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Wanted to share a few pics from a weekend trip along North Country Trail near Traverse City, Michigan. My nephew and I based the [route](https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44347923) off the [North Country Traverse](https://bikepacking.com/routes/north-country-traverse/) published on Bikepacking and rode for three (very rainy) days. Our intent was to cover about 200 mi in three days but the weather wasn’t on our side — we got about half that before our time was up and we had to bail.
Despite rain and chilly weather, it was a stunningly scenic ride — the area through the Manistee National Forest on occupied Ojibwe land was gorgeous, with lots of fall color and apple trees overloaded with fruit, and really nice single trail. There are solid resupply options all over (a six pack of Hamm’s tallboys was <$5!). It became clear pretty quick that we weren’t going to make big miles on the single track (even though it was mostly in great condition), but most of the trail was easily connected to quiet forest roads that were also a pleasure to ride, except for a few that were unridably sandy. The camping in this area is fantastic — the National Forest allows dispersed camping and it was easy to find solitary spots with a great view, a nearby water source and plenty of fuel for campfires.
Our bikes weren’t well dialed in and I wish a had planned for a few additional days to work out kinks, but we got through — I was carrying most of my stuff with a new front fork set up on a Surly Bridge Club. Highly recommend riding in this corner of the midwest.
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https://preview.redd.it/b8gzphjw0ftb1.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8f7ae2b325c592c3afb8ae90a4268d7481490206
by shimmering-ride