Days 4-5  Holland, Michigan

We arrived on the shores of Lake Michigan in the late afternoon of September 6th and stayed a couple of days with our friends Dee Dee and Jim. Their house overlooks and is across the road from Lake Macatawa which is connected to Lake Michigan by a channel about a quarter mile long. The Ottawa Beach community, which they are part of, was founded as a resort in 1876.

Gerald Ford’s Cottage

President Gerald Ford spent many of his early childhood summers here and later shared a vacation cottage with his brothers in the historic Boardwalk District. The homes here are built into the sides of the hills overlooking Lake Michigan and are connected by wooden walkways. The entire area is surrounded by fine-grained sandy beaches and busy marinas, and much of the beachfront is in Holland State Park. One can get a great view of the area from Mt. Pisgah, a lookout built on top of a huge sand dune.

Folks congregate at the famous “Big Red” Lighthouse at the end of the day to picnic, fish, and watch the spectacular sunsets.

 

 

JIm did a great job of restoring their traditional Ottawa Beach home and Dee Dee’s tasteful decorating has made it a real gem. Jim is a talented woodworker; he took us for a spin on the lake in his 1957 wooden ChrisCraft that he immaculately refinished. Too bad a quick hitting squall dumped a ton of rain on us in a short five minute span but it was great fun nonetheless.

 

Michiganers love their cars. Jim and his Dad restored a 1937 Ford which served as Jim’s dating machine in high school. Jim and Dee Dee gave us a tour of Hope College where Jim teaches, and the Holland Farmers’ Market. While at a Hope we came upon a wedding at a church on the campus grounds which featured an entourage old cars.

Note: Finally we got to eat yummy fried perch in a beer batter…done right!