August 1, 2021
Day 3 - Lake Michigan - St Joseph to Van Buren State Park, MI
This morning we left Jackson, MI and drove west to St Joseph/Benton Harbor where we would begin the next part of our journey.
As we drove through Kalamazoo we stopped to visit a minor league ice hockey team arena, the Kalamazoo Wings.
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Arriving in St Joseph we parked at a a carpool parking lot right off the freeway. We then assembled our bikes and gear and got on the road at 12:15 pm heading north. There was a stiff headwind and we were glad we only had 30 miles to ride.
The first part of the ride was along the busy Red Arrow Hwy / Lakeshore Drive but we eventually turned onto Lake Drive and arrived in the quant St Joseph downtown by 1 pm.
While downtown we visited the Heritage Museum where I got a lighthouse stamp and saw a display on the lighthouse including the lens.
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Riding down Main Street, we visited the Candlestick Maker and got another stamp, but forgot to go to Purely Michigan next-door for the 3rd stamp for the lighthouse.
We then crossed the St Joseph river bridge and rode out to the lighthouse.
The wind was strong with waves breaking on the pier so the lighthouse was closed for visits.
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While at the park we stopped for lunch.
After lunch, we left at 2 pm continuing on Michigan Hwy 63, and while it was busy, it had a decent shoulder.
After 10 miles battling the wind and a few more hills than I imagined we stopped at Dollar General for drinks.
We then picked up the Blue Star Highway, which found us out of the wind and amongst trees, and while the shoulder was narrower, the traffic dissipated.
9 miles further on we spotted the trail that backtracked to the Van Buren State Park.
On our arrival at the campsite we had the option to choose a number of sites. We picked out camp site 26, and after riding back to the office to pay set up our tent.
A walk to the beach where the wind was strong with a no swim advisory which many ignored.
After dinner and showers we found some firewood left at a neighboring site so decided to have a fire. While our fire didn't last long it kept the mosquitos at bay.
Later we took a walk around the camp and came across a sizable motor home that was stuck in the sand. Obviously the sites here are not made for this type of vehicle.
We were woken up around 1 am when a big rig tow truck arrived to pull them out. Most likely embarrassed, they were no where to be seen the next morning
Today's ride: 29 miles (47 km)
Total: 100 miles (161 km)
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