Traverse Northern Michigan, August 2024

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AN O U T D OUOLT I M AT E FROM M R ESCAPE T R AV E R E M O R I E S SE R E N TA L C I T Y LI NK .M YN OR TH .C

LIVING ON THE EDGE

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INSIDE

Northern Home & Cottage

THE INSIDER’S GUIDE TO

THE COAST

PLUS:

Hunting for Lake Superior Agates AUGUST 2O24

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$6.5O

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EXPERIENCE OLYMPIC TALENT UP CLOSE SEPTEMBER 4 – 22

Enhanced tickets offer the best views, complimentary drinks, and gourmet treats for you and your friends.

Plan your visit and purchase tickets at TraverseCityHorseShows.com/Visit 2023 Leading Open Jumper Rider Cathleen Driscoll (USA) rides Flotylla at Flintfields Horse Park.

Photo: Megan Giese

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Building and Renovating Northern Michigan’s Finest Residences

joel@joelpetersonhomes.com • 516 E. Front St., Traverse City • 231.994.2168

DISCO

693 N West Torch Lake Drive, Kewadin

Remarkable opportunity to build a new home on world reknown Torch Lake with J. Peterson Homes. The spacious walkout site is adjacent to some of the finest estates on Torch Lake. Lot offers a gentle slope from the road to the home and a large lakeside yard leading to the shoreline with rare existing BOATHOUSE. The Visbeen Architects designed home offers a 3 car garage with bedroom and living area above, large open main floor, office, main level patio and primary suite with vaulted ceilings. The lower level features an open great room and game area, exercise room, 3 bedrooms and two full baths. Floorplans, specification sheet and allowances available upon request. MLS:1922918 $4,495,000

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features 08.24

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T H E I N S I D E R ’ S G U I D E TO T H E C O A ST

Turquoise waters. Dunes and docks. Lake views for miles and miles. In the heart of an Up North summer, when the big water calls, here’s how we answer.

B Y A L L I S O N J A R R E L L A C O S T A , C A R A M C D O N A L D, C ARLY SIMPSON, LISSA EDW ARDS & MEAGAN FRANCIS

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A SUPERIOR HUNT

photo by Allison Jarrell Acosta

DISCOVER MORE ABOUT UP NORTH PEOPLE, PLACES, FOOD AND EVENTS.

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Rockhounds scour the U.P.’s northern shore for Lake Superior agates—rare banded beauties found from the Keweenaw Peninsula to Whitefish Point. But in the town of Grand Marais, you won’t just find Lakers hiding in the rocky shoreline—you’ll find the “Agatelady” herself, sharing insights into how these swirled stones came to be, and how you just might find one of your own.

PHOTOS AND STORY BY ALLISON JARRELL ACOSTA

7/8/24 10:01 PM

Your One-Stop Shop for

FRESH, LOCAL FOOD ARTISAN BAKED GOODS JUST-PICKED PRODUCE

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PICNIC SUPPLIES

BREAKFAST, LUNCH, & DINNER

Open 7 days a week

DEPART M E N TS 9 | EDITOR’S NOTE

9000 E. Duck Lake Rd (M204) Suttons Bay, MI

11 | UP NORTH

The Curator in Grayling— and its sister store, The Repair Shop—are your stops for local artisan goods and the picnic spread of your dreams; book a serene log cabin getaway in East Jordan; plus, the North’s smallest (and cutest!) roadside photo op.

231.271.6658 www.9beanrows.com

— Celebrating 68 Years — 1956 - 2024

72 | LOVE OF THE LAND

Take a breezy trip up Old Mission Peninsula, and pick your own blueberries at this fifth-generation family farm.

17 | OUTDOORS

Sunny summer days are for floating above Elk Lake’s crystal-clear waters.

Hull’s of Frankfort Open Year Round

Family Owned & Operated Since 1956 419 Main Street, Frankfort | 231-352-4642

hullsoffrankfort.com

photos by EE Berger (top) and Dave Weidner (bottom)

63 | CULINARY NORTH

Visit Michigan’s first commercial elderberry farm for weekend brunch and a market run; plus, stop at Happy’s Taco Shop in Boyne City for a road trip-worthy secret menu item (and a delish pineapple shandy).

69 | SIP

The buzz around town.

70 | IN THE KITCHEN

Elevate your summer sips with a splash of this tree-ripened mixer.

17 ON THE COVER An aerial view of Arcadia’s Inspiration Point, along M-22. photo by Dave Weidner

Follow Us On Social Media facebook.com/mynorthmedia instagram.com/mynorthmedia pinterest.com/mynorthmedia

4 T R AV E R S E N O R T H E R N M I C H I G A N

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peremarquettewinery.com 231.233.0201 6540 Iris Road • Ludington, Michigan 49431

Be one of a kind.

Wexford Jewelers, your diamond source.

Specializing in custom design & designer collections wexfordjewelers.com • 231-775-1289

AUGUST 2024

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LE GA CY You’ve always been there for them, we help ensure you always will be.

At Greenleaf Trust, our mission is helping our clients achieve peace of mind, accomplish their long-term goals, and sustain their legacy. Our team is exclusively dedicated to providing the highest level of comprehensive wealth management services, trust administration, and retirement plan services.

Client relationships begin at $2 million.

TRAVERSE CITY | BAY HARBOR

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Financial security from generation to generation.

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Traverse

NORTHERN

MICHIGAN A MyNorth Media Publication

Vol. 44 | No. 3

273 Farm Lane, Traverse City Located in coveted Windmill Farms Space for every want and need 5 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms Birch hardwood floors Primary w/soaking tub, walk-in closet Walkout lower level

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Cara McDonald

MANAGING EDITOR

Carly Simpson Allison Jarrell Acosta

Bonus room for crafts, workout, play Near shopping, restaurants, downtown

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

PROOFREADER

Caroline Dahlquist

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS

Elizabeth Edwards Meagan Francis

MLS 1922985 | $750,000

521 Randolph Street, Traverse City, MI 49684

ART DIRECTOR PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

Tim Hussey Theresa Burau-Baehr

ASSOCIATE BROKER

231.944.4959

Ann@AnnPorterTC.com

ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR, SPECIAL SECTIONS

Rachel Watson

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Lisa Froning

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Mike Alfaro Ann Gatrell Meg Lau

Visit AnnPorterTC.com for more information.

412 N St Josephs • Suttons Bay 231-252-4132

Erin Lutke

MARKETING DIRECTOR MARKETING COORDINATOR

Ann Porter

Ashlyn Korienek Kayla Kennedy

OFFICE MANAGER

EDITORIAL & ADVERTISING OFFICES

415 Cass St., Traverse City, MI 49684 Phone: 231.941.8174 | Fax: 231.941.8391 SUBSCRIBER SERVICES

Visit MyNorth.com/Account to renew your subscription, change your address or review your account.

Subscribe to Traverse Northern Michigan at MyNorth.com/Subscribe.

Please email other subscription inquiries to info@mynorth.com or call 800-678-3416 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. EST.

Traverse Northern Michigan, (ISSN10713719) is published monthly by Heritage Broadcasting Company of Michigan, 1 Broadcast Way, Cadillac, MI 49601.

Periodicals class postage paid at Traverse City, MI 49684 and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Traverse Northern Michigan, 415 Cass St., Traverse City, MI 49684. Advertising rates available upon request. Subscription rate: $39.95 for 12 issues. Single issue price: $6.50.

All rights reserved. Copyright 2024, Heritage Broadcasting Company of Michigan.

Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

AUGUST 2024

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Traverse City • Northport • Interlochen

Northern Michigan’s Original Alpaca Farm and Boutique!

Crystal Lake Alpaca Farm & Boutique

Farm

Boutique

May 23rd - Oct. 31st Monday - Saturday 10 AM - 5 PM Nov. 1st - Dec. 24th Wednesday - Saturday 11 AM - 5 PM

Animal Park 4807 River Road Frankfort, MI 49635 231 - 920 - 7085

2nd retail location at The Grand Traverse Commons

Closed Sundays & Holidays

Sweaters, socks, hats, mittens, wraps, blankets, stuffed animals, and so much more!

Modern Masterpiece Downtown Petoskey!

1051 HILL ST., PETOSKEY MLS: 473945 4 Beds, 4 Baths, 5015 sq. feet, 5 car garage Absolutely no detail overlooked!

DAVID SHUMAN, BROKER/OWNER CELL: 231.360.9149 OFFICE: 231.622.3235 www.BayNorthRealty.com

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Editor’s Note

BIG TIME

photo by Taylor Brown

Y

ou know what a ginger knows? The good times to go to the beach. I’ve learned it the hard way, scuttling my chair as the sun moves; there’s no umbrella big enough to crawl under. No hat, no sunscreen can completely combat the noonday sun.

It’s just not my time of day, not my DNA and not my scene.

Necessity is the mother of alternative beach schedules, and I am the mother who makes her kids wait all day before loading them up at the absolute peak of the baking heat—4, maybe 5 p.m.—and driving 35 minutes west with the windows cranked down to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

The joy of off peak is a little trick I picked up when my kids were toddlers and learning to ski. No way in hell were we lining up for first chair. Skiing with a 3-year-old is like skiing while dragging around a 40-pound bag of dog food, and you need every single advantage and energy reserve you can muster. That meant heading in just as the first-chair early birds were heading out—somewhere around 1 p.m., the powderhounds would exhaust themselves and pull out of their front-row parking spaces and we would slide in, triumphant, and make the short, sweat-free, non-tear-soaked stroll to the lift from there. Trust me, it tastes like winning.

Same goes for beach day. If you can find a way to game it, the Big-Water beaches are an amazing place to be. Just not in the middle of a sunny summer day, at least for me. Instead, we roll in at dinner time, often with some water bottles and random food stuffed in my canvas beach bag. (Last week, we ate cold leftover lamb chops out of a Ziploc bag, along with a tub of baby carrots. It was fine; no one died, and no one had to drag a cooler across 200 yards of dunescape.)

The sun is still hot and high in the Northern Michigan sky at 6 p.m. and my kids immediately hit the water, leaving

me with my book and the blanket to myself. Families start to pack up and leave; others begin to trickle in, the mellower sunset crowd with their camp chairs, their fleeces tied around their waists.

It’s golden-hour light and the temps are total perfection, ideal for good long walks and getting just sweaty enough for a quick dip. Sometimes I’m too tired to make it until sunset, but the boys beg to stay every time; I’m almost always glad when we do. The lightning bugs appear as we walk back to the car and take turns brushing the sand off each other’s ankles and feet.

The drive home is for moon rise, the open sunroof, someone’s playlist on Spotify and maybe a Hail-Mary stop at the Corner Cone in Lake Ann (pro tip: they’re open ’til 10 p.m.).

I have friends who grew up here who admit to whole summers passing without them making it to the Big Water, and when I heard that I died a little. To me there is no inland lake, no cove, no bay that pays me off like a long hot night flopped on a coastal beach, drunk on the waves and watching freighters slide along the horizon.

In this month’s Guide to the Coast, you’ll find the rest of my beach-day tips as well as Carly’s favorite picnic provisions, Allison’s best rock hunting tips, and all the surf breaks, waterfront dining ops and island adventures you can handle, topped off with places to stay where you can fall asleep to the sound of the waves. Endless miles of Great Lakes coastline are calling—just don’t wait all summer to answer it.

Cara McDonald, Executive Editor cara@mynorth.com

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Congratulations

GLOC PHYSICAL

JOSH BALDWIN mpt

SHOULDER, HIP, KNEE & ANKLE

PAUL LARSON mpt

SPORTS MEDICINE & ORTHOPAEDICS

THERAPY TEAM for winning RED HOT BEST!

DAVE DIVER pt

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TRAUMA & FRACTURE CARE

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SPORTS MEDICINE

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Go forward, Go GLOC. 4045 WEST ROYAL DRIVE, TRAVERSE CITY, MI 49684 • 231.935.0900 • gogloc.com ORTHOPAEDIC CARE • PHYSICAL THERAPY • ORTHOTICS 0824_TVM_upnorth.indd 10

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Up North.

PEOPLE | NATURE | ARTS | NOSTALGIA | BUZZ | WISDOM | CURIOSITIES

MEET THE CURATOR(S)

photos courtesy of The Curator

by CARLY SIMPSON

A weary, rundown storefront in Grayling awaited its next adventure. To the Podjaskes, it shimmered with potential.

W

alking into the curator on michigan avenue you’re greeted by an array of home goods, pet items, baby supplies and toys, clothing and art. An organic pup-tart might make its way into your basket alongside an AuSable crewneck, a Hartwick Pines–scented candle and a learn-to-crochet kit for beginners.

AUGUST 2024

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THE ALL ELECTRIC

RZ

YOU CHARGE IT. IT RETURNS THE FAVOR. Starting At $59,850*

The Repair Shop, a sister store to The Curator, hosts a more food-focused selection, with beer, wine, fun mixers and a charcuterie-board-ready line-up of meats and cheeses. Like the flagship store, the curation is the magic, with local vintages snuggling up against Cakebread Cellars and a build-your-own six-pack set up.

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Your local source for carefully curated perennials, trees, and shrubs.

7740 N. Swede Road Northport, MI 49670 (231) 944-6663

www.peninsulaperennials.com

MYNORTHTICKETS.COM 800.836.0717

The 120-year-old building hits a sweet spot for owners Penny and Erich Podjaske. At one time, Penny’s family owned it and ran a restaurant. Her great-great-grandfather was the chef, and Penny recalls her great-grandmother’s stories of being a waitress there. It was later the home of other small businesses, including two hardware stores and a bicycle shop, where Erich spent several years working as a mechanic.

Their connection made the renovation a true labor of love—the original wood floors were uncovered, sanded and polished; the exposed brick and pressed-tin ceilings obvious mustkeeps; and when 5,000 subway tiles arrived, each one was laid by Erich.

— Browse the shelves: 200 E. Michigan Ave., Grayling; thecuratorgrayling.com

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Up North

Bucket List: Milkshakes with a View

CURIOSITIES

T

he best-kept secret at fort mackinac? Obviously not the boom of a canyon firing nor the crack of a musket. No, the best-kept secrets are the milkshakes at the Tea Room. Sip these delish concoctions (chocolate, strawberry, vanilla) while sitting under a yellow umbrella on the terrace with a view of downtown and the Mackinac Bridge unfurled below. – C.S.

GET TICKETS 19th Annual Lobster Fest, Aug. 10 ALL PROCEEDS FROM THIS

photo by Gail Snable

long-standing summer event benefit the continued restoration and preservation of the historic Grand Traverse Lighthouse in Northport. Dinner includes fresh East Coast lobster or filet mignon from Burritt’s Market, locally grown redskin potatoes and corn on the cob, dinner rolls, coleslaw and pie from Grand Traverse Pie Co. There will also be a silent auction. Two seatings (5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.); take-out/curb-side service at 5:45 p.m. MyNorthTickets.com

Carly’s Swooning Over: A Storybook Log Cabin Getaway

photo by Carly Simpson

GROWING UP, FAMILY VACATIONS meant hopping in the car and heading north to spend

a few days in a yellow cottage in Elberta, a retro A-frame in Cross Village or a tent on South Manitou Island. Today, even though I live Up North, I still love packing a bag for a long weekend staycation. A recent destination: The Hawks Nest. Set on the quiet southern shore of Six Mile Lake in East Jordan, this 380-square-foot, 1940s log cabin is a sweetie.

The back porch overlooks the water (two kayaks provided), the stargazing is phenomenal and evenings always end ‘round the fire pit. Search “Cheerful Six Mile Lake Log Cabin” on Airbnb. – C.S. Swoon! See what our editors are loving each month: link.mynorth.com/swoon

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SPONSORED

WEDDINGS

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The Alden B. Dow Home and Studio engages the imagination and elicits emotional responses in all who experience it. Planted into an encompassing pond, the Home and Studio is alive with reflective light, soaring roof lines, diverging angles, brilliant color and the perfect balance of enticement and tranquility. It truly is an “oasis of architecture and inspiration.”

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So much love went into my wedding flowers (my mom and mother-in-law grew dahlias, and we U-Picked the rest), that I knew I wanted to preserve them. I was beyond excited when I found resin artist Shawna Mang, owner of The Evermore Floweret in Levering, who displays your blooms in sentimental keepsakes like bookends, ring holders and more. Shawna makes the process seamless—but be sure to reserve your spot early! theevermorefloweret.com – A.J.A.

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Up North

NOSTALGIA

photo by Allison Jarrell Acosta

WISH YOU WERE HERE I’ve driven past this road sign dozens of times on the way to Charlevoix, Petoskey and beyond. From a car, the letters are small, offering just a moment for attentive passersby to catch them. For me, it’s a moment of joy. Joy that someone took the time to leave a sweet note; joy to be on a beautiful stretch of road Up North (less than a half mile from the cherry coffeecake at Royal Farms); joy that there are still so many discoveries to make in a place I love. Know where to look: Heading north on US-31, slow down before you reach Antrim Dells Road, being courteous of other drivers. The sign will be on your right near the intersection. Atwood (the Adorable) is 5 miles north of Eastport and 12 miles south of Charlevoix. -C.S.

AUGUST 2024

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THE BEST MEMORIES ARE MADE IN TRAVERSE CITY

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Outdoors

I

t’s my perspective above Elk Lake that I so enjoy as I dip my paddle into the water.

Sun-bleached, barkless trees rest on the lake’s floor, crisscrossed on top of one another. The pale green, Caribbean-colored water is so clear that I have a hard time distinguishing depth—are the trees below mere inches away, or many feet?

Elk Lake has 28 miles of shoreline to explore, making it a stand-up paddleboarder’s dream. It’s also a part of the Chain of Lakes, connecting to Torch Lake in the east, and on its west end, the east arm of Grand Traverse Bay. The Elk Rapids Marina on Bridge Street is a perfect launch location.

(Tip: Bayfront Beach & Bike has full-day rentals.)

I paddle past Elk Rapids Marina, duck under the bridge and head out into Elk Lake, which is about one to two miles wide and nine miles long. Elk Lake is an oligotrophic lake, which means it has low biological productivity, is nutrient poor and has abundant dissolved oxygen throughout its depths, making aquatic plants uncommon. The high level of calcium carbonate gives the water its beautiful emerald green color in the summer and the ability to see down to the quiet underwater forest. Those drowned trees date back to 1874, a time when a thriving sawmill was operating in the village.

It’s this scenery and the easy accessibility that make Elk Lake so special to me. And being just a few minutes from downtown Elk Rapid’s restaurants and boutiques is the icing on top. Take your time and enjoy the paddle.

Gear

SUPs come in all types of lengths and widths, including rigid fiberglass and epoxy combinations and inflatables. Some have keels, fins and foot holes for more stability. Recreational boards are between 10 to 12 feet long and 32 to 34 inches wide. Inflatables come in a bag and are easy to store if you’re short on room. Some folks even take them touring, paddling down rivers for multiple days, and strapping their gear on top with bungies.

PADDLE PARADISE

by CINDY ROSS

Sunny summer days are for floating above crystal-clear waters.

Tip

The first time you stand up on your board, it’s kind of like being on a ladder—you must keep your feet reasonably stationary or risk falling. Good balance is an advantage, but stand-up paddleboarding is also a great way to build better balance and core strength.

I start out kneeling, then slowly raise my body upright, with my feet spread apart to balance. It’s probably a good idea, once you get away from the dock, to rock your board until you fall off to calculate its range and how far you can push it.

Local paddleboard expert Matt Mulligan says, “If you’re worried about getting wet on a paddleboard, you have no business being on it. If you look up, you stay up. If you look down, you go down.” That being said, wear your bathing suit or synthetic clothing and invest in a dry bag to keep your phone safe. Fortunately, inland Elk Lake warms up early compared to Lake Michigan, so going for an impromptu dip is actually enjoyable.

Cindy Ross is an author, outdoor travel writer and nonprofit director based in Pennsylvania.

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Secrets of a Better Custom Home Build Harnessing the power of inspired collaboration is the key to a more seamless, creative, cost-efficient and joyful luxury home–building experience.

by CARA MCDONALD

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

C

ollaboration in a project as complex as building a custom home may seem like a given—of course there will be multiple teams pulling together for a shared outcome. But truly effective collaboration takes thoughtfulness, as well as leadership that is deliberate about nurturing a collaborative culture.

“Assembling a team early on, one that plays well together, is without a doubt the key to collaboration,” says Rob Mossburg, founder of The Cottage Company, a Northern Michigan home building and interior design team specializing in luxury custom homes. Here, Mossburg along with Kelly Konoske, creative director for Cottage Company Interiors, shares what their teams find to be the core elements of exceptional collaboration:

their hand, using interactive plans to expand or shrink room sizes, collaborating to enclose a porch for three-season enjoyment, moving windows to accommodate furniture placement, simplifying rooflines to save money, adding shrubbery for privacy or sketching in a fire pit down by the boat dock. We can visually problem solve in real time, together.”

Shared Accountability

While collaboration makes for exceptional projects, Mossburg heeds the truism “if everyone is responsible, nobody is responsible.” Sharing accountability goes back to having clearly defined roles so there are no assumptions, and ensuring each team leader owns them. But equally important, Mossburg

Clearly Defined Roles

“The key here is early team assembly, and hosting planning meetings early—and often,” Mossburg says. “When each team member has a clear vision of their contribution to the project, it leads to greater clarity and focus, which prevents overlap or duplication of efforts,” he adds. Defined roles also help with streamlining workflows and decision-making processes—essential during a complex build.

Conflict Resolution

photos courtesy of The Cottage Company

Building a home can be the culmination of a lifetime’s worth of dreams and a major stressor—conflicts happen in any complex undertaking, but Konoske embraces the idea that if conflict happens, you take advantage of that dynamic by both managing and leveraging it: “Conflict means two or more ideas are converging,” she says. “Why wouldn’t you brainstorm, consider, reconsider, debate and embrace the result?”

Healthy conflict can actually spike creativity and lead to entirely new ideas and better outcomes. “How you handle conflict separates the good companies from the great ones, so that comes back to how important it is to build a team of highly skilled people you trust—and that you enjoy spending time with,” Mossburg says.

Technology

Collaborating across teams—especially with long-distance clients—is more streamlined than ever thanks to software that enables real-time communication. At The Cottage Company and Cottage Company Interiors, they use software, including Studio Designer, to help clients track progress and engage with their design/build teams.

According to Konoske, “It’s not uncommon for weekly Zoom meetings on more complex projects to include builder, architect and interior designer, all with an electronic pencil in

notes, is that the client is accountable, too. “Every day that a client doesn’t respond to their architect or interior designer with approval of their sketches or selections, tacks a day onto the big reveal,” he says.

Mossburg adds that celebrating the team’s milestones, deadlines, accomplishments and wins along the way help keep the collaborative spirit alive. “Effective collaboration of team members can save weeks on an overall schedule and contribute to a creative, joyful project vibe,” Mossburg says. “All of which contributes to less stress, budget adherence, staying on deadline and heightened creativity—and a beautiful end result.”

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A S U P E R IOR HUNT THE ELUSIVE LAKE SUPERIOR AGATE. ROCKHOUNDS SCOUR LAKE SUPERIOR’S SHORELINE FOR THESE RARE BANDED BEAUTIES — FROM THE WESTERN REACHES OF THE KEWEENAW PENINSULA TO THE U.P.’S EASTERNMOST WHITEFISH POINT. BUT IN THE CHARMING TOWN OF GRAND MARAIS, YOU WON’T JUST FIND THESE SEMIPRECIOUS GEMS HIDING IN THE ROCKY SHORELINE, YOU’LL FIND THE “AGATELADY” HERSELF.

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P H O T O S A N D S T O RY B Y

ALLISON JARRELL ACOSTA

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IT’S A GOOD DAY when you’re road-tripping to the U.P. just to go rock hunting. Even when that trip falls during a 45-degree cold snap in June.

I cling to that mantra as we cruise north under M-77’s lush forested canopy.

A small sign for Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore lets us know we’re getting close.

We dip down a hill that reveals the quaint lakeside burg of Grand Marais.

The highway transitions into the town’s main drag, Lake Avenue, dotted on either side with colorful restaurants and gift shops before ending promptly at the Lake Superior shoreline at a spot called Agate Beach. It’s clear we’ve reached our destination.

If I were to conjure up my own rock-hunting paradise, it would look a lot like Grand Marais. A quiet, laidback atmosphere. Walking distance to the beach. A spot to grab my morning matcha and a bar with live music (and a killer whitefish sandwich).

We stop briefly to unload our luggage at the Beach Park Motel, and the adrenaline kicks in. The rain I feared we’d get is nowhere to be seen, and the sun has popped out— its first appearance since we left Traverse City.

“OK then, let’s go hunt for agates!”

I declare to my husband. He smiles, knowing full well that rockhounding was always the plan, rain or shine.

I’m no stranger to the beachcombing scene. I’ve picked Petoskey stones, hunted for hunks of Leland blue slag, collected crinoids. Scattered throughout my home, you’ll find bowls and Ziploc bags full of finds from countless beach days— fossils of all shapes and sizes, laketumbled beach glass and rocks that simply look cool.

But this weekend I’m in Grand Marais for the coveted Lake Superior agate—a semiprecious gemstone formed 1.1 billion years ago by processes that scientists still don’t fully understand. A seemingly impossible combination of color and structure designed by nature.

There are thousands of agate varieties on Earth, and here in the Lake Superior region, our agates were once thought to be the oldest (disproved only recently by a discovery in Australia). Still, Lake Superior agates—dubbed “LSA’s” and “Lakers” by nerds in the know—are the oldest in the Western Hemisphere, and they’re considered an extremely rare find, especially those larger than a pebble.

Each year, rockhounds flock to beaches from Copper Harbor in the Keweenaw Peninsula to Grand Marais and Whitefish Point—and don’t forget

Minnesota, where LSA’s are the state gemstone—looking for Lakers, which often come in warm iron-rich hues like red, orange and yellow, and can exhibit many different designs (experts would call this “self-organized structure”), from fortification (the most common) and circular “eyes,” to red and white candy stripes and straight “water-level” lines, to name a few.

And today, we join the hunt.

We bundle up and drive east of town to a stretch of beach I’ve only read about online, park among a few other beachcombers and tread through the sand to a vast rocky shoreline, with Lake Superior shimmering under the midday sun. The piles and piles of multicolored pebbles are unreal and beautiful … and massively overwhelming.

I fill my lungs with fresh lake air and look down. Immediately I’m distracted by all of the colors and designs that we don’t typically see along Lake Michigan. Yes, I’m looking for agates … but, what is THAT!? Pluck, examine, keep, repeat.

Eventually, I stop my squatwalking—that cute thing rockhounds do when they want to keep their face low to the beach while continuing to slow-mo waddle—and look back to see my husband sitting in a pile of rocks.

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My heart leaps. A piece of beach glass maybe?

I quickly pluck the translucent treasure and cradle it in front of my face. That’s when I see the banding, and a surprisingly detailed gradient of white, creamsicle and burnt orange. I gasp, jaw agape, before running over to my husband for a celebratory hug.

It’s a Lake Superior agate.

I’m vibrating with excitement as I carefully stow the small gem in my camera bag.

Tomorrow, I’ll show it to the Agatelady.

Surely, he can’t cover enough ground with that kind of extended break, but after 45 minutes of squat-walking, it does look … relaxing.

I stroll over (my legging pockets now stretched to max capacity) and find him digging through a pebble pile.

And I realize it’s genius. These mounds are deep. “This is my ‘sit and dig’ technique,” he announces proudly.

I plop down next to him and follow suit, brushing away layer after layer of rocks. Brush, scan, brush, scan.

And that’s when it happens. A fateful swipe reveals a bright orange glow sitting atop much darker stones.

Walking into Karen Brzys’ Agatelady Rock Shop, I’m greeted by Peruvian music and more agates, rocks and minerals than I’ve ever seen in one place.

Karen’s whimsical artwork hangs in the windows— translucent slices of Brazilian agate welded together in different patterns (a sun, made with a round center agate and oval agate “rays,” is my favorite). Other agate slices that she’s fashioned into lampshades glow atop antique Tiffany brass bases.

And directly in front of me: bins and bins of raw Lake Superior agates in about every shape and color you could imagine.

It’s heaven.

True to her name, it doesn’t take long to realize that Karen “Agatelady” Brzys knows just about everything there is to know about the elusive Lakers. When she’s not running the shop, writing books or creating art, Karen’s reading the latest research on agates, even traveling downstate to have international studies translated at the University of Michigan.

Her thirst for knowledge is admirable, especially considering she’s an unlikely rockhound.

“I was blind until I was eight,” she says; her condition was caused by exposure to too much oxygen in an incubator as an infant. Karen’s vision improved steadily throughout her life, and doctors told her the fact that she can see at all is a miracle. “I don’t see well, but I see well enough to get a driver’s license and identify agates,” she laughs.

Karen grew up in the suburbs of Detroit and spent her childhood summers in Grand Marais, where her Finnish grandmother was born and her mother was raised. It was here that Karen met Axel Niemi, owner of Grand Marais’ Gitche Gumee Agate and History Museum, which he opened in 1947. Axel, whose parents also emigrated from Finland, managed the Woodland Park Campground by day, and (when he wasn’t hunting for agates) entertained tourists at the museum in the evenings. Karen spent many a summer night sitting on the front porch of the museum, waiting for Axel to return from his day job.

Previous spread + far left: Some polished Lake Superior agates (purchased), a gifted raw LSA, plus the Laker I found, all nestled among our collection of Lake Superior rocks. Top: Rockhounds at Muskallonge Lake State Park.

Bottom: My first-day find at Perry’s Landing.

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He gladly took her under his wing.

“He never had children, so he sort of adopted me,” Karen says. “He put rocks under my face, because I could only see three inches … and he would teach me about them.”

At the age of 10, with her sight improving, Axel had Karen look through a telescope one evening. She peeked through the eyepiece and saw Saturn’s rings—a moment that changed everything for her.

“Axel said to me, ‘Karen, given your eyesight problems, if you can see the rings of Saturn, you can do anything,’” she recalls. “And that was the first day of my life. I believed that to be true.”

Karen went on to earn advanced degrees—a bachelor’s in natural resources and a master’s in higher education administration—and she even went down 13 different career paths. But working with agates always called to her.

In 1994, she moved full-time to Grand Marais and co-founded Lake Superior Brewing at the Dune Saloon. (Unsurprisingly, the brewpub’s logo is a

banded agate, and the saloon still has a rainbow of agate slices adorning its front windows.)

Four years later, Karen had the opportunity to purchase the museum from one of Axel’s friends and promptly renovated the downtown building before opening the following year. She used the money she made to publish books—seven to date, from the history of the U.P. to the geology of Lake Superior’s stones.

But running the agate shop hasn’t always been easy, especially during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. It seemed that for every kind, interested rockhound who came into the museum, there was a boorish tourist demanding info on finding agates, or insisting that she identify buckets full of beach rocks. She found that folks interested in chatting or buying a souvenir would tire of waiting and leave, and those wanting free information never left.

In 2022, Karen made the impossible decision to close the museum, and a year later, she opened the Agatelady Rock Shop two miles south of town, near the eastern entrance of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Even though she’s still only a couple minutes from the beach, she’s found that most of the folks who make the effort to visit now are genuinely interested in the shop’s geological treasures.

Karen also decided to set some healthy boundaries with her visitors—

MEET THE AGATELADY

K A R E N offers regular hours at her shop on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 2–5 p.m. (June through September), or you can reserve a private appointment online for a small fee. The shop is located at E21401 Newberg Rd., 3/4 of a mile west of the intersection of M-77 and Newberg Road.

And for those who want to learn more about agate hunting, Karen’s book How to Find Agates: A New Method , has more than 2,000 positive testimonials (yes, I picked it up). To come up with her methodology, Karen interviewed unsuccessful agate hunters, figured out their main issue, and researched the way our brain and eyes work together in order to solve that problem. You can grab a copy on her website (but you’ll want to visit her in person for an added bonus!). agateladyrockshop.com

semi-retirement shop hours are limited (see above for more info), but rockhounds can set up private appointments, classes and lectures on other days. As a bonus for those who venture to her new shop, she’ll look at three of your rocks for free and let you know whether they’re agates.

And if a rock is, in fact, a prized LSA? “If it’s an agate, I ring the bell,” she says, walking over to the front corner of her shop. A stately bell hangs against the wall; she swings the clapper back and forth so I can hear. “They love it … some people cry.”

That kind of sentimental reaction may sound odd to some. But when you’re a rockhound who 1) spends your free time either looking for agates or seeing other people find agates, and 2) nerds out and understands the significance of this rare piece of geological history … well, you get it. This author is personally a bit of both, but when it comes down to it, I just really love art found in nature. Plus, who doesn’t like hunting for ancient buried treasure?

As Karen tells it, Lake Superior agates were formed 1.1 billion years ago in the Midcontinental Rift, through a

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very specific series of events that involved basaltic lava, gas pockets and acid rain (cool, right?).

“The most interesting thing about agates,” Karen says, “is we don’t know exactly how they formed. We can make diamonds, sapphires, other precious and semiprecious gems. And there have been people that have attempted to make agates; I’ve had calls from chemists over the years.”

But no one has solved the puzzle.

There isn’t any single definition of what an agate is. But they’re identified by two main characteristics: more than 50 percent of the rock has to be microcrystalline silica (usually chalcedony), and there has to be self-organized structure—we’re most familiar with concentric banding, but there are about 30 different types of structure an agate can have.

Lake Superior’s beaches are full of “agate imposters” like jasper and chert, which can share similar characteristics.

But the main difference, Karen explains, is translucency. Jasper and chert consist

Left: Karen Brzys in her new Agatelady Rock Shop (the sign behind her is from the old Gitche Gumee Agate and History Museum and reads “kivi nurkka,” Finnish for “rock corner”). Top: Large LSA’s on display in the shop. Above: A bin of beautiful $2 Lakers.

Brzys has 260 bins of rocks and minerals from all over the world, and you’ll find agates from $1 to about $150 in price.

DON’T MISS: T H E G R A N D M A R A I S RO C K A N D M I N E R A L S H OW

THIS ANNUAL EX TRAVAGANZA, FEATURING ROCKS AND MINERALS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, TAKES PLACE SEPT. 7–8 AT THE COMMUNIT Y CENTER, 21738 BRAZEL ST., GRAND MARAIS. HOURS ARE 10 A.M.–5 P.M. SATURDAY, AND 10 A.M.–4 P.M. SUNDAY. ADMISSION IS $3, CHILDREN 12 AND UNDER ARE FREE.

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of round microcrystals (smaller than white blood cells), which causes them to be opaque. In agates, the microcrystals are fiber-shaped, and that geometry allows for transparency.

LSA’s, however, are tricky; some sections can be so iron-rich that they lose their translucency. I think back to the tip of my recent find—the dark orange color is much less see-through than the white and light orange bands. An iron-rich Laker.

“Would you mind looking at the rock I found yesterday?” I ask eagerly at the end of our chat. While I’m fairly confident in my find, I feel nerves coming on.

The Agatelady’s judgment is what counts, and I really want her stamp of approval.

I hand the gem to Karen and she reaches back for her magnifying headlamp.

She takes her time inspecting, quietly noting the colors and the banding.

And then … nothing.

Was I too cocky?

Did the imposters fool me?

Karen finally smiles, gets up from her chair, and walks over to the corner of the shop. She gleefully rings the agate bell.

I let out a yip and do a happy dance for my lucky find—it’s hard to contain my bliss in this joyful moment shared between rock nerds.

I’m in awe of the beauty, the rarity, of this treasure found. Of the remarkable gems that come from the depths of our own Lake Superior. But it’s also more than that.

In a world that keeps getting louder and faster, I feel present and at peace when I’m on a beach picking through a pile of rocks. No schedule, no goal.

Rockhounding demands nothing of us, except a bit of focus and discernment, and in return, it rewards us with a meditative moment. Find or no find.

There’s a singular magic in slowing down and spending time to literally, and figuratively, ground yourself. And just like an agate, it can’t be replicated.

Allison Jarrell Acosta is the associate editor of Traverse Northern Michigan magazine. She recommends sitting in a pile of rocks this summer. You won’t be disappointed.

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Beach Like a Local Escape to a Deserted Island Dine Lake to Table Plan an Accessible Adventure Experience the Thrill of the Hunt Discover the Best U.P. Birdwatching Camp on the Water Reel it in Surf the Big Lake

The Insider’s Guide to the Coast Turquoise waters.

Dunes and docks.

Lake views for miles and miles. In the heart of an Up North summer, when big water calls, here’s how we answer.

By Allison Jarrell Acosta, Cara McDonald, Lissa Edwards, Carly Simpson & Meagan Francis

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Beach Like a Local Rockstar parking, grit-free picnics, secret beaches— this is how we do it.

1/ Bring a beach sheet. Not a blanket, not a

towel—a full-on flat bed sheet makes an easy-toshake-out (and large) lounging surface that won’t trap sand.

2/ Get in your car and drive. Opting for the

closest beach will get you lots of people with the same idea. What’s 40 minutes if it takes you to the best beach ever? Pick a far-flung beach to try (hello, Frankfort; howdy, U.S. 2), take the wheel and thank us later.

3/ Don’t forget the inland gems. With less

shriek-inducing water temps, beloved inland lakes like Long, Crystal, Torch and Burt are all home to beaches that are swimmer- and kid-friendly. But pro tip: Get the scoop on cases of swimmer’s itch in the area. It can be a thing in inland lakes.

4 / Walk on the wild side. Dozens of preserves,

5/ Don’t count on dog-friendly options. Plenty

of beaches don’t allow dogs at all, and Michigan’s leash law requires all dogs remain leashed when in public. Beaches that do permit leashed-only pups typically have designated dog zones, so be sure to check signage.

6/ Rethink your “beach day” time frame. Noon

’til 3 is for suckers. The moment everyone else packs up to leave is the very best time for beaching it—the sweetest being from 6 p.m. ’til sunset. Still warm, still sunshiny, with rockstar parking (front row!) and fewer weeping, sunburned children.

7/ Keep your spread simple. Ditch the grills and

heavy coolers—to make a picnic on the beach easy and grit-free, just stop and grab a sandwich already.

There’s a cool, locally owned grab-and-go spot en route to every great beach we know (Shipwreck Café, Empire; Symons General Store, Petoskey; Lake Street Market, Boyne City). Just toss them in your beach bag with some lightly frozen water bottles and you’re good. Pro tip: Call ahead and place your order so you can skip the wait. –C.M.

Pack a Picnic

Is there anything better than a crusty baguette, a tub of smoked whitefish dip and a good view?

We don’t think so. Here are three spots where we love to spread a blanket.

THE SPOT: THORNE SWIFT NATURE PRESERVE, HARBOR SPRINGS. Picnic at the pavilion then check out the Elizabeth Kennedy Nature Center and hike the trails down to the beach.

THE SNACK: Just 2 miles down the road, POND HILL FARM has a legendary Parmesan-crusted grilled cheese with melty Havarti and Swiss. Plus, cutie goats and a spunky cat named Pumpkin.

THE SPOT: ELK RAPIDS DAY PARK, ELK RAPIDS. Home to the Art Rapids Walk of Art, an outdoor sculpture gallery, this park has more than 30 sculptures tucked along trails leading to a quarter mile of sandy beach frontage on East Grand Traverse Bay. Picnic tables, grills, pavilion and restrooms available, too.

THE SNACK: Peruse the glass cases at THE FLOUR POT, filling a to-go box with cherry turnovers, nut-studded cinnamon rolls and all the sprinkle doughnuts your heart desires.

THE SPOT: MAGOON CREEK NATURAL AREA, MANISTEE. A little off the beaten path, you’ll find picnic tables and covered pavilions atop a 150-foot bluff. The view is spectacular, anchored by dunes and the Manistee North Pier Lighthouse.

THE SNACK: TWO SLICES makes mighty fine sandwiches, like the Ham Jamwich with habanero bacon jam, arugula and goat cheese, and don’t skip the fudgy marshmallow brownies topped with chocolate ganache. –C.S.

photo by Taylor Brown

conservancy properties and natural areas around Northern Michigan are home to fantastic beaches that fly well below most beachgoers’ radars. Some require a bit of a walk, so pack light—your reward could be a completely empty stretch of dunes or untracked waterfront. Check out Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, Leelanau Conservancy and Little Traverse Conservancy’s websites for directions.

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Escape to a Deserted Island A rustic experience close to shore offered the perfect mix of security and solitude on my first solo backpacking trip.

Just a few miles from the Munising coast, and with the option of a rustic cabin for sleeping, Grand Island seemed like the perfect place to test out my fledgling backpacking skills on my first solo camping trip back in 2019. But as the ferry docked, I was beginning to feel a little apprehensive. Grand Island isn’t technically far from the mainland, but traveling there means cutting oneself off from many of the comforts of “civilization.” There’s no electricity, no showers, no flush toilets—and, for the size of the island, very few people. Especially, it turns out, overnight.

I hoisted my backpack containing a sleeping bag, butane stove and two days’ worth of clothing and food and began the 3.6-mile hike to the aptly named Sunset Cabin, located on the island’s west side. The walk alternated between sunny trails flanked with tall beach

grasses and wildflowers, to cool wooded spots and a surprisingly steep cliffside with stunning Lake Superior views.

Finally, a sign from the trail beckoned me down a wooded path to my new home for the weekend, and after emptying my pack and making a cup of tea, I headed out to explore the island’s forests, coves and cliffs—all the while never seeing another human.

That night, hours after the last ferry had departed, I sat on the beach, sipped cocoa from my silicone cup and watched the sun set. How many of us were still on the island, I wondered?

There was no way to know, but in that moment, it felt like it belonged to me entirely.

My decision to opt for a cabin over tent camping (Grand Island offers 19 campsites, 2 group sites and backcountry camping) had initially been

practical: my too-big tent wouldn’t fit inside my toosmall backpack. But as I latched the wooden door and spread out my sleeping bag, I breathed a sigh of relief to have something solid standing between me and all that quiet.

Since that trip, I’ve been back to Grand Island twice, once with my brother and sister, and then the three of us with our spouses. The island seems busier by day now than it did in 2019, but at night, it’s still a pretty solitary experience, allowing us all to reconnect with each other and nature. And while our middle-aged bodies appreciate having a bunk—even a bare-bones one—to sleep on, our still-youthful hearts have appreciated even more the opportunity to play out our deserted island fantasies … just a few miles away from a hot shower on the mainland. –M.F. AUGUST 2024

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Don’t Miss:

Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show AUGUST 10

IN THE LES CHENEAUX ISLANDS—an archipelago oasis of 36 islands off the U.P.’s southeastern shore—wooden boats aren’t just a vessel for freshwater cruises, they’re a way of life. Hessel, the islands’ second anchor city, just west of Cedarville, is home to the first Chris-Craft dealership in the world, E.J. Mertaugh Boat Works, Inc., which opened in 1925. A real pioneer, Gene Mertaugh built the first boathouse out of scrap lumber and navigated his Chris-Craft inventory up Lake Huron via compass.

Discover the Best U.P. Birdwatching Each spring and summer, millions of birds migrate along the Straits of Mackinac—from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace—as it’s the shortest launch point to fly across the Great Lakes.

Two popular birding trails to start your journey: The SHORE TO SHORE BIRDING TRAIL (which spans Sault Ste. Marie, Paradise, Seeney, Newberry, Naubinway and a bit of St. Ignace), and the NORTH HURON BIRDING TRAIL (covering St. Ignace along the Lake Huron shoreline all the way to Drummond Island and up into Pickford).

Along those trails, we love these two off-the-radar birding destinations:

LES CHENEAUX ISLANDS: Miles and miles of protected

shoreline habitat make these islands a birding wonderland. Head to Search Bay National Forest Campground to see dozens of warbler species, bald eagles nesting and a bay full of waterfowl.

Or boat to Government Island, specifically the south end, for some breathtaking birding experiences. –A.J.A.

Today, the shop partners with community organizations to host the Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show every second Saturday in August (this year’s 45th annual show takes place Aug. 10). It’s the largest event of its kind in the world, drawing more than 150 classic boats (and 10,000 boaters) to Hessel. The show also features a Festival of Arts, showcasing a variety of juried artwork.

P.S. Wanna get out on the water, but don’t have a boat? Book a day-long excursion, including a ride on a classic wooden boat, with MackTours, or check out Island Charters for fishing trips (everything from big-lake fishing to fly-fishing) and custom tours from Mackinac Island to Les Cheneaux to Drummond Island. You can also take a five-hour Les Cheneaux Lighthouse Cruise, offered by Shepler’s Ferry, that boasts views of six lights, as well as a look at the archipelago’s many channels. –A.J.A.

photos by Allison Jarrell Acosta

BRIDGE VIEW PARK & PTE. LE BARBE, ST. IGNACE: Situated along Boulevard Drive (west of the bridge), this spot is great for seeing just about everything. This is where the Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch counts hawks, and you can see tons of waterfowl congregate along the protected shoreline. Green Island (located straight out from the bay) is home to massive gull colonies. And warblers are known to coat the trees here; they feast upon the midges that hatch in May.

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Dine Lake to Table

These al fresco dining spots put you as close to the water as you can be without getting wet.

5/ Pink Pony, Mackinac Island. There’s

no better spot for hang time than this Mackinac Island institution, with its fleet of beachside tables under bright pink umbrellas.

The beloved Pink Pony pairs nautical charm with Michigan beers, feisty rum runners, burgers and a famous whitefish dip, made all the more delicious when served up harborside. PRO TIP: There’s live music every night from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. –C.M.

1/ Blu, Glen Arbor. Here’s how to score a beachside

table on the terrace of this fine-dining establishment.

Wake up, check the weather forecast ASAP. If there is no chance of rain through the evening, hop on the restaurant’s website and reserve an outside table (note: reservations for outside dining are day-of only). Go ahead and bundle up—upscale Blu has a friendly, casual attitude that understands the need for down vests on cool summer evenings.

2/ Brandy’s Harbortown, Bay Harbor. Brandy’s is

like someone’s idea of a restaurant in heaven: a laidback cabana bar with four walk-up “micro kitchens” serving wings and beer, fresh fish, comfort food and creative healthy fare, perched on the edge of a marina on Little Traverse Bay. You can thank the restaurateurs behind Bay Harbor’s popular Maple + Batter for this novel concept. We’d score a dockside patio seat, order up a lobster quesadilla with a cold rosé then bliss out to the clink of the sailboat riggings on the masts.

3/ Stafford’s Pier Restaurant, Harbor Springs. It

photo by Jacqueline Southby

doesn’t get more on-the-water than a restaurant built on original pier pilings. The deck at The Pier is the perfect place for a special-occasion dinner or happy hour over a shared crab cake and glass of bubbly. But if you literally want to dine on the water, book a boat tour on the Pointer. Originally built in 1934, the Pointer takes guests along the shoreline of Harbor Point and Wequetonsing and can be catered by Stafford’s with hors d’oeuvres, sandwiches and beverages.

4/ The Club at Breakers, St. Ignace. Indoors, the

waterfront views are stellar, but The Club’s patio lays the beach right at your feet with tables just steps from the lapping waves of Lake Huron. Order up one of the fresh fish specials or a Shame on Brie sandwich with chicken, bacon, Swiss, Brie, arugula and cherry preserves—just make sure to save room for blueberry skillet pie.

Plan an Accessible Adventure

The lakeside town of Ludington has become an accessible-travel haven for nature lovers of all abilities—and that includes beach lovers and paddlers, too.

LUDINGTON STATE PARK is home to a universal kayak launch, situated along Hamlin Lake Beach, that allows wheelchair users to safely get in and out of the water. Other accessible features at the park include:

> Two all-terrain, electric-powered track chairs—free rental, call 231.843.2423 ext. 0 > An EZ Roller floating surf wheelchair > Beach wheelchairs—free, first-come, first-served; rent from the Beach House and the Hamlin Lake concession stand > A universally accessible walkway to Lake Michigan > A handicapped-accessible playground at the Hamlin Beach Picnic Area > A SeeCoast EnChroma® Viewer, helping those with color blindness enjoy the full spectrum of colors along the Skyline Trail (the first of its kind in Michigan) NOTE: The majority of Ludington State Park will close Sept. 3, 2024, through July 1, 2025. However, 2,000 acres of parkland and a beautiful 3-mile stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline south of the Big Sable River, including the hiking trails and boardwalk, will remain open and accessible to the public via roadway parking along M-116. –A.J.A

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Ella Skrocki was pushed into her first waves on her parents’ old windsurfing board at 7 years old. A couple of years later, in 2004, her parents Frank and Beryl, went out on a limb to open the region’s first full-service surf shop, Sleeping Bear Surf & Kayak, in Empire. Now celebrating 20 years, the shop is an anchor for the local surf community. We asked Ella for advice on catching your first wave: “Surfing is a journey, a puzzle, a practice, a meditation, a surprise, an experiment, an expression. There are so many elements to Great Lakes surfing that are both so challenging, and so rewarding. But my deep

love for surfing comes from the connection I make with the water and the present state of mind I enter when dropping down the face of a wave.

“While many may be tempted to jump into the surf at the height of the season, remember that our mighty Great Lakes are no standard bodies of water, and their power is so often underestimated. Just as you wouldn’t zip down a double black diamond your first day on skis, be wary and respectful of the lakes and your abilities.

“Take a lesson, connect with the community, invest in the proper gear and learn the foundational safety and etiquette skills that are vital for entering the water.”

photos by Taylor Brown

Surf the Big Lake

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Fall Asleep to Waves Land a Big One

There’s nothing like a day on the dazzling-blue Lake Michigan waters. And when that day includes the excitement of fighting a salmon or lake trout on the line, then grilling said fish that evening ... let’s just say: It doesn’t get much better.

WITH UPWARDS of 50 charter boat captains fishing out of a half-dozen marinas between Frankfort and Ludington, there’s a captain ready to get you and your group on the water.

These charters go where the fish are—anywhere along the breathtaking Lake Michigan coast from Ludington to as far north as Platte Bay. The boats are equipped with electronic fish finders, GPS, downriggers, radar and some even have autopilot. FIND YOUR CAPTAIN: michigancharterboats.com PRO TIP: Remember to pack food, beverages, sunscreen and warm, waterproof gear, and wear layers—it can be very cold on the lake in the morning. And don’t forget your camera! –L.E.

These Northern Michigan campgrounds are just a stone’s throw from the water.

1/ D.H. Day Campground, Sleeping Bear Dunes Just over a low dune from Lake Michigan’s spectacular Sleeping Bear Bay, D.H. Day Campground presents a sublime playground for a summer sleep-out. Walk the beach forever, swim in warm waters and relax by a bonfire at night.

Cruise a couple of miles into downtown Glen Arbor to pick up supplies for s’mores at Anderson’s Market, or if you want somebody else to cook for you (Art’s Tavern, Millie’s and Cherry Public House are a few favorites). Good to know: 87 sites; vault toilets; no showers; potable water is seasonal. Regular sites may be reserved up to six months in advance for May 1 to October 15.

2/ Fisherman’s Island State Park, Charlevoix

Number of campsites: 80. Number of acres: 2,678. Nice ratio for serenity seekers. Even better, Fisherman’s Island, just south of Charlevoix, offers campsites smack on that endless beach—a rarity despite Michigan’s abundant shore mileage. Vault toilets; hand-pumped water; no showers or electricity.

3/ Wilderness State Park,

Carp Lake Pop a tent beside the Straits of Mackinac and watch passing freighters and sailboats from your perch on 26 miles of shoreline. And when the sun goes down, the stars really come out thanks to the park’s designation as a dark sky preserve. Choose from rustic cabins, bunkhouses, full hook-up campsites, walk-in tent sites and backcountry camping.

photo by Dave Weidner

4/ Mouth of Two Hearted

Fisherman’s Island State Park

River State Forest Campground, Luce County The Two Hearted River’s name was irresistible to Ernest Hemingway, who stole it for a story title (he actually fished the nearby Fox River). But even more irresistible is the location of the namesake campground, right where the river pours into Lake Superior. Cast a line from your campsite or walk a short way for agate hunting. The campground has drivein sites, water pumps and outhouses; available on a first-come, first-serve basis. No reservations. –C.S. AUGUST 2024

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Experience the Thrill of the Hunt

1/ Petoskey Stones (and other fos-

sils): Formed 400 million years ago, Petoskey stones are actually fossilized coral deposits embedded in limestone bedrock. Their iconic cell-like pattern is synonymous with the North— you’ll often find Petoskey stones along Lake Michigan’s shoreline and near Little Traverse Bay. Other fossils to look for: Charlevoix stones (small dotted pattern, a cousin of the Petoskey), horn coral (often Bugle shaped) and crinoids (these resemble small eyes or doughnuts, even starshaped sometimes).

2/ Leland Blues: These brilliant blue, green and

purple treasures aren’t actually stones— they’re slag, a byproduct of Michigan’s smelting industry. When raw ore is heated, the iron ore is separated from impurities, and the cooled impurities become slag. You can find slag in Frankfort, Cadillac, Elk Rapids, Fayette, Marquette—anywhere smelting was done. Because slag is commonly found in the Leland area, it’s become known as Leland Blue (Frankfort Green is another common variety).

3/ Fluorescent Sodalite: Also

known as “Yooperlite,” this super cool mineral rock glows under UV light, so it’s best to hunt under the stars, UV flashlight in hand, once the sun goes down. They’re most commonly found along Lake Superior, in areas like Grand Marais and the Keweenaw Peninsula.

4/ Greenstone: Michigan’s state gemstone, Chorastrolite (aka greenstone or Isle Royale greenstone) is considered rare and difficult to find

because it’s often only seen as small pebbles in basalt. The pattern of this gorgeous green gem resembles a turtle shell, and it’s mainly found along the shores of Isle Royale and the Keweenaw Peninsula.

5/ Pudding Stones: Glaciers brought

these conglomerates (which resemble a Christmas pudding) south from Thessalon, Canada. The stone contains rounded pebbles (dating back 2.4 billion years!) of red jasper, black chert and white quartzite “cemented” together by quartz. You’ll find pudding stones on Drummond Island and along Michigan’s eastern shore. (You can find small ones in Lake Michigan, but they’re rare.)

6/ Beach Glass: Sure, it’s not a rock,

but lake-tumbled beach glass is a beautiful treat to come across while beachcombing. In Michigan, common colors include clear, brown, green and light blue; less common are dark blue, purple, red, orange and yellow. –A.J.A. & C.S.

photo by Tim Hussey

Northern Michigan’s vast shoreline is packed with rocks of every hue, sparkle and shape. We have some of the best rock hunting in the world thanks to our region’s geological history. Here are six prized finds—from fossils and slag to gems and glass—that dot the North’s beaches. Can you spot ’em all?

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^ Peach Crisp with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Serves 6

Object of Desire

PÊCHE KEEN WE LOVE a good Le Creuset pot—not only for

the timeless utility, but also for the hit of accent color it adds to any kitchen shelf. And the juiciest new color rollout, Pêche, is a soft shade of peachy sunset that goes from oven to table with style. On our wish list: the cast-iron shallow casserole (just right for a peach pan dowdy) and the stoneware heritage rectangular dish, perfect for summer’s crisps and cobblers. We’d pair either of them with this classic recipe, courtesy of Mission Table. –C.M.

Peach Filling 6 ripe peaches, peeled and cut into 1-inch wedges 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 lemon, juiced and zested 2 teaspoons corn starch 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon Topping 4 ounces sweet butter, cubed, at room temperature 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup rolled oats 1-2 cups all-purpose flour 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Make the peach filling. In a medium mixing bowl combine peaches, sugar, lemon juice and zest and let stand for five minutes. Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Set aside.

3. To make the topping, combine butter and brown sugar in a mixer on low speed until incorporated. Add vanilla, salt and oats and continue mixing while adding flour incrementally until it looks like wet granola and just barely holds together when pressed into a ball.

4. Grease an 8-by-8-inch baking dish with butter, add peach filling and cover evenly with topping. Bake until topping turns golden brown and filling starts to bubble, about 20–25 minutes. Remove peach crisp from oven, let stand for 15 minutes and serve warm with vanilla bean ice cream.

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house and home

KEEPING IT OLD SCHOOL A CHICAGO COUPLE TRANSFORMS A SUMMER COTTAGE INTO A YEAR-ROUND HOME WORTHY OF ITS VENERABLE HISTORY. B y E L I Z A B E T H E D W A R D S / Photos by ANGELA DEWITT

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J

ust weeks before the stock market crashed in 1929, Alexander Grant Ruthven, then a zoology instructor at University of Michigan, was named president of the prestigious institution. For the next 22 years, Ruthven guided the university through the Great Depression and then World War II. When he needed relief from the pressure, he escaped to a farm in Frankfort where he kept Morgan horses on a large parcel of land until his death in 1971.

The farm has several dwellings on it—one said to have been lived in

by Ruthven’s daughter. Over the rest of the last century, that farmhouse sat empty and was rumored to be haunted. Eventually, it was turned into a summer cottage and upgraded with insulation and a new roof.

But still, there was much to be done when Chicagoans Mike and Barbara Perry purchased it. With deep ties to the Frankfort area and its history— Barbara has been summering here since she was a child—the couple set out to convert the old cottage into a year-round home.

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The Perrys hired contractor Darryl McNiff of Platte River Construction to oversee their project. McNiff and his team had built a home for their family friends nearby, and had renovated a section of Barb’s family cottage in Crystal Downs—with rave reviews from both clients. But finding an architect proved harder, as each one they called was booked out for many months. That was when McNiff suggested Keith Campbell, a commercial

architect in Chicago and former client of his who has a second home in Benzie County. The Perrys tracked Campbell down and found their taste was a perfect match. “It was a great gift, in a turbulent time of our lives, to have Darryl suggest that we might work with Keith,” Barbara says. Both were in transition—Keith had just retired from his career as a commercial architect, and the Perrys were packing up their house of 35 years outside of Chicago.

“We all wanted to do a renovation that was consistent with the architectural language of the original house,” Campbell adds.

The formidable punch list for the old cottage included installing central heating. The existing heat was electric baseboard, a system the Perrys realized was untenable when it cost them $30 to heat the house on just one November night. To that end, McNiff’s crew installed in-floor heating

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by breaking through a basement wall into the extremely tight crawlspace under the home—a laborious process, but one that preserved the original Douglas fir flooring.

Updating the antiquated kitchen was an equally complicated endeavor.

“It was a nightmare,” McNiff recalls.

“When we opened the walls up, the framing was almost non-existent—the walls had two-by-fours holding everything up.” As with any work in an old

structure, there were surprises, including the charred evidence of a chimney fire that made the Perrys and their contractors wonder how the clawfoot tub directly above it managed not to fall through the ceiling. A newspaper buried in the old lath-and-plaster walls and dated 1893 was another enlightening discovery, placing the home’s construction date to that year or before.

Working within the small existing footprint, Barbara led the way in

While the old cottage kitchen needed a top-to-bottom redo, the homeowners managed to preserve its vintage ambiance; Family antiques and local art scattered throughout the home are a blending of the couple’s Chicago and Northern Michigan roots; The primary bedroom, with its pastoral view of Alexander Grant Ruthven’s former stables, is big enough for the Perrys to spread their yoga mats.

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The light-filled bedroom in the apartment above the garage makes a welcoming space for guests; Soothing sage-colored walls and a cedar-paneled ceiling create the sense of a sanctuary in the new primary bedroom; The kitchen in the guest apartment is small but stylish and efficient; The refurbished clawfoot bathtub fits under an upstairs eave where it’s been since the better part of the last century.

the design of a perfectly functioning kitchen outfitted with Wolverine cabinetry and new appliances. Mike, meanwhile, re-harvested pine wood once used in the kitchen walls to make a lovely banquette nestled in one corner.

The team built an addition to add a new primary bedroom, a light-filled space with generous windows and a cathedral ceiling clad in cedar. “We wanted to use a lot of cedar for its wonderful smell,” Mike says.

Now finished, the home is a harmonious orchestration of new and old. That old claw-foot tub has been re-plumbed and is (safely) usable again; the vanity that Mike fashioned out of another of the re-harvested wall planks is set handsomely in the primary bath; and the distinctive antique mullioned pattern of the windows in the upstairs rooms was replicated in the new addition. From top to bottom, the home is a graceful echo of its past—while being comfortably livable in the modern era.

While they’ve only recently moved in, the Perrys already have wonderful memories of their home that include the renovation itself. “Darryl, his crew and Keith all feel like family to us after working together on this project,” Barbara says.

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house and house home and home

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THE ANNIVERSARY COTTAGE

I

ONE OF THE NORTH’S MOST TALENTED DESIGN-ANDBUILD TEAMS COMPLETES A CLASSIC SHINGLE-STYLE COTTAGE ON WALLOON LAKE IN TIME FOR THE LOVELIEST OF OCCASIONS. B y E L I Z A B E T H E D W A R D S / Photos by BETH SINGER

n the late fall of 2019, Brian and Brenda McKeen bought a lot on Walloon Lake with a sweeping vista up the body of the lake.

The purchase was the culmination of a long-held dream to have a cottage on that lake—a dream they’d often spoken about with Lucy Earl, of Jones-Keena & Co., the designer who’d helped them renovate their circa-1920s home in Bloomfield Hills. Given the McKeens’ strong working relationship with her, they looked to Earl to guide them through the design and building process of their new cottage. It was a task Earl took on with gusto, knowing that there was deadline: The McKeens wanted the cottage finished in time to celebrate Brian’s parents’ 70th wedding anniversary in the summer of 2021.

Earl launched the process by introducing the McKeens to architect Nick White of the Petoskey-based firm White & Liebler Architects. Over his three decades-plus career, White has developed a signature cottage

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style (particularly evident in the homes along Walloon Lake) that draws on the characteristics of early 20th-century summer homes in the Great Lakes and Northeastern Coast. That résumé jibed perfectly with the shingled exterior and lovely wrap-around porch that the McKeens envisioned for their new cottage. “We thought that Shingle style would be very fitting in Northern Michigan,” Brian says.

While White and his managing partner/principal Nick Liebler tackled the blueprint, Earl and the McKeens set off for a home-furnishing buying trip to Atlanta in January of 2020. “I tell every client that there are three things for me that make a house: great rugs, great art and great antiques—these give a house soul and a rich background,” Earl says. Among the trio’s finds on that trip was a large, four-panel fabric-covered wall piece embossed with depictions of Revolutionary War soldiers. Earl saw it at once as a thematically anchoring feature—bringing out the home’s spirit of vintage Americana as well as the shades of blue the McKeens wanted threaded throughout their home.

Even as the treasures from the Atlanta trip had been shipped North, and just before ground was to be broken for the new cottage, the Covid-19 shutdown took effect. The team, which now included contractor Richard Collie of the Harbor Springs– based Collie Construction, didn’t lose heart. Even when hammers couldn’t ring, they kept planning through a steady stream of Zoom meetings.

Despite the setback, there are many happy endings to the story of this cottage, one being the camaraderie that developed between the homeowners and the entire designand-build team. A standout was the opportunity for Earl and White, both of whom are nearing retirement, to work together: “Working with White & Liebler was a pure joy. Nick White and I are basically the same age, so as senior architect and designer we have lots of experience,” says Earl, adding that managing partner Nick Liebler was also a big part of the project. “We had a grand time creating this house.”

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The pale blue palette in the living room echoes the colors of Walloon Lake out the window. Note the millwork throughout the home drawn by White and executed by the craftspeople at Collie Construction: “Nick White is one of the best millwork architects I’ve ever worked with,” says Earl. “He understands how to do really beautiful traditional millwork packages for new construction that give a house a timeless quality.”

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But by far the grand finale was the wonderful 70th anniversary party held in the cottage for Brian McKeen’s parents, just 18 months after the team broke ground. While there was some finishing on the lower level to complete, the upstairs was ready to house the whole family.

“We built that entire house in record time,” says Earl.

The soldiers depicted in the antique wall panels set the color palette for the hearth room.

Earl picked up what she calls the “Crayola yellow” in the rug which also carries out the home’s blue theme; The homeowners chose an Adirondack theme for the downstair bar area (see the photo on page 61). Note the birch bark–covered walls; Earl designed the fireplace in one of the bedrooms after the Calvin Coolidge Summer White House in South Dakota. “It’s done out of all kinds of different gemstones, quartz and arrowheads and there’s a big fossil on the front of the fireplace that has a little tiny stone dinosaur inside,” says Earl. “The stone masons became so engaged [that they collected their own] stones to add. [When it was done] they waited for me at the top of the driveway to come and see the finish.”

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photo by Allison Jarrell Acosta

—CARLY SIMPSON, MANAGING EDITOR

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NanBopFarm.com

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T he Cu l i nary North Destination Eats

NEW BERRY ON THE BLOCK

by CARLY SIMPSON

Visit Michigan’s first commercial elderberry farm.

photos by Timeless Media Productions

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n traverse city, m-72 is a growing agritourism destination, its curving lanes lined by acres of apples, cherries, raspberries, peaches, plums, wine grapes, corn and, more recently, elderberries.

The 14-acre Elderberry Farms Estate is Samantha Fall’s long-time dream—a decade ago at her East Lansing home, she started a “mini-farm” with dairy goats, chickens and produce. She made goat milk soap, butter and lotion, all the while planning how to expand beyond her homestead. She fell in love with elderberries after a relative recommended elderberry syrup to help with a nasty cold. “I was astonished at how well it worked,” Fall says, adding that the U.S. needs approximately 2,500–3,000 additional acres of elderberries per year to keep up with demand.

She started eyeballing a parcel of land along East Traverse Hwy. (M-72) in 2019, and closed on it in February 2020. For the first year, Fall focused on irrigation, greenhouse assembly, soil regeneration and planting. In addition to elderberries (which Fall hopes to offer as UPick this September and October), the estate has U-Pick blueberries and lavender. A crisp white farmhouse market is stocked with DIY elderberry syrup kits, elderflower and elderberry tea blends, raw honey, herbal remedies, local meats and more. The market is also home to a cafe and deli serving espresso, sandwiches and baked goods, and a weekend brunch (order the elderberry waffle with lavender

whipped cream and maple syrup). The building also doubles as a teaching space for a variety of classes from beekeeping to organic gardening, and Fall offers farm stays in a onebedroom apartment above the market.

“I believe—now, more than ever—there is a need to restore local regenerative ^ farms, and I wanted to create a concept that would benefit Explore the M-72 Farm Corridor the community, environment and hopefully inspire others Gallagher’s Farm Market: to get into farming,” Fall says.

Baked goods (pizza bread on “Whether it’s a tomato weekends), fresh produce, trellis on an apartment balcony kid-friendly barnyard, picnic tables or using a laundry basket for growing potatoes, every little Jacob’s Farm: U-Pick orchard, effort counts. If you’ve thought live music, playground, of growing a few herbs in your dog-friendly, excellent New kitchen window or starting off York–style pizza, full bar with a few chickens, do it. The Rove Winery: Wine tastings, worst thing that could happen patio nibbles, workshops, is you learn.” live music —

Elderberry Farms Estate 4702 East Traverse Hwy., Traverse City elderberryfarmsestate.com

Light of Day Organics: Biodynamic tea farm, meditation garden, classes, tours

AUGUST 2024

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LOCAL TICKE T S .

ONE PLACE .

8/11 The Accidentals Fountain Point Resort 8/15 Summer Lobster Boil Black Star Farms 8/29 Walking Tour of Historic Empire Empire

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T he Cu l i nary North Bite A ROYALE SECRET

by CARLY SIMPSON

Let’s unwrap it.

T

photos by Allison Jarrell Acosta

urns out paradise can be a paved parking lot. Happy’s Taco Shop in Boyne City has a brand-new shipping container bar outfitted with three taps and owners Drue Wright and Drake Nagel’s signature retro style (gorgeous green and yellow tiles, skateboards, those California Raisin figurines from the ’80s, a doll head or two for good measure).

The Dish: Happy’s has a *secret menu* item—the Crunchwrap Royale. Your choice of roasted pork or smoked potato folded up with pinto beans, pickled veg, cilantro and iceberg lettuce with a squeeze of chili-lime syrup and a crispy grilled chihuahua cheese exterior.

On Tap: Happy’s is brewing beer, plus its shandy season; doesn’t get better than that. They’re pairing a honey-kissed Kolsch with pineapple lemonade and I’m here for it.

AUGUST 2024

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THE BUZZ AROUND TOWN A taste of the North’s craft beverage scene.

World Famous Smoked Pork Loin, Bacon, Ham, Hot Dogs, Bratwurst, and Smoked Fish.

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ST. AMBROSE CELLARS IS LITERALLY ABUZZ Defying categories, St. Ambrose Cellars in Beulah’s countryside is a familyfriendly destination offering something for everyone—beer, wine, cider, mead, yard games, kids’ slushies, live music, wood-fired pizzas and truffle fries to write home about. Owners Kirk and Sharon Jones have been raising beehives since the ’70s and use that honey in their meads (we especially love Wild Ginger, John Lemon and Razzputin, a sour raspberry draft). The Joneses have turned their love for honeybees into a series of successful businesses that also include Sleeping Bear Farms (purveyors of multiple honey products) and BeeDazzled (candles, soaps, body care products).

Look for the big red barn on Pioneer Road.

2200 East Mitchell Rd. at the corner of Mitchell & Division Roads PETOSKEY 231-348-8100 116 South 3rd Street ROGERS CITY 989-734-2232

Established 1985

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THOSE SUMMER NIGHTS AT HOP LOT BREWING COMPANY In August, this Suttons Bay brewery is, well, hopping. But for good reason.

The four-season outdoor beer garden (voted the #2 best beer garden in the country by USA Today) has a music stage, a massive 75'x75' sandbox (bring your own toys), fire pits, lawn games, slow-smoked meats piled mile-high on brioche buns, wine, cider and, of course, the requisite beer. A summertime favorite: Strawberry Highway Robbery, a blonde ale blended with local Leelanau Peninsula strawberries.

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267 S. Spring St. Harbor Springs 231-526-6606 Discover why our customers return year after year!

Featured on the Today Show, the Food Network and the Rachael Ray Show!

AUGUST 2024

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T he Cu l i nary North In the Kitchen

PRETTY IN PEACH

by CARLY SIMPSON

Add a splash of this tree-ripened cocktail mixer to your glass.

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t their august premiere, peaches take center stage in Northern kitchens—baked in streusel-topped crisps, dressed up in salads with balsamic and basil, drizzled with honey atop salty focaccia, and poured in tall, chilled glasses, too.

For their new peach punch, the local-loving crew at American Spoon hand-pits ripe Red Haven peaches, grown along Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay, and cooks them in small batches, leaving on the stone fruits’ soft, fuzzy skins to capture every last juicy drop of goodness. Those luscious peaches are then pressed, blended with citrus and passion fruit juices, and gently kissed with agave.

Here are a few ways to enjoy this seasonal sipper— before it’s gone in September.

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^ Bourbon Peach Punch Cocktail Serves 1 Bourbon American Spoon Peach Punch cocktail mix Club soda Peach and citrus slices, maraschino cherries and mint for garnish

Or try … * Rum Peach Punch: Pour one part rum and two parts mix over ice and stir. Top with club soda. * Peach Bellini: Add one part mix to two parts sparkling wine. * Peach Punch Mocktail: Simply enjoy equal parts mix and club soda. * Summer Shandy: While we haven’t tried it ourselves, we have it on good authority that Peach Punch also makes a fine beer shandy (equal parts mix and beer).

AUGUST 2024

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photos by Emily Berger, EE Berger Photo

Pour one part bourbon and two parts mix over ice and stir. Top with a splash of club soda for a fizzy finish.

Garnish with peach and citrus slices, cherries and mint.

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Love of the Land

get there When the dog days of summer begin to really sizzle, take a breezy road trip up Old Mission Peninsula to Buchan’s Blueberry Hill and pluck these plump, powder-blue gems right from the bush. This 100-year-old, fifth-generation family farm offers U-Picking by the bucketful, plus treats like homemade ice cream (get the Blueberry Hill, of course, or lavender, made with buds from neighboring Harbor View Lavender Farm). Can’t make it up the peninsula?

Buchan’s often sells blueberries at the Sara Hardy Farmer’s Market on Saturdays, and you can find their ice cream at Buchan’s West Bay or the new Scoops 22 ice cream truck. –A.J.A

photo by Dave Weidner

BUCHAN’S BLUEBERRY HILL

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EMERGENCY CARE THAT TRAVELS WITH YOU Wherever life takes you, McLaren’s state-wide network ensures that quality care is always within reach. Whether you need emergency services, urgent care, or a convenient walk-in clinic, our commitment to your well-being travels with you. Trust McLaren to be there for you, no matter where ‘there’ is.

Find a location at mclaren.org/northernER

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