Moosequerade: The Big Boy moose of Manistique, Michigan

No wonder the moose is smiling -- he gets to look out at some awesome Upper Peninsula scenery...

It's not every day you see a moose dressed in red and white checkered overalls. Not every day, that is, unless you're visiting or reside in the beautiful Upper Peninsula of Michigan town of Manistique and find yourself tooling past the local Bob's Big Boy restaurant on East Lake Shore Drive. The moose is so attired because back in 1936, a Mr. Bob Wian purchased a hamburger stand in Glendale, California. His signature dish became the double-decker hamburger and one of his frequent customers was a chubby six-year-old boy in loose-fitting overalls who helped around the place in exchange for free food. Bob was so taken with the boy he named the burger after him, The Big Boy. Another customer, a movie studio animator, did a caricature of the boy wearing red and white checkered overalls that became the logo for the restaurant, now called Bob's Big Boy. Moose being a popular icon in northern Michigan, it seemed only fitting that one wearing Bob's classic overalls would welcome diners to this friendly U.P. Bob's franchise. And this moose happens to look out at some pretty spectacular scenery...sandy dunes and tall grass swaying in front of beautiful Lake Michigan.

Why I'm telling you all this is a moostery to me, though.

Michi-gigantic: Big things along Northern Michigan's Route 2

This is actually in nearby Wisconsin, but we're going for a theme here so work with me.

Michigan's Route 2 is a pretty road that ambles through the northern part of the state and eventually hugs the coast of Lake Michigan in the beautiful area known as the Upper Peninsula. Along the way, you'll pass by some big eccentric roadside attractions begging you to get off the highway and give each place a look-see. The Corkscrew Liquor Store is actually just over the state line in Dickeyville, Wisconsin, but our judges are going to allow its inclusion here because, come on, it's a great big corkscrew. Big Powderhorn Mountain of Bessemer, Michigan, boasts it is the skiing capital of the midwest, and they've got the sign to prove it: a 20-foot goggled skibum. Just east of the small town of Iron Mountain is home to Big John, mascot of the Iron Mountain Iron Mine, where, according to their website, you can take a tour "with skilled guides through 2600 feet of underground drifts and tunnels to 400 feet below the earth's surface to see the reality of iron mining." In the nearby town of Vulcan is a large concrete bear next to a picnic table. I believe this was in front of a campground, possibly the Kenkae Travel Park & Store of Vulcan, Michigan (correct me if I'm wrong on this, Michiganians). Norway, Michigan greets passersby with a Viking longboat, a symbol of the town's Scandinavian namesake. And there is a Big Boy restaurant in Manistique that sports not only the usual burger bearing mascot, but a checkered overall-wearing moose as well. Keep those big eccentrics coming, Michigan!