These Shoes are Made for Walking (at Mill Creek Discovery Park)

We drive by this park every time we go up north. It's located about 30 minutes from the rock we just climbed. Today we decided to stop and explore.

It's the site of a sawmill built in 1790 to provide lumber for Mackinac Island. It sat abandoned and forgotten for over a century. In 1972 a couple of people with metal detectors were searching for treasure in the woodland. They happened upon this site which unearthed some interesting objects that led to extensive archaeological work and the reconstruction of this mill. It opened to the public in 1984.

Every hour historical demonstrations are conducted at the mill site.



This guy gave a very lively and interesting talk about how the sawmill operated.


They have bench seating deep into the forest where they give nature programs telling you about the fur trade and the wild animals that still roam the area.

That plastic container held snakes, which she picked up and let slither through her fingers while she talked.


Immediately after the talk, we were walking on a trail and look what I found--one of the snakes we just talked about--a garter snake.


This is the Treetop Discovery Tower, which was my favorite place in the park.
Guess how you get up to the top of this viewing tower?
You got it. A maze of just about 90 more steps.
These steps were much easier to climb. When you got to the top your head was right up in the trees and the view was beautiful! I wasn't a bit afraid of this one.
I used my 10X zoom to get a view of the Mackinac Bridge in one direction and

Mackinac Island in the other direction. You can even see the Grand Hotel.


All in all we had a fun day of exploration. I even played in the kiddie park. :)


Here's an overview of all the trails, etc.


There are 3.5 miles of scenic walking trails within this 625-acre park. I am so glad I had walking shoes in the trunk!

DH and I thought this was a fine way to spend a fall afternoon.

There were a lot of things we didn't do...like the zip line where you get hooked up to the cable in the air and slide down the creek until you are at ground level. Or this rope bridge (Forest Canopy Bridge).... Or this climbing wall


Maybe next time. Well, except for that wall....you won't be seeing Zoey climbing that any time soon!