Finished my "Around Lake Michigan Trip" Sunday.....

Well, after 4 days and 1250 miles, me and two of my friends completed our journey around Lake Michigan! It was a beautiful ride (except for the first day where we were in the rain for about 6 hours, hehe )!

On the first day, we left from the Illinois/Indiana Border and took side roads, through the rain, most of the way to Traverse City, MI, which was a rather busy tourist city along the lake.

On the second day, we meandered our way up to Mackinaw City to cross the Mackinac Bridge...but not before a beautiful 30 mile detour though the "tunnel of trees", which is a beautiful, twisty historic road that follows the lake front. Crossing the Mackinac bridge was a butt clencher with 30 MPH winds blowing! Saddle bags and a big tank bag do the VFR no favors!!! From there we got on route 2 which goes all the way to Escanaba, MI along the top of Lake Michigan. We stayed in Escanaba on night 2.

On day 3, we followed the lake to Green Bay, WI and went north into Door County up to Sturgeon Bay. We have a friend with a summer home there and we met up and took a 100 mile ride up and down the Penninsula that was absolutely awesome! We stayed overnight there.

The 4th day had us heading for home and we followed the lake until we got close to Sheboygan, WI and from there we hopped on the highways and drove home (about 2 hours).

All in all a beautiful trip!! My 2000 yellow VFR handled everything I threw at it and never gave a fit of trouble. I gave it a big kiss when I got home, lol Here are a few pics:

The Bikes (2000 VFR, 2002 Hayabusa, 2001 FZ1):



Me and ole "Piss Yellar" in Petoskey, MI



Riding buddies:



Door County:

 

That it...................
Glad you have a gread trip and come home safe.

 

Nice ride!

Is it me or does that Busa just look silly, like a cartoon character?

 

LOL..the Busa looks silly but it is a great bike and a capable sport tourer with Heli Bars. I personally would not own one, hehe. I have however owned a 2003 FZ1 and they are great bikes :smile:

 

Thanks! And yeah, that's it, lol :biggrin:

 

You killing me bro. where are the pictures of all the redneck babe?:tongue:

 

Man I wish I had some! We spent so much time on the bikes I honestly did not take a ton of pics :frown:

That, and the U.P. of Michigan does not really have a whole lot of redneck Babes, lololol....bummer no doubt! :biggrin:

 

Glad to hear you had a good & safe ride around the pond!

 

Thanks! It was a great time for sure! :smile:

 

I went around Lake Michigan back in '09. I didn't have the VFR back then though. I had just finished a trip around Lake Erie and didn't want to go home yet, so I went around another lake. Going over the Mackinac Bridge is a lot of fun especially with the crosswind and the steel grates.

Glad to hear you enjoyed your trip.

 

Thanks! Yeah that bridge crossing with the 30mph wind we had was quite the experience, hehehe

 

I'm from Muskegon so I am very familiar with everywhere you guys rode. US 2 has some beautiful views as it runs right along the lake most of the time. When I was on it, there were quite a few bumps in the road. The peninsula that runs through the middle of the Grand Traverse Bay is also a nice ride. It is very hilly and runs through quite a few vineyards up to the Old Mission State Park/Lighthouse. I have also been across the Mackinac Bridge when it was all grating (white knuckle grip), last time I was across there was a lane of asphalt which made it much easier though. My wife and I rode north up to Tahquamenon Falls one year and stopped at the Brewery there. They had excellent food and beverages! My trip around the lake ended in Milwaukee and then I took the ferry across the lake back to Muskegon. Sounds like you had a blast! Can't wait for vacation time next week so I can get out and ride.

That Busa out traveling brings back some memories. My very first multi-day trip was on an '06 to North Carolina and back. The stock seat sucked for me, but a double bubble windscreen, helibars and a few bags makes it a very fun "touring" bike.



Josh

 

I like that White Busa! Yes, it can be set up to be a capable sport tourer for sure...the motor is a gem. That being said I wouldn't trade my Viffer for anything, hehe. I tried to convince the guys to do the ferry thing but it was somewhat cost prohibitive....would have been cool though! Overall a great trip and we had a ton of fun

 

The ferry is a bit expensive, but I took the evening ride so I was blasting across the lake as the sun was setting. A much better ride than dodging traffic in Chicago, plus it put me right in my hometown to finish out the trip.

 

That would have been great! I live in Indiana right over the border of Illinois so I had no choice but to go through Milwaukee and Chicago. AT that point, the trip was done, hehe. I see you have a Hypermotard? How do you like it? :smile: I almost bought one.

 

Did someone say Hypermotard?? Sorry this wayyy off topic eh.

I resurected this one two years ago after it had a spill with only 6 miles on the odometer. It was a fun bike but only for short bursts..

 

That thing is pretty sweet!

 

It is a wonderful bike and is right at home in the twisties. I love the seating position and when paired with a Sargent seat, is really a comfy bike. I have done 300 mile country road days with it and woke up the next day ready for more! I would love to get my hands on an aftermarket exhaust (Leo Vince or Termi), but they are outright crazy priced. Sure sound nice though!

Here is my Italian girlfriend

 

Niiiiice! Someday i would like to have one as a 2nd bike My friend with the Busa has a 1098 and that bike is an absolute thrill to ride.....for about 45 minutes, lol. I call it the torture rack. The motor is just plain awesome though!