Is anyone else completely sick of the state of the US these days (insert tantrum)? I find myself wanting to escape from any connections to it that I can possibly free myself from on a daily basis. I’ve recently discovered a place that puts me at absolute peace. But the remote nature of it isn’t for the weak.
The place I speak of is Beaver Island, MI, and let me tell you…it’s heaven on earth.
You’re probably like, where in the hell is Beaver Island?? And how did you find it? Well, my sister in law has been living there for about ten years, and that’s how we came to know this little piece of paradise, via her amazing photography on FB.
Beaver Island is basically located smack dab in the middle of Lake Michigan, waaaaay up north. When I tell you I had no idea how huge that lake is, I’m for REAL. I have never seen a lake that looked like an ocean before, and I’ve been all over the world.
So, after years of wanting to visit there, my husband and I finally made the journey. We live in Western North Carolina, and for us it’s about a 14 hour drive to Charlevoix, MI, where you can either fly or take a ferry to the island. Yes, you heard that correctly. There’s no bridge. You have to either FLY on a little airplane or ride the FERRY to get there!! Total isolation? Sign me up!
The flight is about 10-15 minutes, and the ferry is a little over 2 hours. We chose the ferry because we also wanted to take our vehicle with us so that we could explore the island on our 5 day visit.
We took the 8:30 a.m. boat. The waters were choppy, the sky crowded with low-hanging clouds in various shades of grey, and the winds were fierce. But, I’m at my literal happiest when I’m near, in, or on the water. So, I bundled up as best as I could, absorbed the energy from the waves, and watched the gorgeous passing views of water and land. Goodbye mainland. Beaver Island, here we come!
The Midlife Tantrum 