MI Best Weekend edition - October 1, 2023

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Metamorphosis

on Mackinac

[LOOK INSIDE

Still ‘open’ and happening; find out why October is awesome on Mackinac Island

It’s almost time for the attractions to close. Almost time for the shops to shut down. Almost time for the horses to leave for their winter pasture.

Almost, but not quite.

There’s still a month of fun to be had on Mackinac Island. And what a month October is!

Over the next few weeks, you can see gorgeous fall colors. Shop year-end sales. Pedal a bike past legendary landmarks. Take part in Michigan’s most iconic Halloween celebration.

And, of course, you can still meet and make friends with some of the many horses that keep powering Mackinac Island right through the end of the month.

Yes, it’s almost time to put the wraps on another glorious visitor season and put the ferry boats in dry dock. Almost time for Mackinac Island to say goodbye for the winter.

Almost, but not quite.

Check out these pages for a glimpse of what you can still experience during the final month of the 2023 season. And find out what’s next for the horses, people and businesses of Mackinac Island!

Think Mackinac Island is closing? Think again

SPONSORED for Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau

The calendar says October and you can feel it in the air, too. It’s officially fall.

Time to fall in love with another face of Mackinac Island.

Though the peak summer tourism season has passed, it’s still primetime in Michigan’s Best Place to Visit for Fall. Take a peek at some of the things to enjoy this month:

Fudge shops are serving up delicious slabs of gooey goodness by day, with downtown bars offering live entertainment at night

Shops are offering spectacular sales as they look to clear out inventory before the end of the season. Why not get your holiday shopping done early this year by checking things off your list on Mackinac Island?

Bring the kids for trick-or-treating at downtown businesses during Mackinac Island’s famous Halloween Weekend, then put them to bed and don your best costume for adult parties after dark.

The Great Turtle Trail Run just might be the most picturesque half-marathon you’ll ever run. From Mission Point Resort along the shoreline past Arch Rock and through the forest of Mackinac Island State Park, the route is breathtaking in the fall. And if you’re not crazy enough to run a half-marathon, no problem. The event offers a shorter 5.7-mile course with run and walk options.

If you want to really get into the “spirit” of fall, then a Haunts of Mackinac history tour is a memorable way to do it. The guided walking tour visits several haunted sites on Mackinac Island, sharing eerie tales and informative history along the way.

October is a lovely time for a horse-drawn carriage tour. You can see the sights amid dazzling fall color. You can even take the reins and drive a horse-drawn carriage on Mackinac Island yourself!

Peak visitor season may be coming to a close this month, but Mackinac Island never closes. Not only do about 500 people live here yearround, but there are many island experiences that visitors can enjoy in the winter, too. Here are a few things to know about the offseason (in case you’re adventurous enough to visit after the island “closes”):

Or visit www.mackinacisland.org/ mackinac-island-winter-season for more info

In addition to all the activities in town, keep in mind that more than 80% of Mackinac Island is a state park. Fall is a beautiful time of year to hike, bike or ride horseback on the 70-plus miles of trails. You can do all these things in October, plus take advantage of Value Season. Many places to stay are offering special packages this month so you can experience the beauty and charm of Mackinac Island at a discount.

Ferry service to Mackinac Island scales back come November, but you can still catch a ride from St. Ignace almost every day – at least until the water freezes over. At that point, taking a flight to the Mackinac Island airport is the only option. Only a few restaurants, shops and places to stay remain open through the winter, while some others keep hours on select days during the holidays There are no public restrooms available in the winter

• There are some big winter events including the Mackinac Island Tree Lighting in early December and the Great Turtle Drop on New Year’s Eve

The great outdoors is still great in the offseason. It’s just colder and snowier. Some of

Emotions run high each spring when Camille Fuller makes her way from Jamaica to spend the summer working on Mackinac Island. She’s sad to leave her family, yet excited by the opportunity to provide for them by working in one of the world’s best travel destinations.

Later this month, Fuller will experience many of those same feelings once again. She’ll bid a sad farewell to her friends and co-workers at the Chippewa Hotel, while looking forward to reuniting with her family back home.

It’s an experience shared by about 1,000 guest workers who come from around the world to provide Mackinac Island visitors with superior customer service each travel season.

“It’s a bittersweet moment each time, either way,” said Fuller, 43, who has worked on Mackinac Island for the past decade.

As Mackinac Island transitions from peak visitor season to winter offseason this month, it’s also a time of change for many island employees. Each spring, guest workers from Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean as well as parts of Europe and Asia come to Mackinac Island where they keep the hotels and restaurants running. Each fall at the end of the season, they return to their homelands.

Why do people come from so far away to work on Mackinac Island?

Only about 500 people live on Mackinac Island year-round, yet upwards of 10,000 people visit each day through the spring, summer and fall travel season. To serve all those visitors, the

October is a time of transition… …for Mackinac Island workers

small businesses on Mackinac Island need to hire about 4,500 workers each year.

That’s way more than the local population can provide, especially when the unemployment rate for full-time, year-round jobs is so low. Even with college students taking many seasonal jobs, the island routinely needs about 1,000 guest workers to fill remaining openings.

So, Fuller and hundreds of other guest workers come to Mackinac Island. They are able to make more money than they could at home, and Mackinac Island is able to continue providing exceptional customer service that makes it one of the best islands to visit.

And when Mackinac Island thrives, so does Michigan as a whole. In fact, studies show that every guest worker creates and sustains 4.6 American jobs!

“For any of us here to survive, there’s just not enough American workers that will come and work in a seasonal resort on an island,” said Brian Bailey, general manager of the Chippewa Hotel.

“The guest worker program is our only solution to be able to stay in business.

“If we didn’t have these (guest workers), lots of Americans would lose their jobs.”

Fuller’s day-to-day duties as a housekeeper including cleaning rooms, checking stock and handling guest requests. Yet, the impact of guest workers goes so much beyond the jobs that they do. It’s also about the spirit that they bring to Mackinac Island. The smiles. The cultural exchange. Fuller enjoys meeting guests, many of whom know

her by name because they return to the island year after year. Some guests have become Facebook friends and they keep in touch all year long.

“They are interested in learning about my culture and it’s so interesting learning about their culture,” Fuller said. When she’s off duty, Fuller likes to relax in the park and people watch.

“It’s such a beautiful place, and I get to meet a lot of guests from all walks of life,” she said. “I enjoy interacting with them and getting to know them. And it warms my heart to provide them with good service.

“Mackinac Island is my home away from home.”

Is Mackinac Island

haunted?

On the heels of another great summer at one of the world’s best islands, October now brings a different feeling to Mackinac Island. As the crowds thin, the trees change and nightfall comes earlier, the atmosphere gets a bit mysterious. Spooky, even.

No wonder it’s the busiest time of year for the Haunts of Mackinac walking tour. Many visitors love to hear a guide tell entertaining stories while walking past haunted sites. In a

EVEN IF YOU’RE A SKEPTIC, YOU’LL GET A KICK OUT OF THESE TALES:

In the Post Cemetery, a mother sometimes can be seen weeping over the late 19th-century graves of her two young children

In the oldest building in all of Michigan, which now houses the Kids’ Quarters at Fort Mackinac, the toys in the room always get put away at the end of the day – yet staff sometimes arrive in the morning to find the toys all out of place, as if they’ve been played with overnight

Up at Fort Holmes, many people have reported seeing three soldiers conversing, then – poof! – they disappear as if they’ve been startled.

The ghosts of Mackinac Island are not menacing in any way. They just appear from time to time, especially this time of the year as leaves tumble down the streets and there’s an aura of quiet and calm.

There’s no reason to be frightened by any of the ghosts, but a Haunts of Mackinac tour still makes for a spooky thrill.

October is a time of transition… …for Mackinac Island businesses

After six months of hard work catering to visitors from May through October, many Mackinac Island businesses will close after Halloween. But that doesn’t mean their work is done.

The upcoming offseason is a time for planning and projects to make 2024 even better.

Just like each shop, restaurant and place to stay is unique, so is each closing process. Here’s a glimpse of what happens during the end of each visitor season:

Do you ever think about that special someone you met on Mackinac Island?

The one who showed you the sights on a carriage ride? Who took you down secret trails in Mackinac Island State Park? Who whisked you away by taxi to a romantic dinner?

Yes, we’re talking about that horse. The equine acquaintance that was among the highlights of your visit.

Do you ever wonder what they do when the visitor season ends?

“They’re pretty much on vacation,” said Steve Sawyers, who has taken care of Mackinac Island horses through the winter for over two decades.

Although a couple dozen horses remain on Mackinac Island through the offseason delivering mail and transporting workers, most retire for the winter to farms in the Upper Peninsula between the Mackinac Bridge and Sault Ste. Marie.

For the most part, winter break for the horses involves some of the same things that people enjoy on vacation. They just basically frolic around and sunbathe. And they eat a lot.

“They continuously eat,” said James

10 to See in Mackinac Island State Park Legendary Landmarks

While there are perfectly natural causes for the existence of iconic Mackinac Island rock formations, they are the subjects of supernatural tales as well. Take a look at these 10 must-see sights, then get on up here and see them for yourself on a legendary scavenger hunt you’ll never forget.

• ARCH ROCK is a limestone arch that spans some 50 feet, creating a spectacular window through which to see Lake Huron more than 140 feet below. There are many legends that describe how Arch Rock came to be, and the site itself came to be known as a bridge to the afterlife – or a portal for spirits to come down to earth.

There are no hieroglyphs on the rock that shapes the CAVE OF THE WOODS, but it’s as good a spot as any to tell the natural history of Mackinac Island. It’s one of the island’s few remaining caves, hollowed out by crashing waves eons ago when the surrounding water levels were much higher.

CRACK IN THE ISLAND is a literal break in the island’s limestone base that you can walk right through. According to legend, the crack was formed when the Great Spirit stomped its foot in anger at the first arrival of Europeans. There are even tales about a giant from the underworld being trapped down there!

DEVIL’S KITCHEN gave rise to one of the island’s juiciest legends. As the story goes, evil spirits captured and cooked unsuspecting visitors there. You can see fiery burn marks on the rock still today!

FRIENDSHIP’S ALTAR is a large chunk of limestone sticking out of the ground near British Landing. It’s where a wise teacher once disappeared into the sky on a magic vine, so the legend goes.

LOVER’S LEAP is a rock outcropping some 145 feet above the water on the west side of Mackinac Island. Its name comes from a horribly tragic tale about a young woman with a broken heart.

On the east side of the island is another rock ledge about 130 above the water called ROBINSON’S FOLLY, just uphill from Mission Point Resort. It’s similar to Lover’s Leap, with its own tragic lovestruck legend.

SKULL CAVE is blocked off to prevent damage, but still worth a visit to get a sense of the history of the place. Eerie to think that it was once full of human bones!

SUGAR LOAF is a 75-foot tower of limestone rising out of the earth in the middle of Mackinac Island. The view from above at Point Lookout is especially nice. It’s also fun to walk around the base of Sugar Loaf and see if you can make out the legendary profile of a face in the rock.

SUNSET ROCK is a wonderful place for a quiet moment with your special someone. There’s nothing legendary about how the manmade overlook came to be, although it’s a celebrated spot in the family lore of many couples who have ventured there.

Island horses

T. Chambers, co-manager of Chambers Farms in Pickford, Mich. where 300-plus horses from Mackinac Island spend the winter. “They pretty much eat 24/7 and catnap in the sun. It seems like the colder it gets, the more they eat.”

At Chambers Farms, the horses go through 6,000 round bales of hay over the winter. That’s roughly 3,000 tons of feed! Plus, they eat about 30 tons of oats and several tons of mineral supplements. All those nutrients help the horses grow a thick winter coat. In fact, many of the horses get so wooly in the winter that it can be hard to recognize them!

“Especially some of the grays will change colors completely,” Sawyers said.

Sawyers and his team go out every day to feed the horses hay and refill their heated water supply. Digesting the food creates body heat that warms the horses on cold winter days. All the eating also builds up a hay gut that will help the horses remain strong and durable when vacation ends and they return to work on Mackinac Island next spring.

WHAT DOES CLOSING FOR THE SEASON LOOK LIKE?

Shops and attractions tend to have fewer staff on hand as October progresses, and those remaining staff often wear many hats. In addition to serving customers this month, staff prepares to close things down. That can include taking inventory, winterizing buildings and getting things ready for any winter projects that may be on tap.

At Mackinac State Historic Parks, for example, staff brings winter items out of storage such as snowmobile signs and barriers. They also begin closing public restrooms.

Ferry companies haul their boats out of the water and into winter storage. Crews also winterize the docks.

Restaurants start breaking down equipment, sanitizing and scrubbing everything down and making sure things are clean and ready to go for the following year.

HOW DO BUSINESSES PLAN FOR THE NEXT SEASON DURING THE OFFSEASON?

Most every ferry boat will have a list of items to be taken care of over the winter, for example. Ditto for many shops, restaurants and attractions. Some projects are big, and some are small. Either way, the winter offseason is a great time to get that work done.

In addition to repairs and maintenance, Mackinac Island businesses use the winter offseason as an opportunity to make planned updates. That could be a major remodeling or expansion, perhaps, or a fine-tuning of a menu, purchase of new equipment or reorganization of a floor display.

Mackinac Island businesses also take time in the offseason to evaluate every aspect of their operations to determine areas for improvement. And it’s a vital time for recruiting employees for the following season.

The supernatural is the natural not yet understood.

ELBERT HUBBERD