Jack Fate: U.P. Trip

[Jack Fate]

I'm planning a spring trip to the U.P.with the wife. Can anyone help with setting an itinerary.We would leave out of the Detroit area and spend about a week. Would like to get in as much BJ as I can but I also need to take care of mama with some quality sight seeing.We have never visted the area before, so I could some help. Thanks to all.

[Ouchez]

> I'm planning a spring trip to the U.P.with
> the wife. Can anyone help with setting an
> itinerary.We would leave out of the Detroit
> area and spend about a week. Would like to
> get in as much BJ as I can but I also need
> to take care of mama with some quality sight
> seeing.We have never visted the area before,
> so I could some help. Thanks to all.

Fate,

Chip Inn Casino just past Escanaba. Any Kewadin property in the GNW. Petosky may be worth a stop. Watersweet and Baraga you may want to check out. Bay Mills suck!

Actually, send me a private e.mail and I can be more precise.

Of course I never play in the area, just have friends that may, do.

Regards,
Ouchez.

[Jack Fate]

I'd love to do that Ouchez but I'd need your address.

[Electric Kid]

The best blackjack games are in the eastern U.P., and coming from Detroit you have to go right by them.

As far as sight-seeing goes the spring time is a good time for checking out waterfalls. The Tahquamenon Falls in the eastern U.P. is probably the biggest in the U.P. and worth checking out. In the western U.P. you have Porcupine Mountain state park and Lake of the Clouds and Brockway Mountain Drive near Copper Harbor and Fort Wilkens state park, but this may be out of your way.

If you want to spend most of your time in the eastern U.P. this is what I would do. Make a overnight stop at St Ignace and play their good blackjack game. Then up to the Soo for more blackack and sights. The Soo locks and Tahquamenon Falls are in this area. Then I would head over to Munising for more Kewadin blackjack and checkout all the waterfalls in the Munising area. Munising waterfalls is very pretty. Also pictured rocks national lakeshore is in Munising area. Christmas is about 10 miles from Munising and there is a casino there and up the road another 25 miles is Ojibwa casino in Harvey. Then I would head south to Escanaba to play at Chip Inn casino and then head back on US-2. Also there is Kewadin casino on US-2 at Manistique.

[Jack Fate]

I'll have about seven days all total. It takes me about 3 hours to get to Detroit so a first stop about three or four hours from there would be ideal.If I could hit 4 or 5 good games and spend the rest of the time sight seeing would make for a good trip.

[Ouchez]

> I'll have about seven days all total. It
> takes me about 3 hours to get to Detroit so
> a first stop about three or four hours from
> there would be ideal.If I could hit 4 or 5
> good games and spend the rest of the time
> sight seeing would make for a good trip.

When you cross the "Big Waters" stay at the first Holiday Express you find, great place and sights. You will find fun things to do in this area. Eat at the "Frontier Restaurant" by the fun place. Be sure you sit by the back windows for a view. Take a side trip to Hessel and Cedarville area. You may want to go to Drummond Island area down the road from Cedarville. Then after a day or two take a drive right along the shores of the "Big Waters" West and you will find a few more "fun places" and lots of nice scenery. Go as far as Harris past Escanaba. From here you can head North and cut across the Tundra to the land of the E. Kid. and do some of those things he wrote about. If you are lucky you can visit the casino that "Reindeer Games" was filmed at and which some of us Advantage Players were part of the cast. Wisconsin fun places are also a possibility if you really want to wander. But probably too much with the wifey along.

Regards,
Ouchez.

[Jack Fate]

Thank both of you for the response.After looking at the map it seems I could head up 75 all the way to Sault St. Marie [after a stop at St. Ignace] then head west on 28 over to Munising than south to Escanaba and Harris then back east on Rt.2. E-Kid mentions a place about 25 miles from Christmas in Harvey which I can't find on the map.At any rate do any of these places have a hotel? I intend to make this trip in late May after I fix my turkey hunting jones. Do you think hotel reservations would be needed this time of year?Any Recomended stop along Rt.28? I know I'm asking a lot of questions,just want you to know your time is greatly appreciated.
Reguards,Jack.

[Ouchez]

> Thank both of you for the response.After
> looking at the map it seems I could head up
> 75 all the way to Sault St. Marie [after a
> stop at St. Ignace] then head west on 28
> over to Munising than south to Escanaba and
> Harris then back east on Rt.2. E-Kid
> mentions a place about 25 miles from
> Christmas in Harvey which I can't find on
> the map.At any rate do any of these places
> have a hotel? I intend to make this trip in
> late May after I fix my turkey hunting
> jones. Do you think hotel reservations would
> be needed this time of year?Any Recomended
> stop along Rt.28? I know I'm asking a lot of
> questions,just want you to know your time is
> greatly appreciated.
> Reguards,Jack.

will be no problem.

Ouchez.

[Electric Kid]

Yes, from St Ignace I would go up I-75 to Sault St. Marie. The Kewadin at the Soo is the largest of the Kewadin casinos. The following is a portion of the unedited version of what I wrote for Blackjack Forum about this casino last year.

The Kewadin flagship casino at Sault Ste Marie is the largest of the five Kewadin casinos and is the only one with a hotel attached. They offer 9 tables of six-deck blackjack and 2 tables of pitch along with craps, keno, and many other casino games, and of course a lot of slots. This casino has a horse racing game, which I haven't seen, at other casinos in the Midwest. Over the last seven or eight years I have visited this casino at least once a year as my son was going to Lake Superior State there. Over that time frame the rules have remained constant although I think the pen has deteriorated somewhat. I have always had good luck playing at Sault Ste Marie, and I don't ever recall having a loss there. I like to think it's because my mother is watching over me since I was at this casino playing blackjack the night my mother passed away over eight years ago. This year I played Sault Ste Marie just once, and only had a small win; not even enough to cover my hotel expenses. At that time the pen on the 2-deck blackjack game was "good", but the six-deck game was "unexceptional" to borderline "bad". Other attractions at Sault Ste Marie include the Soo Locks and the Tahquamenon falls which is not too far away and worth checking out. For dining, I recommend the Dream Catchers restaurant located right in the casino. Antlers restaurant also isn't bad if you are looking for great steaks and burgers and don't mind staring at deer antlers.

[Electric Kid]

There are three casinos along M-28 between the Soo and Marquette. Going west from the Soo the first casino is at Brimley which is really only something like 12 miles from the Soo. Continuing west along M-28 you would again take a side road north if you wanted to visit Tahquamenon Falls this is somewhere around the Newberry area. Then continue going west on M-28 until Munising. There are no casinos in Munising but Christmas is about 10 miles from Munising with the prettiest casino in the whole U.P. There is a Pair a Dice Inn right next to the casino in Christmas. Last year in May I stayed there for $64 a night. The Munising and Christmas area is very pretty and there is alot to see in this area.

Now the casino in Harvey is about 25 miles more up M-28. Harvey is just outside of Marquette, but the casino is not really in Harvey. Harvey happens to be the closest town to it. The casino is just one half mile off M-28 about 8 miles before you get to US-41. There are many scenic turnoffs along this highway where you can get some nice views of Lake Superior.

Here is link to Pair a Dice Inn

Pair a Dice Inn

[Jack Fate]

for the info.It sounds like there will be plenty to do and see.Should make for a great trip.I'll let you know how it goes. Just have to figure out how much to increase spread to cover $2 a gallon gas.