Ludington to Morley
July 15, 2003
Back up to Manitowoc to Washington
Westbound: Manitowoc to Ludington Eastbound: Morley to Lansing
Ludington was the right size to have a café within walking distance where I might expect to get a good breakfast. Breakfast, however, did not measure up to the previous night’s dinner in excellence. Still, it was better than convenience store stuff.
Planning the route for this day began with the Adventure Cycling Loop around Lake Michigan. That route, however, goes north from Ludington before it heads east. A good idea for folks connecting with the Upper Peninsula, but out of the way from me on my way to the southeast. From my twenty years in Michigan, I had an atlas of county level maps that clearly showed paved from unpaved mile roads. With that, I was able to chart a more direct route to the interior. Once heading primarily southward, I used both sources to plot a path to Grand River Avenue east of Grand Rapids, which I could take to the Lansing area. I also considered Mark Boyd’s experience on M 66, a bit to the east of the corrider I chose.
The hardest part of the planning for this day was to find a motel near the midpoint of the distance from Ludington to Lansing. With no great confidence, I settled on the Morley Motel in Morley, Mi. It had two things to recommend it. It was in the DeLorme data base for Street Atlas which suggested that AAA might have once included it in their listings and it was near the route I was constructing based upon the ACA route. Having been through the area, I would recommend different lodging.
U.S. 31 has been replaced south of Ludington. I took the older route southward. The older highway still had significant traffic and modest shoulders, but the other drivers were considerate. After about five miles, Hawley Road then led me eastward. This segment was very nice. After about fifteen miles of quiet riding, there was a slight jog northward on Walhalla Rd for a half mile or so followed by another fourteen or so miles eastward to Baldwin and Michigan 37. This stretch from Old 31 to M 37 was some of the nicest riding on the entire tour.
I found a good sub shop in Baldwin and had a baked meatball sub as good as any I’ve ever had. The owner seemed a little startled when I opted for the half gallon special for my drink, but the price was right and I needed my Mountain Dew. After a good rest, I found M 37 was excellent riding—smooth, good shoulder and modest traffic. Not as nice as the previous segment, but for a highway, very good. I wish now that I had stayed on it until it changed. Instead, I stayed on my planned route and turned eastward at 14 Mile Road, about an hour south of Baldwin. At Walnut I went south to 13 Mile Road and then east again to Oak which took me south again. I meant to turn east again at Fillmore, but the map I had printed didn’t show that street name. When Oak eased back toward the west, I realized I had missed my turn and retraced my steps. At the crossroads of Woodville, I stopped for a drink and then continued eastward to Elm which led me south to Hardy Dam where I turned east again for the last few, very busy, miles into Morley.
Whereas all but the first five miles in the morning as well as the stretch down M 37 were both quite nice, once I left M 37, only 14 mile road was really good riding. There was no traffic, but the pavement was poor, the scenery rustic but not special, and the services infrequent.
Morley describes itself as the trucking capital, but it does not present the appearance of prosperity. The motel is on the north side of town and is an older establishment with significant amounts of deferred maintenance. The only recommendation I could get for a sit down meal was at the VFW post another mile or so north of the motel. The people there were very nice, but the menu was quite limited—it didn’t claim to be a full-service restaurant—and the air very smokey.
All in all, Winnett, Montana made a much more positive impression and Stanford, Montana was from another universe. And, of course, Tom, whom I met just east of Winnett, had invited me to stay at his home only 20 miles north of Morley, but he wasn’t due back for another week. I think I should have continued south on M 37, gone east on M 82, and stretched the day to Howard City.
86.86 miles in 6:32 on the bike for an average of 13.2 mph.
Back up to Manitowoc to Washington
Westbound: Manitowoc to Ludington Eastbound: Morley to Lansing