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Many people may not be aware of this great place to get away from today’s hustle and bustle. I would like to share our brief stay in this place (where time seemed to stand still) in the hope that others will want to experience it too.
In mid July of this year, my husband and I had an opportunity to enjoy what was, for us, a unique first time lighthouse experience. We are true lighthouse lovers and, like so many others, have enjoyed visiting many of them. We are committed to doing whatever we can to help save these “great pillars” of history. This will continue to be a major focus for us for the remainder of our lives. Whenever we visit one of these regal structures, we find we recapture a part of our “souls”.
We had heard of a place called Middle Island which is located near Alpena, Michigan in Lake Huron about 2 miles off shore. Middle Island consists of the original keepers’ quarters, a fog signal building, and the lighthouse itself as well as 1 or 2 smaller buildings. It is still a functioning lighthouse and belongs to the US Coast Guard but the island and the others structures are privately owned. The fog signal building has been renovated by the owners and is now called the “Keepers’ Lodge”, and is available for rental. One can have the entire island to themselves - literally! My husband and I were fortunate enough to stay for 2 nights and wish we could have stayed much longer. It was absolutely picturesque as so many of these places are.
We were ferried from Alpena out to the island by Captain Mike Theut with whom we had made all of the necessary arrangements. He piloted the boat with easy expertise and is just an all around great guy! When we arrived on the island, we walked a short distance from the dock to the Keepers’ Lodge and Captain Mike handled all of our luggage including two coolers with the food we brought. We were familiarized with things we needed to know and given a tour of the house. Among other “amenities”, we were provided with a really nice gas grill, hot water for a wonderful outdoor shower, and an outside “privy” which was cleaner than those we have seen in most homes! There were no televisions and no phones. We were definitely” happy campers”.
After Captain Mike left for the mainland, we experienced a wondrous thunderstorm, the likes of which can only be felt beside large bodies of water. The lightning provided us quite a show until well after midnight. Through the storm, we watched “our lighthouse” as its beacon rotated and shone out over the water. The tower was only about 275 feet from our building. We went to bed surrounded by total and complete peacefulness hearing only the gentle lapping of the waves on the shore. We were totally alone, surrounded by the romance and history that only a lighthouse can provide.
The following morning, we rose and went to explore and experience the tower. We also took a leisurely walk all the way around the island. We saw a bald eagle by day (what a glorious sight) and bats (around the original keepers’ quarters) by night. We watched the huge freighters as they passed by and had a bonfire down by the water’s edge in the evening and watched the beautiful sunset. I could go on and on!
When the time came to leave the island, we did so with regret — but took with us so many lasting memories. For a time, we had our own island and our own lighthouse surrounded by the beauty of nature and the seclusion of the water — a place where we could just “be”! It was a remarkable opportunity that we will never forget.
This story appeared in the
October 2008 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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