 |
|
The
marine museum in Alpena, Michigan, is among the
sites to visit on a 45th Parallel vacation.
|
ATLANTA, Mich. Sometime
around 1970, a geography club marked a route across
Michigan called t he Polar-Equator Trail." The
Michigan Legislature declared it a major tourist
attraction. The Detroit Free Press reported it was "a
backwoods trek in loveliness along the 45th
Parallel."
Then it all went sliding
into oblivion. The route. The club. The signs.
Only the 45th Parallel
itself endured.
Can you drive it today?
Yes, with a little creativity. I just did it. Just got
back. Even saw a few rare Polar-Equator Trail signs.
Where they are, well,
that's for you to find out.
When you stand on the 45th
Parallel, the halfway point between the equator and North
Pole, the earth doesn't vibrate and compasses don't go
twirly haywire.
Instead, you meet many fine
Michigan people and see a heck of a lot of trees.
The route takes you past
our state's grand highlights and quiet byways. You
encounter Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, plus sparkling
inland lakes. You pass farms, hills, the humongous
Mackinaw State Forest, elk, a zillion cows, churches,
cherry trees, wineries, fields of corn, big cities and
tiny towns.
In our state, the 45th
Parallel cuts from the South Manitou Island lighthouse
east to Leland, Sutton's Bay, Bellaire, Gaylord, Atlanta
and Alpena.
Anyone with a good road map
or a GPS navigator can make their way.
What's the route? Ah,
that's where the adventure starts. There is no one 45th
Parallel road. In fact, no road goes more than a few miles
directly along the line. But cobble together a route of
your own (see sidebar), and you'll always stay just a few
miles from the famous latitude.
I started in Alpena and
worked my way west, trying to stay as close as possible to
the actual line, even taking dirt roads that made my car
whimper.
Three days later, I
stumbled onto the pier in Leland and gazed out at South
Manitou Island, eyes still crossing from all the twists
and turns.
But you know what? It was
satisfying. It turns out many Michigan towns make the most
of their premium parallel position.
You can sample fudge or
food from 45th Parallel Candy World and 45th Parallel Cafe
in Suttons Bay. You can drink wine from 45 North, a winery
in Leelanau County.
On July 14-18, you can
attend Gaylord's Alpenfest, which, in a stroke of good
fortune, will be marking its 45th year, "so we're
celebrating the 45th on the 45th. That's what the buttons
will say," says Phil Beachnau, director of the
Gaylord tourism bureau.
You also meet folks who
have no clue they are even on the parallel.
"Really? We didn't
even realize it," says Rodney Haken, who with his
wife, Melissa, owns the aptly named Mid-Pointe Convenience
Store on Werth Road near Alpena.
Yes, you see official green
state highway signs proclaiming you have just crossed the
45th Parallel, such as the one on US-23 in Alpena.
"We used to promote it
as a great photo op, but it hasn't been in our visitors
guide in awhile," says Deborah Parkdike, director of
the Alpena Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. "That
should probably change."
Sadly, the marker most
people see on their way Up North along I-75 at Gaylord is
wretchedly unsuited to photos. It's on the median of the
freeway, with absolutely nowhere safe to stop.
The only Michigan downtown
plopped exactly on the 45th Parallel is Atlanta, the
county seat of Montmorency County, population 1,229. Its
actual latitude is 44.991.
There, Betty and Bucky's
Family Dining serves a nice ham sandwich. The bluegill
fishing off the town pier in the Thunder Bay River is
fine. And it's a serendipitous place to bump into the town
fathers, who have big plans for their unincorporated city.
"We're just forming
the 45th Parallel Music and Arts Association," says
Briley Township Supervisor John Zollers, who supervises
Atlanta as well as the rest of the township. "We are
going to renovate the pier and put up a sign 'Fish on
the 45th Parallel.'"
It's a good idea. Look at a
globe, and the parallel is like a hoop around the world
connecting tiny Atlanta to sexier members of the 45th club
Minneapolis, Yellowstone National Park in Montana,
Hokkaido, Japan and even Inner Mongolia.
Maybe you have to be a
geography geek to get excited about that. I am. Atlanta
is.
As the crow flies, it's 135
miles across Michigan's Lower Peninsula at the parallel.
But you have to drive many more miles than that due to the
lakes. In eastern Michigan, you must bypass Fletcher Pond.
In western Michigan, you must drive around Torch Lake and
Grand Traverse's West and East bays. (45th Parallel
purists also need to take the ferry from Leland to South
Manitou Island, which wasn't yet running when I was
there.)
The fun part is spotting
the signs and markers. Today, of course, any yokel with a
GPS in his car or Google Earth and a smart phone can
pinpoint latitude and longitude. But it used to be harder,
which is why some markers and signs stray far from the
parallel itself.
The state's biggest 45th
Parallel monument is the Cairn Highway Monument near
Kewadin. Built in 1938, the 12-foot -tall stone monument
next to a cherry grove marks the parallel but it's
actually 31/2 miles south of the real parallel line. It
does have a great view of Grand Traverse Bay and a little
parking lot.
The lighthouse at the tip
of the Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City has a big
sign proclaiming it's on the 45th Parallel, when actually
the real line is about a mile north in Grand Traverse Bay.
(A tiny sign near the beach explains the mistake.)
On state highways, official
green roadside markers announce the parallel on US-23 at
Alpena, US-31 near Kewadin, I-75 at Gaylord, and M-22 at
both Suttons Bay and south of Leland. Strangely, M-32 in
eastern Michigan has no signs at all even though it
crosses the parallel several times and most closely tracks
it.
The best sign and I
think best photo op is on Hayes-Tower Road west of
Gaylord, just north of Old Alba Road. Made of rustic wood,
it has a cheerful Up North quality the other signs lack.
If you happen to be in the
far reaches of the Upper Peninsula, the town of Menominee
has a "Halfway to the North Pole" bronze marker,
erected in 1938. The town actually is a bit north of the
45th Parallel.
If you look really hard
across the state, you may find a rare Polar-Equator Trail
sign. If you see one, consider yourself lucky.
Hint: Try the country roads
between Atlanta and Alba.
MICHIGAN CITIES ON THE 45TH
PARALLEL
Alpena
45th Parallel
acknowledgement: Michigan Dept. of Transportation sign on
M-23 just south of town at Squaw Bay. The town's Latitudes
Bar is a reference to the 45th degree latitude of the
city.
Attraction: The National
Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center is a splendid museum
containing artifacts of sunken ships and a history of
Great Lakes shipping. More than 200 sunken ships are in or
near Thunder Bay near Alpena. (Free, 500 W. Fletcher,
www.thunderbay.noaa.gov, 989-356-8805)
Dining: John A. Lau Saloon,
circa 1893. Steaks, fish, good deep-fried green beans,
Michigan beer. Reputed to be haunted by a ghost, but I
didn't see her. (414 N. Second, 989-354-6898)
Lodging : Many small
mom-and-pop spots like the 40 Winks Motel (1021 State,
989-354-5622), plus chains like Holiday Inn (1000 Hwy 23
N, www.holiday-inn.com, 989-358-6732).
Tourist information :
www.alpenacvb.com, 989-354-4181
Atlanta
45th Parallel
acknowledgement: The only Michigan town whose downtown
intersection, State Street (M-32), is virtually on the
45th Parallel. A few of the Polar-Equator Trail signs
still stand on country roads nearby.
Attraction: Known as the
elk capital of Michigan, the town holds an Elk Festival
every year, this year Sept. 25-27 .
Dining: Betty and Bucky's
Family Dining (12545 State, 989-785-2695).
Lodging: The Atlanta Motel
is just down the street from the fishing pier (12520
State, www.theatlantamotel.com, 989-785-4509)
Tourist information:
www.atlantamichigan.com, 989-785-3400
Gaylord
45th Parallel
acknowledgement: The south part of town near McCoy Road is
on the 45th Parallel. Plus, everyone going Up North on
I-75 passes the parallel sign just before the Gaylord
exit. Also, there's a 45th Parallel wooden sign on
Hayes-Tower Road west of town.
Attraction: The city has
its own elk herd in Elk Park, less than a mile from the
45th Parallel. You can best see it from the DPW lot or the
Elks Club. (Seriously. It's true.)
Dining: The Sugar Bowl,
celebrating 90 years, is a town institution. Good
whitefish and a cozy Up North ambiance (216 W. Main,
989-732-5524)
Lodging: Many chain hotels
near freeway, or the Royal Crest Motel (803 S. Otsego,
www.royalcrestgaylord.com, 888-854-9252).
Tourist information:
www.gaylordmichigan.net, 800-345-8621
Suttons Bay
45th Parallel
acknowledgement: The parallel marker is about half a mile
north of the city limits.
Attraction: Just northwest
of town is the Forty-Five North Vineyard and Winery, which
sits exactly on the parallel: "Experience the
Latitude," its ads proclaim, "Located distinctly
on the 45th Parallel" (8580 East Horn Road,
www.fortyfivenorth.com, 231-271-1188).
Dining: The 45th Parallel
Cafe for breakfast or lunch (104 W. Broadway,
www.45thfudge.com, 231-271-2233).
Lodging: The Vineyard Inn
that faces West Bay is just a few yards north of the
parallel sign (1338 N. Pebble Beach, www.vininn.com,
231-941-7060).
Tourist information:
www.suttonsbayarea.com, 231-271-5077
WHAT IS THE 45TH PARALLEL?
The 45th Parallel can't be
seen, but it's as real as the property line dividing your
backyard from your neighbor's. Here's a primer:
The 45th Parallel is a
measure of latitude. Latitude and longitude are horizontal
and vertical grid lines that geographers put on maps to
help navigators figure out where they are on the globe.
Longitude, the vertical lines, are like segment divisions
on a peeled orange. Latitude, the horizontal lines, are
actually circles of varying sizes the biggest one
around the equator and others getting smaller and smaller
until they reach the poles.
The 45th Parallel is one of
those latitude circles.
To know why it's called the
45th, imagine standing in the center of the Earth. Reach
your hand straight over your head, and that's the North
Pole, 90 degrees latitude. Reach your hand straight out,
that's 0 degrees latitude, the equator. Reach your hand
half way between those two points, and that's the 45th
degree of latitude north. Aha! Alpena.
Because Earth is actually
slightly squashed instead of a perfect sphere, there are
more sophisticated ways of calculating actual halfway
points between the equator and poles, but for the purposes
of this article, we'll stick with the basics. And since
45th Parallel is a catchier name than "a
cartographical representation of a geographical
demarcation of the line halfway between the pole and the
equator," it caught on.
Ellen Creager: ecreager@freepress.com
(c) 2009, Detroit Free
Press.
Visit the Freep, the World
Wide Web site of the Detroit Free Press, at http://www.freep.com.
Distributed by
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
|
