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Michigan North South Route

Old 05-02-21, 10:10 PM
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jszollo
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Michigan North South Route

We are planning a ride from Ann Arbor to Mackinaw City.
However I am having difficulty finding a good route. We have road/touring bikes, so no trails please.
Anyone out there ever do this ride??
Was hoping to follow the DALMAC east route, but can’t seem to get the exact turn by turn route.
Thanks!!!
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Old 05-02-21, 10:17 PM
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MarcusT
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Try this
https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616...6053--,00.html
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Old 05-02-21, 11:57 PM
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Doug64
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My wife and I rode a loop from Grosse Ile to Mackinaw City, and then south roughly following Lake Michigan to South Haven before turning east back to the start. We used a combination of roads and trails on our road/touring bikes without any problems. You have over 2800 miles of multi use trails in the state; most of them are easily ridden on a road bike. On another ride we stared from Grosse Ile and followed the Detroit River and Lake St Clair until we crossed into Canada at Algonac before heading to Toronto. My sister lives in Wyandotte.

Why the aversion to trails?

Crossing the River Rouge Bridge between Ecorse and River Rouge in 2019. We just took Jefferson Ave (Biddle) through Detroit. Detroit is really bike friendly


We did not realize it, but the an organized ride was going to ride across the Mackiinac Bridge the morning after we arrive in Mackinaw City. If we would have known, we would have joined them. Instead we dumped our gear at a motel, and took the ferry across to Mackinac Island.




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Old 05-03-21, 07:21 AM
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jszollo
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Thanks!

No aversion to trails, I have a hybrid, but my cousin will be on a road bike, so she is skeptical of any dirt roads. She may try to change out tires...So I’m just looking for suggestions and tips.
We’re departing from Pinckney and basically going up the center of the state, taking M52.

Much appreciated.
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Old 05-03-21, 11:16 AM
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Originally Posted by jszollo
Thanks!

No aversion to trails, I have a hybrid, but my cousin will be on a road bike, so she is skeptical of any dirt roads. She may try to change out tires...So I’m just looking for suggestions and tips.
We’re departing from Pinckney and basically going up the center of the state, taking M52.

Much appreciated.
I'm not familiar with M52, but the "M" roads we have ridden have been pretty good. We use 32 mm tires which handle the crushed stone on most of the trails. The trails are not usually dirt; they use finely crushed rock, and in reasonably dry conditions are not an issue. It seems like the trails are 1-2 mph slower than pavement. You might want to use Google Maps Street View to check on road shoulders. Are you planning on camping? How much time do you have and what is your estimated daily mileage, and time of year? What route are you thinking about on the return home?

This is the trail between Lewiston and Wolverine.

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Old 05-03-21, 12:03 PM
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My ultra cycling friend Valarie did a Sturgis to Sault Ste Marie ride back in September 2018. She mostly followed M66. She did the ride in 28 hours.


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Old 05-05-21, 08:09 PM
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We're planning 70-80 miles a day. Rolling out in 2 weeks. I work the summer in Mackinaw, so this is a ride up and I'll drive back down at the end of summer.
We'll probably hotel/air bnb...and we have family as ride support.
Thanks for sharing!
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Old 05-05-21, 08:34 PM
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This may or may not help. I'm originally from Alpena and know that band across the state pretty well. When I zoom google maps to about state width, the first white roads that show up after the state routes zoom level seem to mostly be paved county roads that I wouldn't mind biking on. I've ridden some of them as short cuts coming up from Chicago and they're always pleasant in the car for their lack of traffic and good pavement and visuals. I don't know about how they are in the southeast part of the state, though, and the middle of the north part of the LP can be quite hilly, too.
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Old 05-05-21, 08:57 PM
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Originally Posted by mdarnton
This may or may not help. I'm originally from Alpena and know that band across the state pretty well. When I zoom google maps to about state width, the first white roads that show up after the state routes zoom level seem to mostly be paved county roads that I wouldn't mind biking on. I've ridden some of them as short cuts coming up from Chicago and they're always pleasant in the car for their lack of traffic and good pavement and visuals. I don't know about how they are in the southeast part of the state, though, and the middle of the north part of the LP can be quite hilly, too.
Thanks!
Paved county roads are good with us! The southeast part of the state is suspect...most of the trails don't connect, you have to encounter some roads. The further north we go, it seems we have more options....and crazy hills. Lol
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Old 05-05-21, 09:06 PM
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Originally Posted by jszollo
We're planning 70-80 miles a day. Rolling out in 2 weeks. I work the summer in Mackinaw, so this is a ride up and I'll drive back down at the end of summer.
We'll probably hotel/air bnb...and we have family as ride support.
Thanks for sharing!
Good luck with your ride, and have a great summer!
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Old 05-05-21, 09:15 PM
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By the way, check cell phone coverage maps before you go! At least a couple of years ago there were a lot of holes in the north.
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