We headed over to Grand Haven (technically Spring Lake) for the first time this weekend and I can’t ever remember seeing so many bikes in one town.  Everything from racers all the way to the leisurely couple riding to wherever it is they were going.  Bikes were literally bikes everywhere.  Originally the title of this post was going to name Grand Haven a Mecca for cyclists, but I couldn’t go through with it…  Grand Haven is awesome for cyclists if it’s not all that pretty of a place to ride around – I’ve been to plenty of prettier places to ride, though the traffic and infrastructure are made for cycling.

We stayed in a house on Black Lake so we didn’t (quite) have the cost into staying on Lake Michigan, but it was only a mile trail hike through a beautiful, if mosquito infested, State Park forest.  The mosquitos weren’t all that bad in town, but on the edge of town, or by the forest where we stayed, they were the worst I’ve ever experienced…  In my entire life.  Walk outside and you were covered by dozens within seconds.  Stay out for a few minutes and they were unbearable.

The downsides notwithstanding, there is one unbeatable advantage to where we stayed:  Lake Michigan.

While Sunday was overcast, Monday was absolutely beautiful.  Temps in the mid seventies and the water temp was in the low seventies…  Cool by most standards but hey, it’s Lake Michigan – it’s supposed to be cool with an average depth of 280 feet.  The crazy thing was that even though temps were relatively cool, it felt quite warm (thankfully we didn’t have much wind) so getting in the water was not all that difficult and once we were in, it was flat-out awesome.

We stayed and played in the surf for hours…  We were out there for maybe an hour and I was struck by how lucky we are to be able to swim in a freshwater lake that the only side that you can see is the shore you’re standing on.  Sure the surf isn’t like the ocean, but it is spectacular nonetheless.

Alas, work beckoned and I was forced to leave early.  I’d have loved to stay the rest of the week with my wife and kids but being the boss in Realville isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.  That said, with Mrs. Bgddy and the munchkins out west, the only thing I’ve got to do is work…and ride my bike.  That’s turning a frown upside down right there.