What’s The Longest Distance Between Rest Stops In Michigan?

When you hear the dreaded words "I have to pee!", your heart begins to race and your eyes start darting, hoping to see those glorious blue signs that inform you when the next "REST AREA" is, saving the kiddo in your back seat, and relieving yourself (in more ways than one).

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For me, there is one rest area I always manage to hit (unintentionally) on my way back to Grand Rapids from Detroit, the Okemos Rest Area on I-96 W. I have spent many nights sleeping in my car here on my way back from the airport or a concert, so much so that I think we might start buying birthday cards for each other.

But the reason this rest area is always such a relief is that there is only one other stop before this at the Howell Rest Area. While there are only 27.5 miles in between them (~29 minutes), when you gotta go, it feels like an eternity. 

This got me thinking: where in Michigan is the greatest distance between two rest areas?

The Longest Distance Between Two Rest Areas

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) operates and maintains 61 rest areas along major freeways and roadways, with most open year-round. These serve as spots to stretch your legs, get a quick bite or drink, or use the restroom. What you may not know is that each rest area is "within an hour's travel of each other", even if they can feel much further.

READ MORE: This Is Michigan’s Most Dangerous Road

MDOT has a map with each rest area plotted on it, providing real-time information about which ones are open and closed. Using this map, I was able to determine which rest stop you'll want to hit before entering the rest area "No Man's Land". I have two answers for this conundrum:

The winner for the longest drive with no rest areas is the US-127 from the Ithaca Rest Area to the Grayling Rest Area, a distance of 94 miles and about an hour and 16 minutes of straight driving. Considering last year, I named this same stretch of highway the most boring drive in the entire state, the fact that there is not even a rest area to change up the monotony of this stretch of road is not surprising at all.

However, if we were to open up this indicator to all freeways and highways in the state, the drive going north from Ludington, sticking to M-31, is the real champion because M-31 is a rest area wasteland. 

I'm taking this out of contention, however, since this route goes through multiple cities like Manistee, Frankfort, and Traverse City that offer plenty of spots to stop and get the rest you seek.

Next time you plan a trip up North, make sure to stop in Ithaca, or you'll be playing with fire.