Origin
Long Lake, MI
Night in Long Lake on Friday
Local time
10:44 PM
EDT
Current temp
35°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Long Lake, MI to Tawas City, MI
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
41m
Distance
27.9 mi
45 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 38m
★
6 AM
0h 42m
8 AM
0h 49m
10 AM
0h 44m
12 PM
0h 43m
3 PM
0h 44m
5 PM
0h 48m
8 PM
0h 40m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Long Lake, MI
Jacob Postuma
Tawas City, MI
fish socks
Trip Overview
The drive from Long Lake, MI to Tawas City, MI covers 27.9 miles and takes about 41m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.
The route leans on M 55 West, M 65, State Highway 65 for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is turn-heavy local drive. The longest uninterrupted segment is about 14.2 miles on M 55 West. At current regular gas prices, budget about $4.36 one way before food or hotel costs.
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 41m. Total distance: 27.9 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
41m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (9%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Scenic Drive
Turn-heavy local drive route profile.
Drive Character
Expect a 41m drive with frequent turns across 27.9 miles of local and secondary roads.
This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 19 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
M 55 West is the longest continuous segment at about 14.2 miles.
Elevation Profile
Mostly flat terrain
920 ft
588 ft
Total Climb
1 ft
Total Descent
332 ft
Highest Point
920 ft
~2 mi in
Elevation Range
332 ft
How Hard Is This Drive?
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. You will hit about 8 points where you need to pay attention to lane position or signs. The trickiest moment comes around 3.7 miles in near West Webb.
Driving Effort
5/10
Moderate - straightforward overall, but long enough or busy enough to require pacing
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This drive requires moderate attention. Across 27.9 miles you will encounter 8 spots where lane choice or exit timing matters. Not difficult for experienced highway drivers, but worth previewing the tricky sections before you go.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 3.7 miles (West Webb): Highway fork - watch signs carefully; at 5.7 miles (M 65 / State Highway 65): Navigation decision point; at 12.7 miles (M 55 / M 55 West): Navigation decision point.
Critical Maneuvers
5 of 8 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
4
3.7 mi into trip
|
~6m in
|
West Webb
Keep slight right at fork onto West Webb
Highway fork - watch signs carefully
4
5.7 mi into trip
|
~10m in
|
M 65 / State Highway 65
Turn right onto M 65 / State Highway 65
Navigation decision point
4
12.7 mi into trip
|
~18m in
|
M 55 / M 55 West
Turn left onto M 55 / M 55 West
Navigation decision point
5
27.5 mi into trip
|
~40m in
|
US 23 / East Lake Street
At end of road, turn right onto US 23 / East Lake Street
Navigation decision point
4
27.8 mi into trip
|
~41m in
Turn right
Navigation decision point
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| M 55 West | 14.2 mi | 21m |
| M 65 | 4.4 mi | 5m |
| State Highway 65 | 2.5 mi | 3m |
| Long Lake Road | 2.2 mi | 3m |
| Putnam Road | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| West Webb | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| West Esmond Road | 0.6 mi | 1m |
| Hemlock Street | 0.6 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
M 55 West
— 14.2 mi, about 21m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Long Lake, MI and Tawas City, MI.
1
Start on Long Lake Road
1.7 mi
·
2 min
·
Long Lake Road
2
Continue on North Wilson Creek Road
0.3 mi
·
33 sec
·
North Wilson Creek Road
3
Continue on Wilson Creek
0.4 mi
·
46 sec
·
Wilson Creek
4
Continue on Long Lake Road
0.5 mi
·
50 sec
·
Long Lake Road
5
Continue on West Webb
0.8 mi
·
1 min
·
West Webb
6
Keep slight right at fork onto West Webb
491 ft
·
9 sec
·
West Webb
7
Continue on Putnam Road
0.9 mi
·
1 min
·
Putnam Road
8
Turn left onto West Esmond Road
0.6 mi
·
1 min
·
West Esmond Road
9
Continue on West Main Street
0.3 mi
·
39 sec
·
West Main Street
10
Turn right onto M 65
0.5 mi
·
49 sec
·
State Highway 65
11
Continue on M 65
4.4 mi
·
5 min
·
M 65
12
Continue on M 65
2.0 mi
·
2 min
·
State Highway 65
13
Turn left onto M 55
14 mi
·
21 min
·
M 55 West
14
Continue on M 55
0.6 mi
·
53 sec
·
Hemlock Street
15
At end of road, turn right onto US 23
0.4 mi
·
52 sec
·
East Lake Street
16
Turn left
117 ft
·
6 sec
17
Turn right
81 ft
·
3 sec
18
Turn right
96 ft
·
7 sec
19
Arrive at destination
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.36 one way
$8.72 round trip
$3.97/gal
25.4 MPG avg
10 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.36 | $4.79 | $9.58 |
| premium | $4.89 | $5.37 | $10.74 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $6.16 | $12.32 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 9.8 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 70% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 8.4 | 0 | $2.93 | $1.34 |
| Efficient EV | 7 | 0 | $2.44 | $1.12 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 11.2 | 0 | $3.91 | $1.79 |
Gas CO2
10 kg
EV CO2
3 kg (70% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Tawas City, MI
Night in Tawas City on Friday
Local time
10:44 PM
EDT
Current temp
37°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
2 degrees warmer at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
41m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Long Lake, MI to Tawas City, MI covers 27.9 miles and takes about 41m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are M 55 West, M 65, State Highway 65. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 13.9 miles from Long Lake, MI. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $4.36 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This drive requires moderate attention. Across 27.9 miles you will encounter 8 spots where lane choice or exit timing matters. Not difficult for experienced highway drivers, but worth previewing the tricky sections before you go.
The main spots that need attention: at 3.7 miles (West Webb): Highway fork - watch signs carefully; at 5.7 miles (M 65 / State Highway 65): Navigation decision point; at 12.7 miles (M 55 / M 55 West): Navigation decision point.
The route from Long Lake, MI to Tawas City, MI does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.
Mostly flat terrain. The route ranges from 588 ft to 920 ft elevation with about 1 ft of total climbing.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and USGS 3DEP for elevation. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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