SOLO BIKE TOUR O’ LAKE MICHIGAN : : : AUG 4TH-19TH 2007


In celebration/denial of my 30th birthday I took two weeks off to try a bike tour. Hadn’t done one before, so I decided to do something local enough that I wouldn’t get too lost, since I’d be alone. With no particular reason other than proximity and seeming to fit my timeline, I opted to follow the shoreline of Lake Michigan starting counterclockwise (thought it would be best to get the Indiana stretch done on day 1). Starting off I figured it would

be around 875 miles, or 65 miles a day for 14 days. In the end it was a chunk longer, and took a day less, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

A word about the bike: last year I bought a flatbar road bike from REI---Novara Big Buzz. Closest thing to a road bike I’ve ever ridden, much faster than what I was used to. In the midst of the excitement at riding something

that didn’t have knobby tires and weigh 35 pounds, I got this idea in my head to do a tour. The bike’s been modified since I bought it, but overall description would be a road bike with mtb parts: flat handlebar, disc brakes, heavier wheels and such. For the nerds: the drivetrain is all SRAM/Truvativ, Avid BB5 brakes, 26” wheels w/1” slicks (kind of a fat tire for a road bike but worked out really well for the trip). All in all I really dig this bike, but it ain’t a tour bike. I learned why this matters later on in the trip.


Oh and I had no interest in getting racks and panniers, so I grabbed a BOB Yak trailer off ebay.


In the interest of data efficiency I’ve organized photos by each day of the ride; click through each, there’s some occasional commentary, suggestions on routes and opinions on what makes a good ride.

DAY ONE : : : CHICAGO, IL - UNION PIER, MI 78 milesCT1.html
DAY TWO : : : UNION PIER - HOLLAND, MI 78 miles CT2.html
DAY THREE : : : HOLLAND - SILVER LAKE, MI 82 miles CT3.html
DAY FOUR : : : SILVER LAKE - FRANKFORT, MI 84 miles CT4.html
DAY FIVE : : : FRANKFORT - TRAVERSE CITY, MI 52 miles ( semi trucks suck )CT5.html
DAY SIX : : : TRAVERSE CITY day off CT6.html
DAY SEVEN : : : TRAVERSE CITY - PETOSKEY, MI 80 miles CT7.html
DAY EIGHT : : : PETOSKEY - ST. IGNACE, MI 64 miles + crossed to the UP by ferry CT8.html
DAY NINE : : : ST. IGNACE - MANISTIQUE, MI 97 miles CT9.html
DAY TEN : : : MANISTIQUE, MI - WASHINGTON ISLAND, WI 77 miles CT10.html
DAY ELEVEN : : : WASHINGTON ISLAND - KEEWAUNEE, WI 81 miles CT11.html
DAY TWELVE : : : KEEWAUNEE - MILWAUKEE, WI 110 miles CT12.html
DAY THIRTEEN : : : MILWAUKEE, WI - CHICAGO, IL 105 miles CT13.html

DAY FOURTEEN : : :

woke up at 11. sat at the lakefront and read all day. super.