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For those who enjoy the great outdoors, Michigan is a vast playground full of waterways, forests, state parks, national lakeshores and the largest section of the 4,800-mile, eight-state North Country Trail (which stretches from North Dakota to Vermont, with about 1,150 miles running through Michigan’s two peninsulas). Michigan is home (and home-away-from-home) to paddlers, bikers, hikers, campers, anglers, stargazers, birdwatchers and others who are eager to escape the noise of the world and find ways to connect (or reconnect) with nature in the simplest of ways.

Some of the most successful operations are born out of necessity or passion. For Sandy Arens, both were driving factors in her founding of Alcona Brew Haus (676 US-23 N, Harrisville). The seasoned businesswoman and graduate of the culinary program at Schoolcraft College is also the mother of 10 – three of whom battle severe food allergies which require constant attention and awareness.

Drive through the rural countryside and you’ll find barns of all shapes, sizes and conditions dotting the landscape as a testament to the agricultural heritage that shaped and still impacts the state of Michigan (the second-most agriculturally diverse state in the country, behind California). According to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the food and agriculture industry contributes $104.7 billion to the state’s economy.

Not all who wander are lost; those who meander with meaning are sure to pick up nuggets of culture along the way — from traditions to music, dress, and cuisine. This free-spirited worldly influence is exactly what the leadership at NOMAD. in downtown Bay Harbor was going for when they opened the restaurant’s doors last May.

A growing number of female recreationalists are taking to the woods, waters and trails of Michigan thanks to a program through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) called Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW®). Founded in 1991, the national non-profit BOW® is a hands-on educational program with a presence in 38 states and six Canadian provinces that collectively reaches tens of thousands of women each year who learn new outdoor skills from experienced guides in a safe and welcoming environment.

Last winter, skier Kyle Kelly of Caledonia and snowboarder Brad Dykstra of Dorr devised a plan to hit as many of the Lower Peninsula’s ski areas as they could in order to break a record for downhill snowboarding and skiing. Twenty-four hours, 763 miles, two Go-Pros (with 13 batteries and six SD cards), and 23 slope stops later, the two west Michigan friends not only hit their goal, but they achieved world-record status for both skiing and snowboarding.

Just off US-131 on M-75 headed into downtown Walloon Lake sits a large gambrel barn style structure that has been entertaining families for generations. While there have been years when the building sadly sat vacant, it has remained an iconic part of the village’s history while waiting patiently for its next chapter. Last month, after months of renovations by owner and developer John Parent, the space has reopened as the Junction Event Space.

Beth Maatta has spent the past 17 years serving and protecting the communities in which she has lived – as a law enforcement officer, advocate and a guardian of injured wildlife.

Six years before Michigan’s statehood in 1837, John Vickers settled in an area of southeastern Kalamazoo County where he built a log grist mill – believed to be the first in the county – along an eight-foot waterfall on Portage Creek. Over the years, this community was known as Holland, Lincoln and Brady (for one whole day) before being incorporated as Vicksburg in 1871. By the 1880 census, there were 784 people living in this small town which today has grown to a population of 3,706 based on the 2020 census.

Movie theaters began popping up around Michigan more than a century ago, becoming the heart of downtown communities and drawing families out for a night on the town. With the 1980s introduction of cable television, laser discs, VHS and DVDs for in-home viewing as well as multiplex facilities, many small-town theaters began to close. In recent years, there has been a resurgence of restoring these historic movie theaters into different types of public spaces like bars, restaurants, dance studios and even a popular haunted attraction.

The city of Marshall has embarked on a fundraising campaign to raise money to convert a 1.6-acre parcel immediately south of its current Athletic Fields complex into a new community area called Eaton Park. The space, at the intersection of Hanover and Fountain streets, was previously a parking lot for the former Eaton Corporation. The building was demolished in the early 2000s and the land was donated to the city in 2020. Marshall, the county seat of Calhoun County with a population of 6,822, maintains nine additional parks and a riverwalk which are accessible to locals and visitors alike.

Every day, you’re bound to find a festival or special event taking place in one of Michigan’s many cities, celebrating everything from agricultural commodities and cultural arts to maritime heritage and holiday traditions. Even the smallest villages host annual events which appeal to their local residents as well as thousands of visitors who spend money on flea markets, pancake breakfasts, concerts, midway rides, arts and crafts, face painting, pageants, caricature drawings, beverage tents and so much more.