When Art Champion first opened his ferry service from the mainland to Harsen's Island, it opened up a whole new world of travel to McDonald's Island on the Middle Channel. Now we could ride across on the ferry and take the muddy Middle Channel Road down to the Snooks Highway.
To call it a road, in those early times is quite charitable, as it was no more than an untended muddy way - especially in the spring time or when the water was high. Many times the cars would get stuck in the mud down to the axels and we would all have to get out of the car and push, meanwhile becoming mud spattered.
Those people who enjoy the luxury of paved roads and the convenience of the modern 1999 automobiles will never know the thrills and frustrations of those early days. It took literally hours and hours to get anywhere, but we didn't mind because we didn't know there was any other way! Being stuck in the mud was an every trip affair, and changing tires was another diversion.
Cars would always develop flat tires, some times as many as 3 or 4 during a short trip. The tires were usually mounted in wells in the fenders, so it was not difficult to get at them - it was just the exasperating frequency of the breakdowns that lead to much cursing and sweating on the part of the driver who had to either replace them or fix the hole in the tires. We had special tire-fixing kits that would allow the driver to add a patch over the hole in the tire that was causing the problem. There were no convenient gas stations to take care of the flat tires, and of course no such thing as a road service to call to come and help.
Going over one of the many bridges on the island was another matter altogether. The bridges would be short, but high pitched, one lane wooden affairs. One could not see if another car was coming from the other direction, so it meant getting out of the car and having someone walk to the top of the bridge to see if there was a car approaching from the other side. Some hardy souls would forego the scouting operation, just letting out a mighty horn blast to announce that they were preparing to cross the bridge.
I never heard of any accidents caused by automobiles colliding on the bridges, but then - there was very little traffic to contend with in the early days. When my father got his first Model T Ford and was learning to drive, a chicken crossed his path. He stopped and hung his head out the side of the car, hollering "Get off the road" Much to his chagrin my mother said calmly "Why don't you blow your horn?" Of course, he hadn't thought of that.
Since we would rent a spot to leave our outboard motor boat on Harsens Island when we were in Detroit, we had an elaborate affair, consisting of a tarp cover secured to the side of the boat with buttons to affix, to keep the boat dry and free of water when we arrived. Since we would usually arrive during the daytime there was little problem, except time consuming work removing the tarp from the boat.
However, since we would wait until the last minute of daylight to depart McDonald's Island and go to our docking spot on Harsen's Island dusk would arrive. Have you ever been on Harsen's Island amid the tall rushes at dusk? If you have, you will know that hordes of mosquitoes come out to drive you to desperation. Removing our belongings from the boat and buttoning down the tarp was a horrifying experience. We would finally flee to our cars covered by welts from mosquito bites. But we didn't learn. Next week we would stay on our Island Paradise until the last minute again, and once more encounter the mosquito menace. Ah, those were the days. And we did it all for enjoyment, week after week.
Lorraine