Now and Then

Alpena: a walk-able city by beautiful blue water

by Rhonda, an “old” Indy writer

Four hours is not enough time to explore an area you’ve never visited before – even if your guide is a top-notch docent who happens to share a love for places that wouldn’t normally appear on “tourist” maps.

Say, for example, the cement plant and old paper mill in Alpena – or Rockport, a little known county park just north of Alpena with an abandoned pier where barges once docked and loaded massive boulders from a nearby quarry for transport on Lake Huron.

Now that’s a fun tour.

It’s easy to see why my guide has fallen in love with her adopted hometown. There’s sparkling blue water everywhere you look, from the open vista of Lake Huron seen from any number of Alpena’s lovely parks to equally pretty views along the winding Thunder Bay River that dumps into the big lake. Excellent bicycle and pedestrian pathways make it easy to keep all that water in your camera viewfinder – you can literally walk or ride pretty much around the entire city.

What a great way to see the sights – like wonderful old churches with towering spires, the marina with boats of all shapes and sizes and lovely flower gardens and parks nestled in the downtown area.

Thanks, Jean, for a great tour.

Next time let’s check out that big, old cemetery, okay?