Bill O'Brien of the Traverse-City Record Eagle has a nice piece on this year's grape harvest in Northern Michigan. It looks to be another good year for winemakers and wine lovers alike.
Northern Michigan vineyards are quiet these days, the fruit soaking up late summer sunshine, even as the region's other top crops are carted in from the fields.
But vineyards soon will buzz with activity, filled with workers and machines needed to harvest another grape crop, while local tasting rooms swell with thousands of wine enthusiasts.
It's an annual rite that excites even longtime winemakers like Leelanau County's Larry Mawby.
"Once the fall color starts, the season is busy, busy, busy," said Mawby, now in his 35th year growing grapes and his 30th year of making wine at his vineyard south of Suttons Bay.
Waterspouts are somewhat common over the Great Lakes in the Fall season. Waterspouts in the fall occur when colder air above the surface moves over the still relatively warmer waters of Lake Michigan. Most waterspouts that occur in this type of scenario typically occur under plain showers and are much weaker than their summer counterparts. This fall type of waterspout is different from waterspouts associated with thunderstorms. They also form differently than waterspouts associated with thunderstorms.
Folks may be aware that this year's Sleeping Bear Dunegrass & Blues Festival ran into major financial difficulties. The Leelanau Enterprise has an article that about the plans of the family of Dunegrass founder Mike Vanderberg, who owns the Dunegrass name:
Amelia Vanderberg, 25, of Empire, whose band ABNC performed at Dunegrass this year, said the family is organizing a non-profit group that could put on Dunegrass and other community-based educational music projects to raise funds for arts and music in the area.
“Part of the mission statement for the non-profit is to have the natural beauty that surrounds us promote and inspire art and music in our community and beyond,” she said.
...Family and friends are in the process of forming the non-profit group and anyone interested in being part of the process can contact Amelia Vanderberg at P.O. Box 75, Empire, MI 49630, or talk to her in person in Empire.
This week we took a look at The Grand Vision, a citizen-led transportation and land use study. Check it out for some cool videos of what people are thinking about how growth can (and should) impact outdoor recreation, community, housing, jobs and agriculture. The rest of the news was events, meaning it must be time to get out and do things before the weather makes us decide to pull up a chair by the fire!
The Week's Weather
The weather was pretty cool, but there was a lot of sun to be had!
Hey, look out! Fall is coming down the road!! Post color reports from your area in the comments below along with cool fall photos, events or whatever other observations you have.
On Sunday, September 21 the The Cherry Capital Cycling Club will host the annual Leelanau Harvest Tour. It's an annual bicycle road ride that drew 1,000 riders last year and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. To honor this milestone, a bluegrass band will perform at the end of the ride and special surprises along the routes are also planned.
The tour starts and ends at Glen Lake School, and route options cover 15, 25, 45, 67 and 100 miles through the hilly countryside. In an effort to encourage families and less inexperienced riders, the 15-mile route was added this year. The rides feature unique food stops every 20 to 30 miles at lakefront parks with a menu that includes specialties from area merchants and restaurants. Pre-registered riders will also enjoy a pasta and salad meal after the ride, which is included in the registration fee.
If you're looking for a reason to get back to Leelanau this fall - or a fun way to spend the weekend if you live here - consider the Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association's annual Harvest Stompede Vineyard Run & Walk and Wine Tour over the weekend of September 20 & 21. It's considered one of the most scenic running & wine touring events in the Midwest and is returning to the Leelanau Peninsula for the eighth year.
The race itself is the kickoff of the weekends festivities and will be held on Saturday, September 20 at 9 a.m. Designed for serious and recreational runners and walkers, it's a great event for spectators as well. Race coordinator Nate Rousse says "This is a one-of-a-kind annual run sponsored by the Traverse City Track Club and hosted by the Leelanau Peninsula winemakers. The course winds through absolutely gorgeous vineyards and is open to the public only on race day."
The Harvest Stompede Wine Tour follows the race and offers a special pour and food celebrating the season at each of the Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association member wineries.
The Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce will hold its first annual "BBQ & Brew" event on Saturday (Sept 13) from Noon - 4 pm under the tent across from Cottonseed & the Totem Shop in Glen Arbor.
There will be a BBQ Chicken contest featuring area chefs and the event will feature microbrews from Shorts Brewing Company, Bells Brewing Company, Right Brain Brewery and root beer from Northwoods Soda. Original Rock & Roll & Elvis Entertainment (Reginald Harris and the White Side Wall Review featuring The Fantastic Curb Feelers) and Cynthia Rutherford, DJ rounds out the afternoon.
In just over a month, residents of Leelanau County (also also Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, and Wexford counties) will be asked to help decide the next 50+ years of transportation and land use development in our region through a project involving community, government, business and citizens known as The Grand Vision.
Leelanau.com has been working on videos that explore what people across the region feel about issues surrounding the growth of the area. Here's the latest (click to YouTube to watch in high-quality) - please share this important effort with your friends & family and click over to thegrandvision.org to see more videos, learn more about the project and how you can get involved!
