Tic Toc
This trip makes excellent use of the beautiful trails along Lake Michigan with an overnight stay at Hoffmaster State Park.
Bicycle Adventurers: Sarah Hubbard
When: Summer
Accommodations: Hoffmaster State Park
Distance: I rode 52 miles on the first day and 35 miles on day two.
Bonus tip for this adventure: The scenery is spectacular, so stop often and take plenty of pictures. You’ll pass by Michigan Adventure, getting a nice glimpse of the wooden roller coaster, and also the USS LST 393 a tank landing ship built for the U.S. Navy during World War ll.
Day One
I’ve been wanting to do a bike trip for a while now and finally decided to stop waiting for the perfect time to go and just hit the trails. Tuesday morning I packed up my bike and had my husband drop me off at Hart, Michigan’s trailhead on the Hart-Montague Bicycle Trail State Park. I rode from Hart to New Era, Michigan where I stopped for Ice cream at the Country Dairy, then back on the trail to the White Lake Pathway that connects the Hart-Montague Trail to the scenic Fred Meijer Berry Junction Trail. From there I took the Lakeshore Trail to McCracken and finally Lake Harbor Road to Hoffmaster State Park where I set up camp for the night. After a quick dinner I walked to the beach to enjoy a beautiful sunset.
Day Two
The next day I packed up early and rode to the beach for a breakfast of poptarts and to soak up the sun and sand a little longer before leaving for home. I rode back the way I had come to the Lakeshore Trail, took that over to the Laketon, and after a short connector route, I was finally on the beautiful Muskatawa headed back home. I will definitely be taking this trip again, but next time I’ll be sure to add another day for enjoying all that Hoffmaster has to offer. More beach time is always a good thing!
Your favorite local bike shop?
Village Bike & Fitness, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids Bicycle Co., Ada, Michigan
Bike overnight tips and tricks?
Before I left for my ride, I read somewhere that you should take something silly, a stuffed animal, plastic dinosaur, or something, so I grabbed a stuffed animal from my kids room to bring along. I took pictures of it with the scenery in the background and sent them to my husband and girls. They thought it was hilarious and it let them know where I was along the way.
One more tip, If you have a sewing machine, you can very easily make your own bike bags for a fraction of cost. There are free instructions all over the Internet that are very simple and easy to understand.
__
HOW ABOUT YOU? Inspire others by submitting your own bike overnight adventure!