Labor Day Mackinac Bridge Walk

Oh boy. My mother wants me to walk the Mackinac Bridge with her this Labor Day. I'd rather have a root canal. It's nearly a 3 hour drive to get to St. Ignace, then walk the 7 mile bridge, then wait for a bus to get you back to your car, then the 3 hour drive home. Then back to work the next day. Yuck. Oh yeah...I forgot to mention...it was recommended to me by someone who regularly walks the bridge...you need to get in line to buy your bus ticket by about 5:30 am. OMG!!!

She's trying to guilt me into going with her. I SO don't want to, but she's doing her best to talk me into it. "I'm 75 years old. Blah, blah, blah...might not be able to next year. Blah, blah, blah."

http://www.mackinacbridge.org/annual-bridge-walk-7/

Please wish me luck....I don't think I'm gonna be able to finesse my way outta this one....

Aw, it sounds... well, it sounds like something you will be glad you did. Someday.

And it's so cool that your mom wants to do it at her age! Ya GOTTA go!

You couldn't pay me to walk across that bridge!!!

We drove over it once on our way to Lansing, Michigan, and I have a deep rooted fear of drowning. I was in a state of terror the entire time over the bridge. I was laying on the floor in the backseat, crying and shaking. Though I didn't want to miss a camera shot and held up the camera blindly and took a few pictures and managed to get several pictures of a blurred railing, a billboard, and an ice cutter! Never saw any of it outside of the picture though.

We took a different route home via Chicago.I'd rather someone kill me than force me to go over that bridge again.

Linda, have I ever told you about the time my family went on a Sunday drive and came across the Maxdale Bridge, an old one-lane wooden bridge out in the middle of nowhere near Fort Hood?

I was about 15, and although I'd never had any concern about bridges before, I panicked and insisted that this bridge was unsafe. My folks and my little brother laughed at me, but I said if they insisted on crossing the bridge, they should at least let me get out and walk, to reduce the weight of the car. Papa humored me -- he let me get out and wait for the car to cross safely before I started across on foot. (Which was scary, because there were gaps of about four inches between the huge old planks.)

Anyway, they all teased me about being such a coward -- until a couple of weeks later, when Papa opened the newspaper one day and saw that the Maxdale Bridge had collapsed!

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Anyway, they all teased me about being such a coward -- until a couple of weeks later, when Papa opened the newspaper one day and saw that the Maxdale Bridge had collapsed!

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That is scary!

I hated going over the Mackinac Bridge too. You couldn't get me to walk across that thing - just riding in the car you can feel the thing move. I never understood what compelled people to walk it, but then again I lived in St. Ignace and the Bridge (+toll) was just something we had to deal with if we wanted to go see any family.

Has anyone on here been to St. Ignace recently? Aside from Kewadin moving/expanding, has anything changed there in the last 10 years?

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

there were gaps of about four inches between the huge old planks.)

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Yikes! How scarey!

We had, maybe still do, some bridges with wooden planks where the "sidewalk" part of the bridge is. I remember walking with my Dad when I was little and having to be really careful of where I stepped. Some of those gaps were so wide because of broken wood that my Dad had to pick me up and carry me over them.

I live near 3 large concrete bridges that cross the rivers, and while I have walked over them, they aren't 7 miles long, and when I do walk or drive over them, my eyes are straight ahead!!

A lot of people are afraid of bridges. I think I would be okay going across it, but I might get very anxious. Seven miles is pretty far to walk. I guess just take it one mile at a time!

After the callapse of that big bridge in Minneapolis, MN, I've been a bit weary of bridges. My sister lives in Minneapolis, and I guess she had driven under the bridge just 30 minutes before it callapsed!!

This probably isn't helping I'm sure you'll be fine, though you might be a bit sore after those seven miles. Hey, at least it's not a 7-mile run.

Originally Posted by KristyKitty

A lot of people are afraid of bridges.

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I'm ok if they don't go over water!

I think there is an under ocean tunnel from Britain to France. Is that correct? I wouldn't go through their either!

I don't know what I'm going to do next fall! A friend of mine is pressing me to go visit her. The catch is that she lives in Australia, and while I've always wanted to go there, that is a whole lot of water to fly over!

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

I'm ok if they don't go over water!

I think there is an under ocean tunnel from Britain to France. Is that correct? I wouldn't go through their either!

I don't know what I'm going to do next fall! A friend of mine is pressing me to go visit her. The catch is that she lives in Australia, and while I've always wanted to go there, that is a whole lot of water to fly over!

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yeah, that would be a reallyyyy long flight. I hate flying, I get very anxious. Even though I know it's a lot safer than driving.

I think I've heard about that under ocean tunnel. SCARY!!! I would never want to go through it. I'm just a big wimp lol

Originally Posted by KristyKitty

A lot of people are afraid of bridges.

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I am frightened bridges and overpasses, especially if I'm driving.

When I was 7 my mom lost control of the car on a gravel road just as we were going over a small bridge. We hit the guard rail, managed not to go through it on the first hit then went off at the end. Good thing otherwise we would have all died had the car landed on the large old tree trunk cut at an angle near the edge of the creek. As it was we missed it by a couple of yards, at best. Since then I've had bridge nightmares - the car slowly loses control or the person doesn't bother to corrected it as we slowly veer off the bridge (or overpass). And in my dreams they never have rails! Haven't had one of those in... 7 or 8 months now, thankfully.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

I am frightened bridges and overpasses, especially if I'm driving.

When I was 7 my mom lost control of the car on a gravel road just as we were going over a small bridge. We hit the guard rail, managed not to go through it on the first hit then went off at the end. Good thing otherwise we would have all died had the car landed on the large old tree trunk cut at an angle near the edge of the creek. As it was we missed it by a couple of yards, at best. Since then I've had bridge nightmares - the car slowly loses control or the person doesn't bother to corrected it as we slowly veer off the bridge (or overpass). And in my dreams they never have rails!

Haven't had one of those in... 7 or 8 months now, thankfully.

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oh wow Thank god everybody was okay, I would definitely have nightmares too

I guess we should probably stop talking about it since this may remind you and then you might have a bad dream tonight!

Think about kitties That always makes me feel better.

Originally Posted by KristyKitty

I guess we should probably stop talking about it since this may remind you and then you might have a bad dream tonight!

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No worries there. My dreams are random. I'd be more likely to dream about paying the Mackinac Bridge toll (I imagine that went up over the years) and not having enough change, or something else as pointless if I manage to get to sleep.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

No worries there. My dreams are random. I'd be more likely to dream about paying the Mackinac Bridge toll (I imagine that went up over the years) and not having enough change, or something else as pointless if I manage to get to sleep.

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yeah my dreams can be pretty random too. Most of the time, they make absolutely no sense at all. But when I'm in them, I think they make sense. Better to have random dreams than bad dreams though. Or even better, lucid dreams or dreams about KITTIES

Originally Posted by Pookie-poo

Oh boy. My mother wants me to walk the Mackinac Bridge with her this Labor Day. I'd rather have a root canal. It's nearly a 3 hour drive to get to St. Ignace, then walk the 7 mile bridge, then wait for a bus to get you back to your car, then the 3 hour drive home. Then back to work the next day. Yuck. Oh yeah...I forgot to mention...it was recommended to me by someone who regularly walks the bridge...you need to get in line to buy your bus ticket by about 5:30 am. OMG!!!

She's trying to guilt me into going with her. I SO don't want to, but she's doing her best to talk me into it. "I'm 75 years old. Blah, blah, blah...might not be able to next year. Blah, blah, blah."

http://www.mackinacbridge.org/annual-bridge-walk-7/

Please wish me luck....I don't think I'm gonna be able to finesse my way outta this one....

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Not to add any more guilt, but I would KILL to do something like that with my mom. But, she passed away in 2004. I look back on so many things I "got out of" doing with her, and regret it. I would say just suck it up and go. It can't be that bad and it will give you a chance to be with her. I think it's great she wants to do this at 75 years old! Stop for icecream or something on the way back...that will give you something to look forward to.

Oh, I say do it! Your Mom clearly really wants you to do it together and she may not be able to do it in future years. This will be a lovely memory for you both.

Now if you were having to walk up the suspension cables like those guys in the photo on your link - I'd say NO WAY

There are plenty of other things you can do with your mom. Wild horses couldn't get me to walk across any bridge. I have a fear of heights. People walk across the Golden Gate, suspension bridge. What if someone was walking across the bridge when the Loma Prieta earthquake occurred? That bridge SWAYED!

Can you suddenly develop a phobea and take your mom someplace else for a nice day? My Mom is 88. I took her to so many places when she could still travel - like Australia and New Zealand. She never asked me to walk a bridge, thank goodness. Heck, driving over them scares me!