Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs to visit the Mackinac Bridge

Mike Rowe, host of the Discovery Channel's show Dirty Jobs, and his crew will make a visit to the Mackinac Bridge this Friday, May 25. They will focus on the never ending work that maintenance crews face to keep the bridge in tip-top shape. I have always admired those who work on the bridge and especially those who paint the bridge while hanging on scaffolding (the roadway alone at midspan is 199 ft. above the water). Also those that work on the road surface while traffic barrels on by.

I have walked the bridge a few times and a couple of those walks have been on windy days. I can attest to the fact that the "Mighty Mac" gets a lot of sway to it when the winds of the straits pick up. You definitely need nerves of steel to work in those conditions.

Via Michigan.gov

Traveling in Michigan? Find out about road construction first

MDOT has a great resource to help you avoid sitting in traffic due to the usual summer road construction. There is a plain text version as well as an interactive Flash version of a map showing major road and bridge construction (or is it destruction?) projects on state roads as well as the interstates that crisscross Michigan. The map gives the tentative dates for the construction as well as what to expect as far as lane closures and detours. I find that it is well worth the time to try and avoid wasting the ever more expensive gasoline in our tanks by sitting in traffic. This allows you to seek alternate routes that just might (gasp!) make you slow down and enjoy the beautiful state of Michigan that you are traveling through.

You can find the map at the MDOT page at Michigan.gov. Also, there is a regularly updated listing of lane closures (which will most likely be more current than the MDOT map) that you can view here. The lane closure map allows you to search by region, county, routes, and filter it by date.

Pure Michigan campaign touts state around the midwest

Michigan's $11.3 million ad campaign, Pure Michigan, began in earnest this week to tout the benefits of visiting Michigan to the midwest. The ads will target Chicago, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Minneapolis and Ontario through July. Tim Allen narrates the ads which backers hope will increase the number of visitors to Michigan and the dollars they contribute to our economy. Read about the ad campaign at the Detroit News.

Watch the videos for the Pure Michigan ad campaign -

Mackinac State Historic Park sites opening May 7

It must be getting close to summer because the Mackinac State Historic Parks are opening for the 2007 season on May 7. Various packages are available for visiting the four historic venues that make up the Mackinac State Historic Parks - Colonial Michilimackinac, Historic Mill Creek, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse, and Fort Mackinac on Mackinac Island. The "Infinity Package" available through the MackinawCity.com website offers you -

• 3 Day Pass with unlimited ferry service on pre-selected ferry line
• 3 Day Unlimited Pass to Fort Mackinac, Mill Creek, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse, and Colonial Michilimackinac
• Thunder Falls Family Waterpark Admission 3 day Unlimited Pass

You will have 3 days to use the unlimited passes as you wish. Prices start at $54.95 for children (5-12) up to $79.95 for adults (age 18+). Ferry tickets alone (via the Arnold Line) will run you $21 each for adults (ages 13+) and $10.50 for kids (5-12) at their regular prices.

Here are the prices for tickets to the Historic State Parks without using the special "Infinity Package".

• Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse Day Pass - $5.25 (adult), $3.25 (children 6-17)
• Historic Mill Creek Day Pass - $7.25 (adult), $4.25 (children 6-17)
• Fort Mackinac Day Pass - $9.50 (adult), $5.50 (children 6-17)
• Colonial Michilimackinac Day Pass - $9.50 (adult), $5.50 (children 6-17)

Say you were a family of four (2 adults, 2 kids 17 and under) and wanted to visit all four of the Mackinac State Historic Park sites and Thunder Falls. Your cost would be as follows (if your kids are teenagers your ferry tickets will all be considered adult prices which greatly increases the cost) -

• Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse - $17
• Historic Mill Creek - $23
• Fort Mackinac - $30
• Colonial Michilimackinac - $30
• Thunder Falls - $65.80 (assuming you are going after 6/15 and your kids are under 48" tall)
• Ferry Tickets - $63
• Grand Total - $228.80

Your cost with the "Infinity Package" would be $299.80 (2 adults at $79.95 and 2 kids 13-17 at $69.95). With this package you can go to any of the Historic State Parks and Thunder Falls while riding the ferry boats as many times as you wish over a 3-day period. Lodging is extra for both the "Infinity Package" scenario and the above price breakdown for purchasing tickets individually.

There is also a "Triple Choice" ticket available for the Mackinac State Historic Parks that gets you 3 tickets to venues of your choice. Adult tickets are $20 and youth (ages 6-17) are $12.50. The tickets are valid for 7 days from the time you pick them up. They are not unlimited passes - these are single use only.

Neat video showcases travel spots in Detroit

Included in this travel video: The Henry Ford, Greenfield Village, City Theatre, Fox Theatre, Detroit Institute of Arts, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, and the Motown Historical Museum.

If the player does not work, you can view the video here.

Celebrate National Bike Month on Michigan's numerous bike trails

The majority of Michigan State Parks have short 3-5 mile biking trails, but there are a couple nice long trails scattered across the state. The 34.5-mile Kal-Haven Trail State Park is enjoyed by almost 100,000 visitors each year. The trail is built upon the abandoned railroad bed of the Kalamazoo and South Haven Railroad. Limestone and crushed slag were used to make the roadbed of the trail.

For more information visit www.kalhaventrail.org.

The 22 mile long Betsie Valley Trail runs from Frankfort to Thompsonville and passes through Beulah and Elberta. It is paved with asphalt from Frankfort to Mollineaux Rd. and from Beulah to Thompsonville it is a gravel-based trail.

For more information visit www.betsievalleytrail.org.

Feel free to share any other biking trails in Michigan that you enjoy by posting them in the 'comments' section for this article.