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The historic Soo Locks at Sault Ste. Marie, left, enable
ships to pass between Lakes Superior and Huron,
which have a 21-foot height difference. Visitors can
watch from a viewing platform. The Mackinac Bridge,
right, links Michigan’s Lower and Upper peninsulas.
the bridge must be high enough for the mighty Great the winds so strong that the Mackinac Bridge Authority
Lakesfreighterstopassunder.Whenbuiltin1957the will provide a driver for people too terrified to drive
bridge linked Michigan’s two disparate populations, across.Theweatherwasfairthedaywecrossedandthe
ending lingering talk of separation. Affectionately windscalmbyGreatLakesstandards,sowelandedinthe
called“BigMac,”thisbridgeisthethirdlongestsuspen- UpperPeninsulawithoutincident.
sionbridgeintheUnitedStates. Forty miles north of the straits is Sault Ste. Marie,
Big Mac was our first introduction to how fierce which sits on the south bank of the Saint Mary’s River,
the Upper Peninsula’s weather can be. When engi- the link between Lakes Superior and Huron. Sault Ste.
neers designed the span they incorporated an open Marie straddles the Canadian border, so you can cross
gridroadbedandothermeasurestopreventthedeck the river to the Canadian side if you like. We chose to
fromswingingwildlyinagale.Thebridgeissohighand stay in the United States, however.
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