the bridge, in Mackinac City.
A Bridge Walk is held at Mackinac each Labor Day morning. On that day two of the lanes are closed to traffic and more than 50,000 people walk across, From St. Ignace to Mackinac City. The Governor of Michigan usually leads the walk.
Tags: Michigan
Established in 1892 but now inactive as a lighthouse, this old castle like structure is today a maritime museum, operated by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission. It is also the proposed site for a national lighthouse museum. The lighthouse is the focal point of an expansive green waterfront park area, which offers fabulous views of the Mackinac Bridge.
Tags: Michigan Cheboygan County MI