The Les Cheneaux Islands area of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is known for many things – most notably the 36 islands that dot the waters of Lake Huron. Yet, since 2014, Chef Zach Schroeder has been on a mission to put the small town of Hessel (population 865) on the map for another reason – as premier dining destination.
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Perched on the northeast corner of Madison and Logan streets in the Heritage Hill District – behind a well-manicured bordering hedge – sits one of Grand Rapids’ most unique homes. This gem is known as the Meyer May House, after clothier Meyer May who in 1908 commissioned acclaimed Chicago architect Frank Lloyd Wright to design and build this 3,600-square-foot “Prairie Style” family dwelling.
Read morePaddling beneath the towering sandstone cliffs of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore just became a little easier after the new 64-foot Kayak Express hit the water last summer.
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With a fresh coat of snow on the ground, a carriage drawn by a team of Belgian draft horses treks 2.5 miles through the wooded countryside toward the cozy Elk Antler Cabin. There, a roaring fire and a mouth-watering dinner await. Along the way, guests of Thunder Bay Resort in Hillman are given a rare opportunity to view one of the Midwest’s private elk herds – 35 head – on the resort’s 160-acre enclosed preserve along the eastern edge of the Pigeon River Country State Forest.
Read moreGenerations ago, train travel was a primary means of transportation around Michigan. Yet many of today’s children have never experienced the adventure of riding the rails with the clacking of the wheels along the tracks, the faint aroma of the locomotive’s exhaust in the air and the feel of the wind in their hair while aboard the open gondola car.
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Travelers are once again heading to the heart of the Upper Peninsula for rest and relaxation at the historic Birch Lodge on Trout Lake.
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Just as the last of the autumn leaves blow away and the snow begins to fall, life on Walloon Lake slows to a comforting pace as the new season settles in. Winter in northern Michigan is something magical to experience, a charming wonderland retreat reminiscent of a storybook romance come to life.
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Much like the waves that roll in upon the Great Lakes shoreline, the port town of Lexington has seen a rise and fall of population and industry over the years. Settlers first arrived here in the 1830s and by mid-century this was a bustling port town built upon lumbering and later oil prospecting in Michigan’s thumb region.
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For more than 15 years, the Whiting Forest in Midland had served as a modest park where locals could hike casually through native woodlands, beneath towering trees, along the meandering Snake Creek and surrounded by nature on all sides. Yet the Forest was destined for bigger things.
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On a busy summer day, visitors fill the tiny Jampot shop in Eagle Harbor waiting patiently to purchase wild berry jams, hearty fruitcakes, savory baked goods and confections handmade by the monks of the Holy Transfiguration Skete, Society of Saint John.
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There are as many tall tales and legends tied to American gangster Al Capone as there are presumed bodies ordered by his deadly hits. However, there is little question that he often escaped the heat of Chicago (both the temperature and the law) by sneaking off to Michigan, as far north as the Upper Peninsula.
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Some people read food labels for health reasons, I read wine labels for loyalty reasons. More specifically, Michigan wine labels. As the president of Promote Michigan, I feel it is my obligation to walk the walk and talk the talk…and to sip the local wine!
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As early as the 1820s, Michigan lighthouses have been protecting the Great Lakes shorelines. Today, one of the rarest experiences is to spend the night in one of these historic and often romantic beacons. Nationally, only a dozen or so lights have been converted into bed-and-breakfast inns with a handful of them found right here in Michigan.
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