This past week we have been visiting the beautiful Little Traverse Bay area of Michigan, or as the locals call it the "Tip Of The Mitt".
Charlevoix is a beautiful small town sitting between Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix. The canal between the two was very busy with large boats coming and going. In the 1920s Earl Young, a famous eccentric builder/architect built over 20 houses that are right out of a fairy tale. They are now called the Mushroom Houses, and a major attraction in the area. Some of them are available for vacation rental. Another quirky site in town is the World's Largest Cherry Pie Pan. It was built and used in 1976 as part of the Bicentennial Celebration. A sign next to it lists the huge amount of ingredients it took to make this Guinness World Record Cherry Pie.
Charlevoix is a beautiful small town sitting between Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix. The canal between the two was very busy with large boats coming and going. In the 1920s Earl Young, a famous eccentric builder/architect built over 20 houses that are right out of a fairy tale. They are now called the Mushroom Houses, and a major attraction in the area. Some of them are available for vacation rental. Another quirky site in town is the World's Largest Cherry Pie Pan. It was built and used in 1976 as part of the Bicentennial Celebration. A sign next to it lists the huge amount of ingredients it took to make this Guinness World Record Cherry Pie.
We spent the week at the Petoskey RV Resort, which has to be in the top five of RV parks we have stayed in. The grounds and facilities are beautiful and sites are large. We spent a few hours one day wading in the waters of the bay looking for Petoskey Stones. If you have not heard of them, they are unique looking stones with fossilized circles on them. With a little help from two local ladies who knew what to look for we found three stones, plus a few other colorful rocks. Later we made the short drive over to the quaint town of Harbor Springs. They were having a Farmers Market and we picked up a package of locally made ravioli. We then ended the day with a few nice Oatmeal Stouts and Soft Pretzels at Petoskey Brewing Company.
The city of Petoskey sits up on a hill over-looking Little Traverse Bay. It, like all the small lake front towns, has a municipal marina protected by a breakwater with a distinctive marker at the entrance.
We discovered that Earnest Hemmingway's family had a cottage on a nearby lake. Hemingway used the cabin to recover from injuries he sustained in WWI, and it was from Petoskey that he left to go to New York to begin his writing career.
One afternoon, we drove over to Gaylord just to visit one of our favorite places to eat, Gobblers of Gaylord. We discovered this place years ago and anytime we are in or near the area we stop in for a Turkey dinner with all the fixings.
We Ducked our first Jeep in a town parking lot.
We discovered that Earnest Hemmingway's family had a cottage on a nearby lake. Hemingway used the cabin to recover from injuries he sustained in WWI, and it was from Petoskey that he left to go to New York to begin his writing career.
One afternoon, we drove over to Gaylord just to visit one of our favorite places to eat, Gobblers of Gaylord. We discovered this place years ago and anytime we are in or near the area we stop in for a Turkey dinner with all the fixings.
We Ducked our first Jeep in a town parking lot.
I got in my weekly round of golf at the scenic and very difficult Bay Harbor Golf Course. With many holes right on the lake shore, it was hard to concentrate on golf and not the view.