sunny16

We're going to Detroit next month, and friends of mine want to take us to Belle Isle. The thing is, a friend of ours told us that gangs rove Belle Isle. We will have expensive camera gear with us and we don't want to get mugged for it. Should I ask my friend if we could hang out someplace else? (I'm from NYC if that helps. There is no gang violence in the places where I hang out.)

mikesmom

First, I have to say that I don't have any first hand experience, since I haven't been on Belle Isle in over 30 years. I have lived in Detroit all of my life (born and raised) and Belle Isle wouldn't be high on my list of places to visit. However, if you do decide to visit Belle Isle, go during the day. I would not go at night.

sunny16

Is there anyplace you could recommend just to go and hang out? We just have a few hours in the morning to get caught up with these friends before we have to go to a wedding. I would be open to suggestions, although my friend is very excited about showing me Belle Isle. Said friend lives between 8 and 9 Mile, I think.

mikesmom

I'm sure if your friend is excited about showing you Belle Isle, that he/she knows more about it than I do. As long as you are going during the day, it should be fine. Your friend must have a reason to be anxious to show you Belle Isle. Like I said, I haven't been in years. However, I do have a view of it from my office in the Renaissance Center. I'm looking at it right now!!

MIWinnie

I would avoid Belle Isle, even though it might be quieter in the early morning. My husband and I were born and raised in Detroit and have fond memories of visiting Belle Isle. But that was 30+ years ago. We were in Detroit last summer for a wedding. The reception was held at the Detroit Yacht Club on Belle Isle on a Saturday evening and that part of the Isle was beautiful. We saw many families picnicking and enjoying themselves. We saw some unsavory groups, too. Leaving the reception and driving down Jefferson to get on the expressway was a really scary experience. We (and the traffic around us) encountered two groups of young males who initially pulled their vehicles out of a fast food place and blocked both westbound lanes. They were screaming and yelling back and forth between vehicles. Eventually, we were able to get past them only to have them come speeding up, weave in and out of traffic, pass in the parking lane - you get the picture. I honestly thought the guns would come out next.

You don't say if your friends live on the East or West side of Detroit. But since they live near 8-9 mile, I'd suggest you meet for breakfast. One place that comes to mind is the Original House of Pancakes, 19355 W. Ten Mile Rd., Southfield, MI 48075, between Evergreen and Southfield. They have the best breakfasts ever. (IHOP pales by comparison.) They do not take reservations, so if you decide to go, be prepared to wait unless you get there early.

sunny16

Thanks for the tip, Winnie. I think my friends are on the West side of Detroit, but I'm not sure. Why do you suggest breakfast for their neighborhood? Because of crime? Just curious. Thanks again for the Belle Isle tip. I'm not sure if there's a polite way for us to get out of going, but I'll try.

peggybauer

I agree with the advice about the International House of Pancakes; it is great. I'm not sure if the timing would work out, but you could consider going to the Detroit Zoo. To further confuse things, I have been to Belle Isle a few times and have never experienced any problems, but I can see how one could encounter them. It is also inconveniently located to the northwest side of Detroit. Good Luck

sunny16

Thanks for the advice, everyone! This pancake house must be great; I'll see if we can arrange to have breakfast there. Oh, I forgot to mention; our hotel is in Dearborn. I don't know if that puts it closer to Belle Isle.

mikesmom

Dearborn is not close to Belle Isle. If you are staying in Dearborn, you should visit The Henry Ford Museum and/or Greenfield Village (now referred to as "The Henry Ford").

jlm_mi

I would not necessarily consider the Henry Ford as a suitable place to spend a few hours in the morning catching up with friends. When you're there, you want to pay more attention to the museum than the people you're with.

mikesmom

True. I lost track of the OP's original purpose - catching up with friends for a few hours before going to a wedding. However, I still don't care too much for the Belle Isle idea.

jlm_mi

sunny16 - Have you asked your friends why Belle Isle? You can ask out of curiousity without sounding rude I would think. Maybe they're yacht club members and want to take you there for a nice brunch? Or maybe there is something specific there that they are aware of that is worth seeing.

It's a pretty place - I ran through it during the Detroit Marathon a few years ago and we saw deer right alongside where we were running. But I have no idea what you'd do there otherwise.

MIWinnie

Hi, Sunny. I posted a reply earlier, but didn’t see it when I just looked at the thread. I’ll try this again. If my second message was posted, please bear with some of the repetition. From your previous message, it sounded like you didn’t have a lot of time because of the wedding you are attending later that day. Having breakfast together would give you a place to sit, chat and see your friends. There are other places you could go, but I thought that the pancake house, near 8-9 mile, might be convenient for your friends and you could take the Southfield Expressway north from Dearborn.

jlm_mi makes a valid point about asking your friends why they want to take you to Belle Isle. A place that would be closer, I believe, to where you are staying is Fair Lane, the estate of Henry Ford - http://www.henryfordestate.org Maybe someone whose been there recently can tell you if this would be a good place to meet.
Hope you enjoy your visit.

sunny16

Thanks, JLM and Winnie! I have mentioned the pancake house to my friends and they're going to talk about it. Apparently it's 5 miles from them, which they say isn't far in Detroit. Winnie, thanks for the suggestion of the Henry Ford Estate. Unfortunately, I don't think that will work out for us, although it would have been nice to check it out.

Whatever happens on Saturday, I want us to be back in our hotel room by 1pm so I can get ready for the wedding. I guess I need to look closely at a map and figure out the distances to everything.

We're arriving on Friday afternoon and we'll have all afternoon to ourselves. On the map it looks like our hotel is practically around the corner from the Henry Ford, so we might well end up there for the afternoon. I still need to find out from my friend what the big attraction is about Belle Isle, although it looks pretty enough it the photos I've seen.