Michigan Highways

Lake Michigan Circle Tour

Lake Michigan Circle Tour route marker

While a loosely-organized "circle route" around Lake Superior was promoted by local tourist organizations as early as the 1960s, the first official (and signed) Great Lakes Circle Tour was the Lake Michigan Circle Tour. The only single-nation Circle Tour (Lake Michigan being the only Great Lake completely within the US, of course), the LMCT also has the most mileage of any Circle Tour in the state.

Working in conjunction with the Michigan Department of Transportation, the West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA) helped to make the first of the official Great Lakes Circle Tours a reality. A short history from the WMTA website:

The Circle Tour route and its first Guide were the culmination of innovation and hard work by the WMTA staff, led by visionary Jack Morgan of the Michigan Department of Transportation. Just 14 months after Morgan introduced his Circle Tour concept in 1987, agreement was reached on routes and signed to be posted along all 1,100 miles of Lake Michigan's shoreline.

WMTA was tapped to produce the first guide book. More than a dozen years later, the publication continues to help travelers navigate the four-state route, which winds through some of the nation's wildest country and one of its largest urban centers.

When the Chicago Tribune and Milwaukee Journal ran articles in 1988 about the colorful, 52-page Guide, no one on WMTA's staff anticipated public reaction. On Monday following the story, 150 callers from the Chicago area alone requested the new publication. Two days later, an overburdened mail carrier unloaded 700 requests for the Guide from Illinois and Wisconsin. The next day, more than 1,000 mail and phone requests poured in.

 

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Route

In Michigan, the mainline of the LMCT follows signed state trunkline routes in its entirety, although in some places the nearest state highway to the Lake Michigan may be several miles away. This route listing lists the official route as well as the various locally-designated and marked "Lake Michigan Circle Tour Loops," which are generally posted with brown signs. These loop routes are detailed below the mainline route below:

  • The LMCT enters Michigan from Indiana on US-12 south of New Buffalo and proceeds northerly through New Buffalo to I-94.
  • The route leaves US-12 and continues northerly on I-94 from Exit 4 toward St Joseph.
  • At Exit 23, the route exits I-94 and continues northerly into downtown St Joseph via BL I-94.
  • In St Joseph, the LMCT continues northerly on M-63 into northern Berrien Co.
  • At the nothern terminus of M-63, the circle tour proceeds northerly on I-196/US-31 toward South Haven.
  • The route leaves I-196/US-31 at Exit 18 and loops through South Haven using BL I-196.
  • On the east side of South Haven, where BL I-196 ends at I-196/US-31 Exit 20, the route continues north into Allegan Co on I-196/US-31.
  • While the LMCT remains on I-196/US-31 at Saugatuck/Douglas, a locally-designated LMCT Harbor Tour loop route is signed concurrently with A-2/Blue Star Hwy between Exits 36 and 41.
  • The circle tour continues northerly on US-31/BL I-196 toward Holland at Exit 44 when I-196 splits off to the east.
  • At Exit 47, route signage indicates that the circle tour exits US-31 and loops through downtown Holland following the former route of BUS US-31/BL I-196. However, this business loop route through Holland was removed in August 2004 (signage removed in May 2005), but LMCT markers along US-31 itself still indicates the route exits US-31 onto a business route which no longer exists. Therefore, the new de facto route for the circle tour continues northerly past Holland via the US-31 bypass.
  • On the east side of Holland, the route continues northerly following US-31 through Grand Haven and toward Norton Shores.
  • At the jct of US-31 & I-96, the LMCT leaves US-31 and follows BUS US-31 through downtown Muskegon.
  • Northeast of downtown Muskegon, the route continues northerly via M-120 to North Muskegon and northeasterly back to US-31.
  • Back on US-31, the circle tour continues northerly toward Ludington, leaving US-31 twice: once to follow the route of BUS US-31 through the downtowns of Whitehall and Montague in northern Muskegon Co; and again to follow the route of BUS US-31 through downtown Pentwater in Oceana Co.
  • At the end of the US-31 freeway near Ludington, the LMCT turns east following US-10/US-31 toward Scottville.
  • At Scottville, the circle tour turns northerly again to follow US-31 toward Manistee, although a locally-designated LMCT Loop Route formerly continued east on US-10 into downtown, then northerly via Old US-31 back to US-31 and the LMCT. (NOTE: The LMCT Loop route through Scottville was removed/decommissioned some time in late 2004 or early 2005 and no longer exists.)
  • The route continues northerly from Scottville and through Manistee on US-31.
  • Northeast of Manistee, the route turns northerly to follow M-22 through Onekama, Frankfort and Empire.
  • Northeast of Empire, a LMCT Loop Route leaves M-22 to follow M-109 past Glen Haven, rejoining M-22 at Glen Arbor. (The mainline LMCT remains on M-22 between Empire and Glen Arbor.)
  • From Glen Arbor, the circle tour continues northerly on M-22 through Leland to Northport. At Northport, M-22 and the LMCT turn nearly 180 degrees to head southerly into Traverse City.
  • At Traverse City, the LMCT returns to US-31 and continues northerly via US-31 through Elk Rapids, Charlevoix and Petoskey and on toward the Mackinac Bridge.
  • South of Mackinaw City, where US-31 ends, the route continues northerly on I-75 crossing the Mackinac Bridge and entering the Upper Peninsula at St Ignace. Between Mackinaw City and St Ignace, the LMCT is jointed by the Lake Huron Circle Tour.
  • In St Ignace, the LMCT continues westerly along US-2 for more than 140 miles through Manistique and Gladstone to Escanaba.
  • At Escanaba, the circle tour continues southwesterly via M-35 along the Green Bay shoreline to Menominee
  • The route continues south on US-41 through Menominee and enters Wisconsin at Marinette.
  • Continue on the Lake Michigan Circle Tour route into Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Highways website.

Note: The "Circle Tour Road Route" description from the GLIN website is not only vague, but incorrect! While a good alternate route, the LMCT does not use M-119 and C-66 through Harbor Springs and Cross Village, I-94 does not go to Holland, what is called "Cross Bridge" is actually "Cross Village"... and, for Pete's sake, it's the Mackinac Bridge (not "Mackinaw Bridge!"). The route included on this website has been personally researched by the website author in the field.

 

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Loop Routes

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Harbor Tour route markerLake Michigan Circle Tour - Harbor Tour (Saugatuck/Douglas)

A locally-designated loop route which helps circle tour motorists navigate into and through the off-route communities of Saugatuck and Douglas in northwestern Allegan Co. While most local loops are designated as "Loop Routes" off the mainline circle tour, this particular route is actually designated as a "Harbor Tour," although it behaves like any other Loop Route. Also, as with all Loop Routes, this route is designated with white-on-brown circle tour signs, using the same LMCT "logo." The route:

  • The LMCT Harbor Tour begins at I-196/US-31/LMCT at Exit 36 south of Douglas.
  • The route continues northerly on A-2/Blue Star Hwy into Douglas, passing just west of the downtown area.
  • The loop route then crosses into Saugatuck, still via A-2/Blue Star Hwy, passing just east of the downtown.
  • the route ends when it meets back up with I-196/US-31/LMCT at Exit 41 northeast of Saugatuck.

 

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Loop route markerLake Michigan Circle Tour - Loop Route (Scottville)

When MDOT completed a western bypass of Scottville, taking the high volume of US-31 traffic out of town, a locally-designated LMCT Loop Route was signed, acting as a de-facto Business Routing for US-31. Note, however, this LMCT Loop route was removed/decommissioned some time in late 2004 or early 2005 and no longer exists. The route:

  • The LMCT Loop Route began at the jct of US-10& US-31 on the west side of Scottville.
  • The route continued easterly via US-10 into downtown Scottville.
  • In downtown Scottville, the loop route turned northerly and followed Old US-31 out of Scottville.
  • The LMCT Loop Route ended at US-31 north of Scottville.

 

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Loop route markerLake Michigan Circle Tour - Loop Route (Glen Haven)

While the Lake Michigan Circle Tour generally follows the closest posted state trunkline to its namesake body of water, the Sleeping Bear Dunes area is one exception. Instead of diverting the mainline LMCT off M-22 for only eight miles, it continues via M-22 through to Glen Arbor and on to Leland. However, as M-109 loops off M-22 to the west (lakeside) through the Sleeping Bear Dunes area, it has been designated as a LMCT Loop Route. The route:

  • The LMCT Loop Route begins at the southern jct of M-22 & M-109 just northeast of Empire and continues northerly toward Glen Haven.
  • At Glen Haven, the loop route turns east and continues on M-109 toward Glen Arbor.
  • The LMCT Loop Route ends at the northern jct of M-22 & M-109 in Glen Arbor.

Back to: Great Lakes Circle Tour page.

 

Additional Information

  • Official Lake Michigan Circle Tour - from the West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA). The WMTA helped to coordinate the first of the Great Lakes Circle Tours in the 1980s.
  • Great Lakes Circle Tour - information from the Great Lakes Commission. It was the GLC who originally established the Great Lakes Circle Tours and continues to provide information on many aspects of the Great Lakes region.
  • Lake Michigan Circle Tour - from the Great Lakes Information Network (GLIN), which "is a partnership that provides one place online for people to find information relating to the binational Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region of North America." Please note that the "Circle Tour Road Route" description from the GLIN site is not only vague, but incorrect! While a good alternate route, the LMCT does not use M-119 and C-66 through Harbor Springs and Cross Village... and it's the Mackinac Bridge (not "Mackinaw Bridge!).
  • Shoreline Charms - an article by Donna Marchetti about the Lake Michigan Circle Tour from the Michigan Living magazine published by AAA Michigan.