In 2023 we spent 30 days experiencing everything that Northern Michigan had to offer. From Leelanau & Mission Peninsula, Traverse City, Mackinaw City and Silver Lake Sand Dunes. There is so much! So we’ve broken it up into 2 separate posts.
This post will cover the areas surrounding Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has so much to offer it has its own post here including South Manitou Island.
The corresponding posts will cover Northern Michigan including Mackinaw City, Mackinac Island, Silver Lake Sand Dunes. The Upper Peninsula (UP) required its own post.
So Many Adventures……
Let me start with WOW! This area embodies the inexplicable beauty everyone talks about when they describe Michigan.
We have a separate post that covers everything we loved about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, itself. But lest not forget the beauty that surrounds it.
There was inspiring beauty everywhere and with only 2 weeks to soak it all in we were definitely on the go with paddle, bike and hiking excursions as well as winery tours, cherry picking, llama adventures and more.
Wineries
The Old Mission Peninsula offers an unparalleled experience highlighting amazing wines and the breathtaking natural beauty of Northern Michigan. We were able to experience a handful of them mostly after spectacular outdoor activities so we didn’t always catch a pic worthy of sharing. However, here is our humble review:
Chateau Grand Traverse! 5-Star! This was by far our favorite for the history, the wine choices were perfect for our semi-sweet tastes and the setting was beautiful. Our absolute favorite is the Late Harvest Riesling but there were several runner ups.
Peninsula Cellars. We enjoyed our visit to the historic schoolhouse, the lovely bar keeps were gracious and knowledgeable. We walked away with a couple of bottles (Homework and Detention).
Bonobo Winery. While we didn’t care for any of the mostly dry wines, we enjoyed the hospitality of the barkeeps and their knowledge in directing us to Wineries that were more suited to our tastes. The building is spectacular with an upper deck that has a magnificent view and caters to large groups. They have tasty hors d’oeuvres and wine Smoothies. What I admired most was their commitment to the Bonobo Conservancy.
Aurora Cellars, on the Leelanau Peninsula was 5-minutes from our campground. Again, the barkeeps were spectacular with tastings and advice. We enjoyed a cool white and a tasty appetizer gazing at the vineyards.
Chateau Chantal was a favorite. The barkeep was very knowledgeable in distinguings the exact blends that would suit our tastes. We ended up with a case of various flavors.
Farm Club, although not a winery is worth a mention. This fabulous farm to table restaurant, brewery and marketplace nestled in Leelanau County. We are 7 miles from downtown Traverse City, easily accessed by the TART trail. We stopped at this popular eating establishment while biking the Traverse Area Recreation Trail (TART) on a Sunday morning. We arrived just before opening and waited in line. The hype is well deserved.
Alpaca Farm
While enjoying a meal at Cherry Republic in Ann Arbor, we struck up a conversation with our young server who noticed by llama keychain. Well, she works at an Alpaca Farm and suggested we visit. Kismet! We always enjoy an Alpaca Farm visit so we made our reservations that very minute at Cotton Creek Farms on a day she would be our tour guide. What an amazing experience. We had lots of time to interact with the adorable residents while learning about their personalities and the workings of the farm. Highly recommend this experience and shopping in their store for quality and humane products.
Biking
We found two additional biking trails in the area other than the famed Sleeping Bear Dunes Heritage Trail.
The Leelanau Trail provides a paved off-road connection between Traverse City and Suttons Bay. We started in Suttons Bay, just a few minutes from our Campground and rode the 17’ish miles until it connected into the TART Trails network Traverse City. We then headed back the way we came. It is a beautiful ride on flat ground but it does get pretty busy.
Betsie Valley Trail was a favorite. The Betsie Valley Trail is 22 miles long and extends from Frankfort through Elberta and Beulah to Thompsonville in Benzie County Michigan. We started at Frankfort which was an hours drive for us.
The ride itself was spectacular with 3 miles along the shores of Crystal Lake and ending in the quaint town of Beulah.
While in the town of Frankfort, we dined at the famed Goody’s Seafood Shack and then celebrated a day well spent at Stormcloud Brewing.
Small Harbor Town
Another favorite place that Mike visited several times to catch the sunset was Leland, otherwise known as Fishtown. The sunsets were colorful and the town quaint.
Paddling
In addition to the paddle trips we did within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Park we did one from Mission Peninsula, which was our first in the area and has to be on the top of our list of MUSTS.
The day was spectacular, the water was clear and … well.. everything was just PERFECT!
We started at Haserot Beach and paddled to the lighthouse where the water was shallow so we pulled out the float and relaxed for a while and then leisurely paddled back to the car.
Lighthouse
The one Lighthouse in the area other than the one at South Manitou Island was the Grand Traverse Lighthouse. The small town near North Point seemed very cute and if we had more time, we would explored it more.
RV Resort
Lastly, the lovely resort we had the pleasure to enjoy for 2 weeks was the Wild Cherry RV Resort. It is a quaint campground with spacious lots that we truly enjoyed.
In Closing
If you’ve enjoyed this recap please see our other posts covering Sleeping Bear Dunes, Southern Michigan and soon to come Northern and Upper Peninsula adventures. The Great Lake State has so much to offer it was difficult to recap in one post.
Our 2024 season will encompass Wisconsin, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Missouri and more!
Dream Big….Travel Far….Live Well
Photography
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