Now I have brought you to four very different areas of Sturgis; hopefully you explored each area finding the many other geocaches as well as the multitude of features, activities, parks, businesses, and general opportunities for fun and enjoyment. There is plenty to do here in the city limits if you just slow down and look around. Hope you have enjoyed this series of caches, family friendly, fun!.
Welcome to Sturgis, Michigan! The road you are traveling is locally known as the Old Chicago Road and has a history as long as the road itself
U.S. Route 12 is an east–west United States highway, running from Grays Harbor on the Pacific Ocean, in the state of Washington, to downtown Detroit, for almost 2,500 miles.
Washington; The highway loosely follows the eastbound leg of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, between Wallula, Washington and Clarkston, Washington, thus being marked as part of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.
Idaho; portion of the highway is also designated as part of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. Most of the highway in Idaho is within the Clearwater National Forest. The eastern section of US 12, through remote mountain forest and up to Lolo Pass, was built in the early 1960s, making US 12 the last US highway constructed. No services are available between Lowell and Powell, about 70 miles (110 km) further east.
Montana; The longest portion of US 12 in any of the states in which it traverses is in Montana.
North Dakota; US 12 is a two-lane undivided highway that runs 87.47 miles (140.77 km), through Adams, Bowman and Slope counties in southwest North Dakota.
South Dakota; US 12 enters South Dakota from North Dakota, as a rural two lane highway about 10 miles (16 km) west/northwest of Lemmon. For approximately the next 70 miles (110 km), US 12 runs parallel to the border of North Dakota, sometimes within less than a mile.
Minnesota; From the South Dakota/Minnesota state line at Ortonville, to Wayzata, US 12 is mostly a rural two-lane highway with a 55 mph (89 km/h) speed limit, with slower speed limits through towns and a four-lane surface arterial segment through the city of Willmar. From western Wayzata to Interstate 394 in Minnetonka, US 12 is a six-lane freeway. East of I-494, US 12 is invisibly concurrent with Interstates 394 and 94 through Minneapolis and St. Paul to the Minnesota/Wisconsin state line at Hudson.
Wisconsin; As US 12 nears Madison, it merges with US 14, US 151 and US 18, to form the West Beltline Highway, a four to six-lane freeway that encircles the south and west portions of the city, with a speed limit of 55 mph (90 km/h).
Illinois; US 12 is referred to as Rand Road in Chicago's northwest suburbs. Rand is an original name for the area around Des Plaines, Illinois, the location where the road resumes its westerly direction. South of Des Plaines, U.S. 12 follows Mannheim Road and then 95th Street, before merging with U.S. 41 on Ewing and Indianapolis Avenues toward the Indiana state line.
Michigan; US 12 is now the only U.S. highway route still serving downtown Detroit, whose street grid was laid by Augustus B. Woodward, to have a five-way intersection of the roads that would become US 12, US 10, US 16, US 112 and US 25. US 24 still travels through Detroit from Puritan to 8 Mile Road on the far-west-side.
As from the earliest days of its existence, US 12 enters Michigan from Indiana, southwest of New Buffalo and continues to the old junction of US 12 and US 112 in New Buffalo. It is now assigned between New Buffalo and Detroit (except through Ypsilanti), along what was US 112 until 1962.
On May 4, 2004, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) designated 209 miles (336 km) of US-12 from New Buffalo to Detroit as a Historic Heritage Route. The east-west corridor traverses the counties of Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph, Branch, Hillsdale, Lenawee, Washtenaw and Wayne. MDOT's Heritage Route Committee has approved the route's nomination as a premier addition to the Michigan Heritage Route Program.
US-12 is among the oldest road corridors east of the Mississippi River and accesses some of the most extensive and significant historic, cultural, scenic and recreational resources in Michigan. It begins in downtown Detroit, just blocks from the Detroit River, and extends through southern Michigan to the Michigan/Indiana border south of New Buffalo. It was originally a network of centuries-old trails created by Native Americans. Over the years it has had many names such as Sauk Trail, Chicago Road, and Michigan Avenue.
The U.S. 12 Heritage Trail also opens their doors annually the second weekend of August for what has been dubbed "Michigan's Longest Yard Sale" on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.