The Straits of Mackinac
Michigan's Magnificent Mackinac Bridge - The Mighty Mac. 

It is a cool, breezy day in June when I paddle underneath Michigan’s most famous bridge. With the threat of a storm, I am alone on the Straits of Mackinac and under Michigan’s most magnificent bridge where Great Lakes Michigan and Huron collide.

Leaving from the north shore at St. Ignace, the journey across is choppier than what I would like. When I make the turn back, the wind from the northwest picks up, the waves begin to churn, and a chilling rain starts to fall.

As I take in the incredible view of the Mighty Mac from directly underneath I touch its massive columns as I pass in between. I then look down and follow these towering columns as they disappear below the water where they continue another 200 feet to bedrock.

I find it difficult to look either up or down as vertigo begins to set in. Losing my confidence and sense of balance here will certainly prove disastrous so I quickly reset my focus on the shore far ahead.

Ever since I was a child my family would drive over this five mile span on our way to our family’s summer cottage on Drummond Island. The sound of the car tires over the grated road, the subtle swaying of the bridge during strong winds, and the vast view on either side both mesmerize and terrorize.

I have been blessed to drive over, walk across, and paddle under this most splendid bridge, which I will forever cherish.

At 5 miles long the Mackinac Bridge weighing in at 1,024,500 tons is the fifth longest suspension bridge in the world. Its roadway is 199 feet above the water and twin towers reach 552 feet.