By Vanessa McCray
vmccray@record-eagle.com
September 04, 2007 10:35 am MACKINAW CITY -- The walkers, they came in droves. They woke up early, boarded buses and took the congestion along the Mackinac Bridge's five miles in strides. The annual bridge walk was an historic occasion for locals to bask in the bridge's 50th birthday with tourists. By late Monday afternoon, an estimated 57,000 people and counting made the Labor Day pilgrimage over the Michigan landmark that connects the state's two peninsulas. "Every time I see the bridge, I'm in awe," said Julie Lindholm, of Gaylord, who has crossed the Straits span 29 times on foot. "To me, it is the biggest stress reliever," she said. "I don't need drugs. I just go see the bridge. That's my high." Bridge officials extended the walk hours past the posted 11 a.m. cutoff, and people were still ambling over at 4 p.m. The walkers traveled from as far as San Francisco and as near as Levering. That little locale is the home of Keith Ginop and Jody Kitchen, who made the 15-minute drive to the bridge with 4-week-old Kevin. Their day began at 4 a.m. "This is the first time we've (woken) him up," said Kitchen. Kevin got a bottle halfway across. He also posed for a picture with his tiny baby feet touching the bridge. Some walkers wore funny hats. One man's topper, an elaborate fabric replica of the bridge, swayed from its perch on his head at the finish line. Pat and Mike Bohn donned colorful headdresses of twisted balloons. "We thought it was going to be too windy," the Livonia duo said. The inflatable hat sculptures survived the walk. Some wore patches for each year they made the passage. T-shirts blared "50 is a state of mind." They clutched certificates authenticating their five- mile walk and made their way past protestors calling to "End the war now." Ina Mae Smith of Kaleva grasped ski walking poles. Others pushed strollers or wheelchairs. Some walkers were terrified. That's why Gail Hoffman came. Height, or conquering her fear of it, prompted the Traverse City woman to make the trek. "I really thought, 'I have to try,'" she said. At midspan, the bridge's roadway is suspended 199 feet above water. Hoffman stopped at the middle and called her son in Hawaii to tell him where she was. Cheboygan friends Ariana Robydek, 10, and Megan Deeter, 11, took their inaugural journey together. The view was "really high and scary," Megan admitted. The girls made it to Mackinaw City. They think they'll return another year for another walk. Of the walkers, quite a few were first-time steppers. "We decided to wait until the 50th," said Cyndi Ducker of Grayling. She and Ken Ducker woke up at 1:45 a.m. and caught a school bus in Gaylord headed for the bridge. More than 100 yellow buses from area school districts were expected to shuttle walkers to the St. Ignace starting point. John and Nona Carr of Harbor Springs bobbed and weaved through the crowds to complete their first walk. They chose this year to participate "because we are getting too old," joked John. The bridge's anniversary also held some allure. And one walker himself is part of that history. Ray Kiekintveld, 78, of Holland has walked the bridge 49 times in what has become a family tradition. "I've walked every one but the first one," he said. This year, he made the trip with a party of about 15 -- and a new knee.
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Photos
Thousands walk south on the Mackinac Bridge Monday during the 50th annual Mackinac Bridge Walk. The five-mile span is only open to pedestrians on Labor Day, and officials expect 57,000 people to celebrate the holiday on the bridge.
Ray Kiekintveld, of Holland, completed his 49th walk across the Mackinac Bridge Monday. The Labor Day trek is a family tradition.
Pat and Mike Bohn of Livonia donned colorful balloon hats and crossed the finish line around 8:40 a.m. on Monday.
Keith Ginop and Jody Kitchen made it to the finish line with 4-week-old Kevin Ginop at the 50th Annual Mackinac Bridge Walk.