I know its the winter, but I wanted to do a retrospective back to this September, I rode from the Indiana border to the Mackinac Bridge over 5 days, camping at Michigan state parks each night. Here's how it went!
The Route
I started with USBR 35 as a base but ended up using the Michigami route through most of the area. The Michigami organizer shared some helpful edits that take you off highways onto nicer back country paved roads. I also extended the route to the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula to reach Leelanau State Park.
Total Stats: 540.9 miles, 13,011 ft ascent, 33h16m riding time
- Day 1 – New Buffalo to Holland: 110 mi, 7h19m, 2,311 ft
- Day 2 – Holland to Ludington: 111 mi, 7h06m, 2,208 ft
- Day 3 – Ludington to Leelanau: 134 mi, 7h47m, 4,163 ft
- Day 4 – Leelanau to Charlevoix: 115 mi, 6h40m, 3,141 ft
- Day 5 – Charlevoix to Mackinaw City: 70 mi, 4h8m, 2,500 ft
We had a SAG vehicle that shuttled us to the start point, moved camping gear and luggage between sites, and drove us home at the end.
The Highlights
The climbing and descending around Arcadia was incredibly fun and challenging, I hit a top speed of 48.1 mph on one of the descents. The Ludington area and state park had some of the most memorable views of the entire trip.
The Challenges
Day 4 was rough. We got hit with heavy rain heading south down Grand Traverse Bay with temps in the low 60s. Being soaked and trying to keep moving was absolutely miserable and the most mentally challenging part of the tour.
Mechanically, we got lucky, no issues aside from needing to re-wax chains after the big rainstorms.
What I'd Do Differently
- Reconsider the intensive camping setup we had when trying to do 100+ mile days. Breaking down, packing, unpacking, and setting up camp every day consumed way too much time and energy. I'd probably push for less volume per day or credit card tour it instead.
- Better pacing for longer tours. By day 5, I had accumulated significant fatigue. I couldn't have gone a lot further by the end. For future multi-day tours, I need to pace myself better.
Gear Setup
- Polygon Strattos S7X (105 Di2 carbon road bike, tubeless)
- Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM + Trackr Radar
- Apidura Racing Frame Pack (1L) with essentials: quick link, multitool, CO2, levers, Tubolito TPU tube, Dynaplug Racer Pro, cafe lock, shifter spare battery
Budget & Timing
- Cost: Around $250 per person (campsite fees, food, gas for SAG)
- Dates: September 17-21 (Wednesday-Sunday)
- Training: Two months of weekend rides, working up to back-to-back centuries and a 130-mile day. I was relatively new to road cycling, started in spring 2025 after doing 20-mile mountain bike rides in 2024.
Routes & Ride Data
- Full Tour Route
- Day 1 – Strava | RideWithGPS
- Day 2 – Strava | RideWithGPS
- Day 3 – Strava | RideWithGPS
- Day 4 – Strava | RideWithGPS
- Day 5 – Strava | RideWithGPS
Happy to answer any questions about the route, gear, or touring Michigan's coast!
by wolffboy212
3 Comments
I’ve done most of this route, amazing. Did you stealth camp anywhere?
Thats too many miles to really enjoy things along the route imho from my touring experience, dont get to talk to folks, visit anywhere unique for more than a couple minutes, etc. But a very impressive physical feat though!
That’s pretty insane and a real feat of endurance. On my last 500 mile tour, I took ten days, including an entire rest day to manage some random back pain that popped up. I was doing 50 to 80 miles per day, but that’s carrying everything I need on the bike the whole time, not rushing to get anywhere fast, on gravel the entire way.