2018 Great Lakes Trip – Holland, Michigan
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link:
Monday August 27th – Saturday, September
1st
Ottawa County Fairgrounds Campground,
Holland, MI
After
heading along the western coast of the lower peninsula of Michigan, we arrived
at our destination of Holland, Michigan. After getting our RV setup at the
campground in the Ottawa County Fairgrounds, we went out to explore the area. How
can I describe this lovely city? This area is right on the east coast of Lake
Michigan and has beautiful beaches and recreation areas. We drove downtown to
the visitor center to gather information. Instantly, we were impressed with the
modern, yet quaint downtown area. Right away we noticed that all the buildings
were either updated or were new, retaining the Dutch architecture of the
original settlers. Beyond that, it was so clean and organized, all the streets
and sidewalks are built of brick pavers. We later found out that the city built
these in order to place heating coils below the bricks. The streets and
sidewalks are never covered in snow or ice during the winter, WOW. Also, the
city built its own power plant, using natural gas to run jet engines which
produce the electric output. Water is heated and then cycled through the
heating coils under the city streets. The whole city and local area utilizes
this power plant, at about 1/3 the cost of other methods of power generation. The
city leaders and community are very mindful of the future, and to make their
city a great place to live. We also noticed that almost all local neighborhoods
were very clean, neat and well maintained. Pride in their properties here! Needless
to say, we fell in love with this place.
Water
sports are essential to visitors and those living in this area. There is an interior
lake, Macatawa that has canal access to Lake Michigan. The original Dutch settlers
dug this canal so that they could get access to the big lake. The beach at the
inlet has a historical lighthouse, jetties on both sides and the beautiful sandy
beach, which is part of Holland State Park.
The
next evening was a scheduled Wednesday sailboat race on Lake Macatawa. So we
drove to the inlet and were able to watch the races from a waterfront deck
along the lakeside. While there, a nice gentleman was describing the races and strategy
used. He apparently has in-depth knowledge of sailboats and this event. We
learned a lot about the area from this gentleman, Gene. After chatting with him
and describing how much we loved the area, he predicted that one day we would
probably be back and stay longer. Funny that we had even discussed this
previously. We would like to visit there again some summer, it has so much to
do in the area that we could enjoy. I would even like to get into sailing
again.
Another
day I visited a local park, Windmill Island Gardens, to learn more about the
Dutch heritage and history. I especially wanted to check out the historic
windmill that was brought from the Netherlands and reconstructed in Holland,
Michigan. The tour guides and workers were dressed in Dutch period clothing and
were able to describe historical information and answer questions about the
Dutch culture. The gardens were beautiful, but too bad it was not tulip season.
I would love to see that. The windmill tour was amazing! This windmill is
actually a working grain mill. There is a young lady there who is the only certified
woman miller in the U.S. She runs the whole milling program there, maintains
the equipment and produces milled flour made from local farm wheat grains. She
also grinds cornmeal using local heritage corn grain. The visitor center is a
replica of a 14th century wayside inn. The “Little Netherlands”
buildings are modeled after an 18th century village in the Zaan
region. The drawbridge is a replica of one that spanned the Amstel River in the
province of Noord Holland. This attraction really allows a visitor to experience
Dutch culture and history.
There
were also some fun mountain biking trails nearby, which we did enjoy. Kurt also
took his kayak on Lake Macatawa for a late afternoon paddle. One evening, we
headed back downtown to check out the street performers. It was so much fun,
watching various talents show off their skills and visiting a local brew house.
On the last evening, we headed back to the beach area to watch the sunset. It
was beautiful and the perfect spot on Lake Michigan to experience this amazing
place. Holland Michigan! What a lovely town and we think it was the nicest area
we visited in the state of Michigan! Maybe someday…..
Now,
continue heading south to Indiana.
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