Sun seekers tanning their hides on Empire beach were suddenly transported back in history on the afternoon of Sunday, July 31, when the Saginaw Voyageurs arrived in a birch bark replica canoe. The Voyageurs wore costumes to resemble the pre-American Revolution French fur traders, who opened up trade routes between Great Lakes Native American communities and Montreal. They were concluding the first day of a weeklong journey that began in Frankfort and ended on Aug. 6 in Traverse City.