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3.79 out of 5 Rider Rating 3.79
22 Reviews

Ride Round the Thumb

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By Guest (0 McR Points) on Jul 31, 2008

Rider Reviews

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Guest
February 9, 2011
I did this trip over the past fall. Great roads…
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Guest
January 19, 2011
This route links up to lots of other cool little…
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Written Directions

Start in Point Huron, MI and look for Pine Grove Ave heading north, which will then veer right, onto 24th Ave. These roads get you through town, and onto M-25, or Lakeshore Rd. Head north out of town on MI-25. MI-25 will follow the thumb shaped coastline all the way up to Harbor Beach, Port Hope, and Port Austin (you'll see that Lakeshore Rd. turns into Grindstone Rd. and heads west into Port Austin). Continue on to the town of Sebewaing and to the end point of Bay City, MI. From there you can go through Bay City and hop on I-75 to go the fast way home. Or, for the more adventurous, travel directly south from Port Austin on M-53/Van Dyke Rd. towards Bad Axe. At Bad Axe, turn right heading west on M-53 and then turn right, onto Huron Line Rd heading west [about 35 miles south from Port Austin at this point]. Huron Line road will intersect Richie Rd. Turning left [south] will take you to the famous Octagon Barn [https://www.thumboctagonbarn.org/] - a true rarity and must see. After seeing the barn, keep going south on Richie Rd. to Bay City Forestville Rd. - turn right and head west again, towards Gagetown - who's claim to fame is the first bank to have FDIC!! And, if it's still there, also home of Michigan's only Anastazi Indian /Southwestern style restaurant. You can either backtrack to M-53 and continue south, or beeline straight south of Gagetown on Dodge Rd. til you T-bone M-81/Cass City Rd., where turning left [heading east] will take you to M-53, or turning right [heading west] will take you towards Saginaw where you can jump on M-23.

Scenery

Once you get onto scenic highway M-25, north of Port Huron, the sense that "you're somewhere else" really takes over. The hwy takes you close to Lake Huron quite frequently, as well as pastoral farm scenes as the road twists following the contour of the thumb. You can do this whole route as a day trip, or stay overnight in Port Austin and enjoy some of that good 'ol Michigan hospitality. Either way, it's a great motorcycle ride.

Drive Enjoyment

North of Port Huron, M-25 it's mostly 2-lane - no dirt or gravel roads. Not many blind corners, but be wary of wild turkeys crossing the road [they go left when they should go right].

Tourism Opportunities

Port Austin, at the very tip of the thumb has inexpensive lodging, The Garfield Inn (yes, the fmr. President was a frequent visitor) has wonderful food and very nice rooms, also there's several local eateries and taverns all on the main strip, south of the harbor breakwater. Make sure you walk out onto the harbor breakwater for a super view of the lake and the town inland. There's fishing charter boats available as well.

Motorcycle Road Additional info

- View the weather forecast for this area from Yahoo weather .
 

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MarkandLorie
July 4, 2016
2 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Touring
Great weekend for a ride, traffic was great. Would likevto seen more water but it is what it is.
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Guest
August 7, 2009
0 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Sport - Touring
Growing up in the tri city area and having been to Caseville a few times growing up I had never actually been around the thumb. I have since moved to Metro Detroit but decided I was going to take this trip up to Flint, over to Port Huron and up M25 to Port Austin then around back to Bay City and super slabbing it home.I hadn't spoken to anyone who had ever tripped up M25 from Port Huron so I wasn't certain what to expect. Knowing that most of the Thumb is farming community I was afraid that the whole route would be boring, straight slab passing some of the larger farms in MI. I was overjoyed to find that M25 is a widely curvy road all the way from Port Huron up to the tip with lots of trees, lots of great stops along the lake, passing through lots of cute small towns and lots of beautiful plots of land. There aren't really elevation changes but there are enough curves to distract you from the fact that you're still in southern Michigan. While it's not a trip I'd care to do more than once(maybe twice) it is definitely worth the trek!
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Guest
July 19, 2009
0 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Other
M-25 from Port Huron all around the thumb to Bay City is a wonderful ride, especially in the fall, colors are great! The Edison Inn in Port Huron has good food, wonderful view. Lexington has cute shops, Slap Jacks has a tasty lunch. Grindstone City has Captain Morgans where you can sit out on the patio and enjoy the view along with a ice cold beer and always great food. Caseville has a Cheeseburger festival in August that is wild and crazy!!! And Bay City downtown on the riverfront, try the Fishhouse great view of the river and decent food.
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