MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS
FROM
THE HOLOGLOBE PRESS
(The 16th Edition)by
Victor Edward Swanson,
Publisherwww.hologlobepress.com
RULES OF USE
The reports and stories contained on this Web page have been put together with information taken from "The Victor Swanson Fabulous Files of Places to See in Michigan and Wisconsin" and with information obtained from operators and staffers of tourist attractions and from press releases, Web sites, and other sources. The reports and stories are provided as a public service by Victor Swanson and The Hologlobe Press. Almost all persons and entities, such as staffers of radio stations, may freely use the materials; neither AAA Michigan nor any employee of AAA Michigan may use, distribute, download, transmit, copy, or duplicate any of the material presented on this page in any way or through any means.
- - - Travel Thoughts for Everyone - - -
In the near future, I will have a new book in publication, The United States Book: A Guide to the United States of America, and I think it will be a book like no other that has been produced since the country was founded. One purpose of the book is to pass along information that a new arrival to the country should learn as soon as possible so that the new arrival can live more comfortably in the country and not be intimidated by all that the country is or seems to be. In essence, the editions of Michigan Travel Tips that have been published since April 10, 2004, and this edition of Michigan Travel Tips are extensions of that forthcoming book in that they show what the state of Michigan is, though none of the editions of Michigan Travel Tips gives information about governmental structure, laws, ways used to get employment, and many of the other topics that will be seen in The United States Book: A Guide to the United States of America, which focuses on the country and no one particular state. Really, the editions of Michigan Travel Tips show what there is to see in the state of Michigan, which attracts a lot of vacationers from other states in the country and other countries of the world throughout the year, and this edition of Michigan Travel Tips is designed to pass along information about really new things to see in the state and some old things.
In early June, I visited a couple of the automobile salvage yards of the Detroit-Metropolitan area, some of which I have visited from time to time in the past, and one reason that I went to the automobile salvage yards was to find a used windshield-wiper unit for an older-model vehicle and to maybe find a part to a bumper for a 1982 vehicle owned by an elderly neighbor who lives across the street, who is unable to walk around well in automobile salvage yards. For people who are unaware, such as people from other countries, I will say that, scattered around the state of Michigan, are dozens of automobile salvage yards, which some people call "junk yards," and I can say that the automobile salvage yards serve many purposes--for instance, salvage yards are places at which teenagers with not much money might get parts for their vehicles, which are usually older vehicles, and salvage yards are places at which automobile restorers can get original parts for the vehicles that they are restoring, and salvage yards are places at which many parts of vehicles, such as the steel parts, are reclaimed to be melted down and used in new things, such as new vehicles. Some of the automobile salvage yards in Michigan are impressive, as automobile salvage yards go, covering many acres and having hundreds of older vehicles set out in rows, and one of the automobile salvage yards that fits in that category is called Taylor Auto Salvage (Taylor, Wayne County), which I do recommend as a place to see in Michigan.
Surely, you should be surprised I would pass along information about seeing an automobile salvage yard, particularly, up to this point, Taylor Auto Salvage, in an edition of Michigan Travel Tips, but let me explain why I do. First, little boys, if not little girls also, who are about ten years of age or so would learn something by seeing the place--it is a part of what Michigan is and what goes on in Michigan. Second, since the place is spread out over a big area, a person can get exercise by walking around in the place; the entire yard of the salvage yard is covered with rocks, so if it has recently rained, there is not a lot of mud around that visitors have to walk on. Third, maybe, when you are there, you will see one of the staffers driving around in a "wheel loader," lifting up vehicles with the forks-like attachment and moving the vehicles to other locations around the salvage yard, such as to where vehicles are crushed. (By the way, the "wheel loader" to which I refer has big tires, maybe four-feet high.) Fourth, the place is free, or there is no admission, and I will say that, if you are thinking about taking children to a place, think about taking them to a place where you do not have to pay admission.
Let us pretend you want to see if Taylor Auto Salvage has a part that you can use to repair your vehicle, which might be a stoplight cover or a fender. Get your box of tools or boxes of tools. If you have children that are not too young, gather them up and put them in your vehicle. Head to 16211 Pardee, one end (inlet/outlet, if you will) of which is between the I-75/US-24 Connector and Pennsylvania Road along Telegraph Road. You are going to near the southern city limits of Taylor. There is a parking lot at Taylor Auto Salvage, but you may have to park on Pardee, which exists in front of Taylor Auto Salvage, if it is a busy day, such as a Saturday. Grab your box of tools or boxes of tools (and the children, if you have brought any), and go through the main building. Out in the yard, you will find vehicles set up in several main areas, and, generally speaking, each of the areas has vehicles made by a particular automobile manufacturer; for example, you will find an area with General Motors vehicles sort of down to the left from the entrance, and you will find areas with vehicles produced by Ford Motor Company and vehicles produced by DaimlerChrysler Corporation (or Chrysler Corporation), and you will find areas with "imports." No one helps you find any parts, and no one helps you remove any parts. You walk around, and you will pass by other persons who are walking around or who are removing parts from vehicles. If you come across something you want, you remove it. (Of course, if you have children with you, you might make them use their muscles and help remove what you want.) You pay for what you have gotten at the main building, which you must walk through to get back to your vehicle.
No, Taylor Auto Salvage is not a museum, like the Automotive Hall of Fame (21400 Oakwood Boulevard, Dearborn, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula) or the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (the Novi Expo Center, Novi, Oakland County, the Lower Peninsula). No, Taylor Auto Salvage is not a park, like Presque Isle Park or South Beach Park (both of which are at Marquette, Marquette County, the Upper Peninsula). No, Taylor Auto Salvage is not a water park, like Thunder Falls Family Water Park (1028 S. Nicolet, Mackinaw City, the Straits area of the Lower Peninsula). No, Taylor Auto Salvage is not a restored old fort, like Fort Wilkins (which is that famous tourist attraction at the end of the Keweenaw Peninsula of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan). But Taylor Auto Salvage is something to see in Michigan.
Do not think I am promoting one automobile salvage yard over another!
I went to two other automobile salvage yards, which I have been to a number of times in the past. I went to Bishops Auto Wrecking, which is in Inkster (2780 Springhill, Inkster, Wayne County), and, as I expected, I saw the owner--Fred Bishop--sitting up inside a wheel loader (he always seems to be sitting up in a wheel loader when I go to his place). I also went to Lloyd E.Holt Auto Wrecking (listed in telephone directories as "Holt Lloyd E. Auto Storage & Wrecking"), which is also in Inkster (27350 Princeton, Inkster). Incidentally, sort of across the street--Telegraph Road--from Taylor Auto Salvage is Glen's Car and Truck II (16000 Telegraph Road, Taylor, Wayne County), which is another automobile salvage yard, but my trip to Taylor in June did not happen to include a stop at "Glen's."
Special note: I must report that the two automobile salvage yards in Inkster that I went to are not really places where you can take children to walk around, since they are different types of places than Taylor Auto Salvage is--they are smaller and have less room and do not have vehicles set out in nice rows.
When I went to the automobile salvage yards in early June, I was already thinking about what I was going to say in this edition of Michigan Travel Tips about automobile salvage yards, and then a few days after I went on my visit to automobile salvage yards, I learned, through local television and newspaper reports, that a new automobile salvage yard was soon going to be opened in Detroit on Eight Mile Road (11360 East Eight Mile Road) near Hoover Road and the grand opening was set for the weekend of June 18 and 19, 2005. That automobile salvage yard is called Parts Galore, and, as a rule, it is open every day of the week. Parts Galore seems to be set up like Taylor Auto Salvage, but Parts Galore charges a nominal entry fee, and Taylor does not, as do not Bishops Auto Wrecking and Lloyd E. Holt Auto Wrecking. Although Parts Galore is an automobile salvage yard and has an entry fee, I will say, through this report, that Parts Galore is something new to see in Michigan.
This year, there are other new things to see in Michigan, which are more likely to be what vacationers would like to see during vacation trips than automobile salvage yards, and, actually, I should say that the new things are things to see during the summer tourist season or the fall tourist season.
Since the last edition of Michigan Travel Tips was published, a new riverboat attraction has been opened up on the Detroit River, which is the river that separates Detroit (Michigan, the United States of America) from Windsor (Ontario, Canada), and the attraction is called the "Detroit Princess Riverboat." The main operator of the attraction is Captain John, and his Detroit Princess Riverboat can take people on trips of the Detroit River any day of the week. The Detroit Princess Riverboat, which was built in 1993, can hold up to 1,550 guests, and people can hold private events on her, see musical and comedy shows on her, take moonlight cruises on her, et cetera. To find the Detroit Princess Riverboat, you have to go to Civic Center Drive and Atwater Street (downtown Detroit), but before you go, you should get more information about the Detroit Princess Riverboat, such as by going to www.detroitprincess.com or by calling 1-877-38-2628.
By the way, the city of Detroit (Michigan) and the city of Windsor (Ontario, Canada) have put together a special exhibit of statues that you can see through September 30, 2005, and the exhibit is an outdoor exhibit entitled "CarTunes On Parade." Scattered around downtown Detroit and downtown Windsor, such as along the riverfront, are works of art that combine the shapes of cars and the themes of music. Some of the works of art are "Puff, the Magic Dragon" (which is along the north side of Riverside Drive West at Pierre Avenue in Windsor), "Rama Lama Ding Dong" (which is at the corner of Wyandotte Street and Patricia Road at the University of Windsor, Windsor), "Lovely Day" (which is along the north side of Riverside Drive and east of Ouellette Avenue at Great Western Park, Windsor), "Magical Musical Tour" (which is at the Hart Plaza, Detroit), and "Cosmic Boogie" (which is at the northwest corner of Brush Street and Adams Avenue, Detroit). This two-city event was unveiled to the public on June 1, 2005. To get more information about the statues and where the statues are located, begin your search by using "cartunes on parade manual" as a search term (such as with Yahoo!) or by going to www.visitdetroit.org. (There are other ways to get information about the statues, of course.) You will see there are dozens of statues to see.
At Belle Isle, which is an island surrounded by the Detroit River, there is a new giant slide. Really, the slide is not new, but it is new to Belle Isle, and it replaces another slide that was on the island for many years. The grand opening for the "New Giant Slide," which is not a water slide, was held on May 28, 2005, and the slide will be open to everyone through the Labor Day weekend, and there is a nominal cost to use the New Giant Slide.
Michigan's Adventure is an amusement park and water park at Muskegon (Muskegon County), which is along Lake Michigan, and, in the spring, I discovered that staffers of Michigan's Adventure were building a new attraction. The new attraction is completed and is called the "Funnel of Fear." Yes, the "Funnel of Fear" looks like a funnel. It is not hard to find the "Funnel of Fear," since it is sort of in the middle of Michigan's Adventure, which is open to everyone till about the middle of September (for this season).
I have given you new stuff, so now I can get back to the old stuff, and old stuff need not be bad stuff. Scattered around the state of Michigan are a number of automobile salvage yards, not all of which you can sort of walk around in it seems to me. Here are the names of automobile salvage yards that seem to hint that the places to which the names are associated can be walked around in: Ashley Salvage & Auto Parts (Ashley, the Lower Peninsula), Corey's Auto Salvage (Ingalls, the Upper Peninsula), Earl's Towing & Salvage (Niles, the Lower Peninsula), Frank's Auto Salvage (Gladwin, the Lower Peninsula), Perk's Auto Parts and Salvage (Plainwell, the Lower Peninsula), Pete's Auto Wrecking (Escanaba, the Upper Peninsula), Third Street Auto Salvage (Ishpeming, the Upper Peninsula), and Wally's Auto Salvage (Iron Mountain, the Upper Peninsula). My list is not a full list of the automobile salvage yards in Michigan through which you might be able tour and take parts off vehicles for yourself, and I do not think anyone has put together a full list of all the places in Michigan through which you can tour and take parts off vehicles for yourself, so to find an automobile salvage yard that is near where you are and through which you can walk and take parts off vehicles for yourself, you will have to do research. If you want to see something old in Michigan, remember the automobile salvage yards or used-parts yards or junk yards that you can tour at your leisure.
Your travel tips in Michigan are:
The Automotive Hall of Fame, Dearborn, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Detroit Princess Riverboat, the Detroit River, Detroit, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Fort Wilkins, Copper Harbor, Keweenaw County, the Upper Peninsula.
The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, the Novi Expo Center, Novi, Oakland County, the Lower Peninsula.
The New Giant Slide, Belle Isle, the Detroit River, Detroit, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Thunder Falls Family Water Park, Mackinaw City, the Straits area of the Lower Peninsula.
Your special travel tips in Michigan are:
Bishops Auto Wrecking, Inkster, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Lloyd E. Holt Auto Wrecking, Inkster, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Parts Galore, Detroit, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Taylor Auto Salvage, Taylor, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
Other automobile salvage yards scattered about Michigan.
Your special-events note is:
"Cartunes on Parade," at Detroit (Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula, U.S.A.) and Windsor (Ontario, Canada).
- - - Public Service Copy for Broadcasters (four pieces) - - -
Number One:
At many towns and cities in Michigan, people hold annual festivals;
for instance, there are annual melon, mushroom, strawberry, cherry,
tulip, fungus, potato, and apple festivals. Iron Mountain is a place in
Dickinson County of the Upper Peninsula, and this August, it will be
the site for a special festival, and it's a free festival. Officially, on
Saturday, August 12, and Sunday, August 13, the unique festival at
Iron Mountain will be the "Great Lakes Bat Festival." On Saturday,
one event will be a tour of a mine that--as you should expect--is a
home for bats. During the daytime on Sunday, some of the events are
live animal programs and workshops, and, on Sunday evening, people
are going to gather at Mille Hill Mine to see the big bat emergence--
the bats head out in the evening to eat. The Hologlobe Press suggests
you contact Pine Mountain Resort at Iron Mountain for more information
and enjoy your safe traveling in Michigan.
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Number Two:
This summer, a special celebration is taking place at Sault Ste. Marie,
Michigan, and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and that celebration is called
the "Soo Locks 150th Anniversary Celebration," and more events have
yet to take place. For example, on Saturday, August 6, the River of
History Museum at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, will be the site for
Heritage Displays and Victorian Games from ten to four, and, in the
four-o'clock hour, a Classic Car Parade is scheduled for Sault Ste.
Marie, Michigan. Also, for instance, the U.S. Coast Guard Icebreaker
Mackinaw will be open for afternoon deck tours on the weekend of
August 12 through August 14, and, on Saturday, August 13, and
Sunday, August 14, you have the opportunity to tour the Historic
Edison Sault Hydroelectric Plant. The special celebration at The Soo
ends on Sunday, September 2. Remember: This summer, there are
truly extra things to see and do at The Soo!
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Number Three:
If you go to any Welcome Center of Michigan, you can get a free
map of Michigan, and if you look closely at Mecosta County, which
is sort of in the middle of the Lower Peninsula, you will find such
towns as Altona, Paris, and Stanwood, and one of the lakes you will
see is Horsehead Lake. However, the map does not show a place
called the "Haymarsh State Game Area," so you might not think
about going there sometime. The area is used by people throughout
the year. In the summer, everyone can fish for bass, bluegill, perch,
and pike--at least. Haymarsh Dam is something to see, and it's
about 120-foot long. This state game area has a rustic campground
that has 19 campsites, which are available on a first-come-first-serve
basis. The Haymarsh State Game Area is maintained by the Mecosta
County Park Commission and is in north-central Mecosta County. To
see "Haymarsh," look at a map of Mecosta County!
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Number Four:
From one summer to the next, new attractions are very likely to
show up around the state of Michigan or existing attractions are very
likely to be improved or expanded, and since last summer, new things
have indeed shown up. "Michigan's Adventure" is an amusement park
and a water park at Muskegon, and, in the spring, a new ride was
constructed, there, and the new ride is called the "Funnel of Fear."
Belle Isle is that famous island in the Detroit River, and Belle Isle has
a big new slide for everyone to have fun on. A few weeks ago, a new
riverboat-tourist attraction began operating on the Detroit River, and
that tourist attraction features rides on the Detroit River aboard the
Detroit Princess Riverboat, and this tourist attraction offers
entertainment, such as comedy shows and musical shows. These are
only some of the new things to see this year, and The Hologlobe Press
says--"Make plans, and enjoy your safe traveling."
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- - - Contact Information - - -
The Hologlobe Press
Postal Box 5455
Dearborn, Michigan 48128-0455
The United States of Americacopyright c. 2005
File date: 10 July 2005
To see the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #17
To see the previous edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #15
To see the catalog page for Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel
To go to the main page of The Hologlobe Press,
click on: www.hologlobepress.com
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