One Couple’s Quest for Fun Kayaking, Cool Bike Trails and a Great Cup of Coffee
Yes! Michigan!
Michigan Day 8 We packed up, cleaned up, loaded the van and headed out around 9 am. Our first stop was in Albion MI at the Foundry Bakehouse and Deli for breakfast. The coffee was good and the bagel breakfast sandwiches were excellent. We also purchased 6 donuts (ate two at the table) for later. …
Michigan Day 7 This was the last full day we were to spend at the cabin on the lake. When we woke up to wind, overcast and temps in the 60s, our plans became pretty easy to schedule. We drove into Marshall to Dark Horse Commons for breakfast. Mary had a delicious mushroom and cheese…
Michigan Day 6 Another big day scheduled so we only spent 45 minutes enjoying the sunrise on the deck. We left around 8 AM for a bike ride on the Falling Waters Trail in Concord MI. The trail was entirely asphalt and well-maintained. Along the trail we stopped at Lime Lake where we once again,…
Michigan Day 5 According to many references, the word kalamazoo is Potawatomi for “boiling water”. There is some discussion as to what “boiling” means, but it is likely because of the rapids in the Kalamazoo River. In fact, we later discovered that the locals refer to city as the “Zoo”. We planned on spending the…
Michigan Day 4 After enjoying our wonderful view for an hour, we drove to north Marshall to Free Range Pancake House for breakfast. Mary had the Fresh Start crepe – eggs, ham, hash browns, cheese crepe with hollandaise; I had the ham and veggie omelette. The food was really tasty. Arriving back at the cabin,…
Michigan Day 3 We woke up Sunday morning to this view right outside our hotel window from our private deck. A search of coffee shops open on Sunday in Lowell turned up no results. What did come up while searching was Tim Horton’s Donut Shop. Even though we usually avoid restaurant chains, Tim’s seemed like…
Michigan Day 2 Today we had a paddle race event scheduled. The 22nd Annual Riverwalk Kayak/SUP/Canoe race in Lowell. We packed up the van, ate a little hotel breakfast and left Grand Rapids for the 20 minute drive. Then the rear brakes on the van really started grinding. Only now the noise didn’t go away…
Day One After extensive and detailed research, followed by weeks of committee discussions, along with a really close ballot, it was determined that the 2025 Paddle Pedal and Coffee Tour would be in Michigan. That’s not really quite true. I found two kayak events in Michigan spaced a week apart in mid-July so we figured,…