Day two of three visiting lighthouses and harbors as we travel north along the western shore of Lake Huron.
27 August 2025 – Wednesday
Lighthouse County Park, Port Hope, MI
Woke early to capture the sunrise over Lake Huron .
Clouds treated us to pretty colors, blocked the sun, and then rewarded patience with a second sunrise.
Beth caught me playing with reflections in the van window.
No complaints about this site!
Only a few steps away, we toured Pointe aux Barques Maritime Museum when they opened at 10:00 AM. Here are some samples from inside. See yesterday’s post for more exterior views of the lighthouse and lifesaving station.
Today’s trivia…
Who knew that Buoys change their own light bulbs?
This is a single piece injection-molded lens incorporating 38 optical elements and transmits light 360 degrees throughout its focal plane. The lantern incorporates a flashing mechanism that can be programmed with any of 256 flash patterns and an automatic lamp changer to change bulbs in case one of them burns out.
After touring the museum we walked around the campground and chatted with a HAM radio operator. N8RZ0 had a temporary antenna setup to connect with other amateurs around the world.
Many states allow amateur radio operators to use their call sign on a license plate.
1056 Emptied waste tanks, the less fun part of RV living. We generally do this, then take showers, before leaving a campground.
1130 73,602 62°F Leave Lighthouse County Park Campground
1157 73,613 64°F Port Austin, MI
Stopped to make lunch at the waterfront park.
We could see the offshore lighthouse from our parking spot.There was a house with 4 slips for sale! Leave 1241
Pulled out the big lens after lunch to get a better view. Only accessible by boat, the Port Austin Reef Lighthouse was built in 1899. A team of volunteers has been working since the 1980’s to restore the structure. Public tours are planned to resume in 2026.
Walked around the harbor and took the boardwalk to the beach. Only a few people were in the water as it was cool, especially for August.
The big chair, beach, breakwater and lighthouse, all the elements of Port Austin Park in one view before we left at 1241.
Sebewaing, MI
That’s a big pile of beets on the right side of this photo.
Getting closer we realized that the beets were destined to become sugar. Pioneer Sugar is a farmer’s cooperative that produces sugar in several Michigan plants.
Bay City, MI
We dipped south from the tip of Michigan’s “thumb” to cross the Saginaw River before curving north again along the Lake Huron shoreline.
Crossing the Au Sable River between Au Sable and…
…Oscoda, MI where we found this delightful wildflower mural.
1634 73,780 74F Harrisville, MI
Our destination for the night was Alcona Brew Haus, a Harvest Host. The barkeep greeted us and even gave us a sticker and some coasters for being Harvest Host visitors. We arrived just in time to snag the last order of ribs. Dinner was quite good. Their Chocolate Milk Stout made for a fine dessert beer. We purchased extras to share with relatives later in the week.
The Alcona Historical society posted a historical marker outside where we learned that the Brew Haus started out as the Alcona Beach Dining Room in 1939. The business changed hands several times ultimately closing in 2008. The current owners did extensive remodeling before opening the Brew Haus in 2019.
There is good wifi in the restaurant, but only 1 bar LTE from ATT outside. The bathrooms were some of the nicest and cleanest we’ve found in a restaurant. One train passed through in the evening, but none overnight. No other HH campers or other cars stayed in the lot after closing, so we enjoyed a quiet, peaceful visit. Highly recommend overnighting here if you are a Harvest Host member.
Today’s
Route
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