Here are some of the things we did and recommend:
We had a great dinner at Northwoods Steakhouse. It is right on US-23 in East Tawas. It's next to the Big Boy. Their house Cabernet is really good and the food is even better. It's atmosphere is that of a lodge. All knotty pine wood, hunting trophies on the walls, etc.
We took a ride on the AuSable River Queen. It is a flat-bottom paddle boat that takes you on a two hour cruise along the AuSable River. It is a really nice ride. The captain entertains and informs everyone with facts about the area and corny jokes that you can't help but laugh at. There was a performer playing guitar and singing songs as well. Plus there is a bar on the upper deck!
On Newman street in "downtown' East Tawas is a place called Mulligan's Irish Pub. They have some of the bet corned beef we have ever eaten. We had lunch there on Sunday. The corned beef sandwiches were delicious. It was so good we went back for breakfast a couple days later. I highly recommend having breakfast there and ordering the O'Kurt. It is corned beef hash topped with cheese and two eggs. Oh man, I may try to convince Tracey we should go there for breakfast again before we head out.
The sunrises are beautiful on Lake Huron. It is worth getting up for them at least once. You can always take a nap later. The colors are indescribable. It is amazing to watch the sun as if it were coming out of the water and bring with it a new day. It is quite a humbling and memorable experience.
We also went to Tawas Point State Park and visited the lighthouse there. It was built in the mid-1800s and still operates. This is the second lighthouse for that area. This "new" one had to be built because Tawas Point had grown a mile out into Lake Huron, rendering the old lighthouse useless. The scenery on the grounds is amazing, just a vast expanse of blue water extending on forever.
The most important thing we do though was relax. We definitely needed this vacation. It was a perfect way to refill out vessel.
