Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Nevertheless, itwasn'tgrapesbutcherries that putthisformertimber townonthemap.
Traverse City is the self-proclaimed Cherry Capital of the World, producing 200 milli-
on pounds of tart cherries per year (almost three-quarters of the nation's crop). The Na-
tional Cherry Festival is held here in July, and February brings another annual event, a
North American cross-country ski championship. Sixteen miles southwest of town, the In-
terlochen Center for the Arts offers year-round entertainment in the form of classical and
popular music, art, and dance.
10.
Old Mission Peninsula
A narrow spur bisecting Grand Traverse Bay, Old Mission Peninsula is as timeless as Tra-
verse City is trendy. The 18-mile drive along Rte. 37 lazes northward via a high hogback,
passingorchardsthatexplodeinafiligreeofcreamypinkblossomsinMayand,inautumn,
past blazing hardwood thickets.
Mission Point Lighthouse sits on the 45th parallel in a park at the tip of the peninsula.
Summertime visitors can climb the tower, enjoy the beach and hike surrounding trails.
Brush up on local history at a reconstructed 1839 Indian mission, then drive west across
the peninsula and go south on Peninsula Drive to the hook of historic Bowers Harbor,
which delights visitors with its gourmet restaurants, brewery, rumors of ghosts, and views
of Power Island.
11.
Charlevoix
Rte. 31 winds its way around the east bay toward the prosaically named town of Acme.
Thereyoucanbuyasliceofcherrypieorpluckabasketfuloforchard-ripefruitforapicnic
at Elk Lake or Torch Lake. The beach at Fisherman's Island State Park, several miles past
Norwood, is a perfect place to view one of Lake Michigan's million-dollar sunsets.
Farther along, the drive reaches the resort town of Charlevoix, whose main street is
flanked by two pretty shores—one is found on Lake Charlevoix and the other at nearby
Lake Michigan. Charlevoix is the departure point for ferries to Beaver Island, some 32
miles offshore. Dubbed the Emerald Isle by home-sick 19th-century Irish settlers, this
charming island once sheltered a breakaway sect of Mormons who established a colony
in 1848. Their leader, James Strang, reigned as “king” until he was brutally murdered in
1856. The island's Mormon and Irish heritage survives in the old Mormon Print Shop and
preponderance of Irish names among the 600 year-round residents.
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