We decided to take the ambitious 30 mile roundtrip to Holland Michigan on our bikes. There were thankfully broad bike trails and lanes that led us all the way to the picturesque town on Lake Macatawa, and further to the Windmill Island Gardens. A large number of Dutch immigrants settled here in the 19th and early 20th century.

Although we were wary of the likelihood of finding a kitschy Dutch village at the end our our ride, we were actually pleasantly surprised to find a tasteful Dutch-themed park surrounding a restored 18th century Dutch windmill that was transplanted from northern Holland in the 1960's. The windmill restoration was overseen by a Dutch government expert in historical mills and is now operated as a working mill by a miller trained and qualified in the Netherlands. The miller prefers 25 mph winds to grind her wheat - but luckily for us boaters on Lake Michigan, there hasn't been enough powerful wind in the last several weeks to operate the mill.

As we wound up our visit to the park, we were visited by a curious mink!