Winter on
MACKINAC ISLAND Photos and article by PATRICK MCBRIARTY
o begin 2016, I spent most of January in an empty hotel on Mackinac Island. Can you say r-e-d-R-U-M, R-E-D-R-U-M?!? As a Chicago author and avid sailor, the opportunity to visit in the winter was simply too tantalizing to pass up. After multiple Chicago-Mac Races, I was quite familiar with the island in highseason, but would I go crazy by myself for so long? I arrived by ferry and the welcoming smell of fudge and horses, part island charm and part pragmatics, was missing. The air was clean, cold, and crisp, and the sweet, earthy mix of horses and confectioners was surprisingly absent. The usually busy Main Street was a ghost town with practically no one on the street or sidewalks. The hotels, restaurants and shops all closed for the season. Originally a rendezvous for Native Americans and then fur traders, it has become a huge draw for summer getaways by the less
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rugged, but often equally as curious American tourist. However, my invitation to Mackinac Island in the winter was not spooky. It was a gift, both literally and figuratively. Yes, I admit I still had mental reservations and concerns. Several years ago I met, and am now terribly thankful to, Liz Ware who is now associated with the Mission Point Resort. She believed in my work enough to grant an Artist in Residency at Mission Point. So all I had to do was get there, feed myself and focus on writing for a couple weeks. Fears unfounded, it made for the greatest gift an author could imagine. And true, I did walk through all the open rooms on the entire third floor under the pretense of looking for a spare blanket, which did help calm my early fears. Still the least sound carried and it was a bit weird. Many would ask, who goes to Mackinac in continued on next page ˙www.chicagoyachtclub.org
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