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Looking to spruce up your garden or your yard? Two area communities have plant sales this weekend!

Cedar's Perennial Plant Sale is Saturday, May 25 from 9 AM - 3 PM. Hundreds of perennial and wildflower plants are ready for planting in your garden. Beautify your home with plants that attract butterflies and birds. Prices start at $2.00 with over 500 plants and 50 varieties. This is their major fundraiser of the year to support 265 days per year of free, educational, healthy and intergenerational fun.

The Annual Plant Sale on the Village Green in Leland is on tap for Memorial Day Weekend as well! Now is your chance to purchase native ferns, trillium, and more along with a selection of native trees and shrubs provided by locally owned Four Season Nursery, who will be on hand to answer questions about going native.

Sale runs Friday, May 24th and Saturday May 25th; hours 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. All proceeds help maintain the Village Green and assist with other Conservancy projects. The Wildflower Rescue Committee continually seeks new sites on which to dig. If you are building a home, driveway, addition, or know of someone who is, please contact the WRC so they may have a chance to remove these precious wildflowers before the excavators arrive! Contact Patty Shea: 256-9249 or Joanie Woods: 256-7154.

Photo credit: 20090429_0107_copy(Blood Root) by jsorbieus

The 2013 Cedar Polka Fest will be held July 4-7, 2013. Highlights include a parade on Saturday at noon, softball tournament, a polka mass and (of course) polka under the big, big tent with the big names of polka including the Cynor Classic Polka Band, Craig Ebel & Dy Versa, Jimmy J's Polka Band, the Frank Moravcik Band, Ray Watkowski Family Band and Pan Franek & Zosia.

Thursday, July 4, 2013
The annual Cedar Polka Festival begins with the flag raising ceremony at 5:00 p.m. Music and dancing begins immediately after the ceremony. Music TBA.

Friday, July 5, 2013
Sidewalk Chalk Art at 10 am, meet at the Town Hall. Music and dancing beings at 2 pm.

Saturday, July 6, 2013
Polka Fest Parade begins at noon at the Solon Twp. Hall. All participants should be at the Solon Twp. Hall by 11:30 am sharp.

Music and dancing begins at 2 pm and runs until 1 am.

Sunday, July 7, 2013
Polka Mass celebrated with Father Ken Stachnik at 11 am under the tent followed by the traditional Polish Procession of Our Lady of Czestochwa immediately after the mass. Music and dancing resumes at 1 pm.

For Info Phone: (231) 228-3378 or email cedarchamber@gmail.com.

The photo is Polka Dancing in Krakow by beastiekeith. Check out the Library of Congress Local Legacies and the Leelanau.com/map Cedar Polka Fest location

The Leelanau Enterprise reported that last Tuesday night Leelanau commissioners voted 7-0 to hire Chet Janik as County administrator. He's the seventh county administrator since the position was established in 1985 and will resign his current position as superintendent at Charlevoix Public Schools. They add that:

Janik, who immigrated to Cedar in 1961 with his family at the age of 5, will receive an annual salary of $73,780, which along with benefits raised his overall compensation over $80,000.

...Janik started his professional career as an administrator at the age of 23 with Northwestern Michigan College, and previously served as superintendent in Buckley before accepting the Charlevoix position.

Proud of his heritage, Janik couldn’t help but comment about paczkis being gobbled up by officials and residents during a short break in the meeting agenda that allowed he and Van Pelt to sign his contract.

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The Leelanau Enterprise reports that in addition to making it a rough winter for those who depend on snow for winter sports, the lack of snow this winter is proving troubling for wine grape growers. They talked with Charlie Edson:

Edson, of Bel Lago Vineyards & Winery north of Cedar, has more than 100 grape varietals planted on 32 acres in Centerville Township that are susceptible to freezing without snow cover.

“I don’t know how hardy the vines are. I’m guessing not as hardy as we would like,” he said.
As of Wednesday, 43 inches of snow had been recorded at the Road Commission garage in Suttons Bay, about half the 85 inches from a year ago at the same point of winter. Adding insult to injury is that any snow that has come has melted away due to unseasonably warm temperatures. On Friday, the mercury broke 50 degrees at the Enterprise weather station in Lake Leelanau. A high of 60 was recorded in the past week at the Road Commission garage in Maple City.

Those readings are a concern for grape growers throughout the region.

“It’s a problem for us,” said Erwin “Duke” Elsner, Michigan State University small fruit production & viticulture specialist based in Traverse City. “Snow is a primary source of insulation providing up to 10 degrees of protection. If it gets down to minus 5, the temperature around the vine can be 5 above.”

While lack of snow is also a concern for local small fruit trees, it is less concerning than for grapevines. Elsner explained that tree trunks comprised of sturdy tissue can survive lower temperatures.

Read on for more!

Photo credit: Vineyard ... on the Eve of Spring by Ken Scott

A pair of fun winter events are on tap for next Sunday...

The annual Cedar Winterfest happens from 1-3 PM at the Snowmobile Club 2 miles north of Cedar on Schomberg Rd.

You're invited to bring your winter sleds, tobaggans, saucers, cross country skis and snowshoes for a Sunday afternoon of fun. They'll have a bonfire to warm you on the outside and hot chocolate and snacks to warm your tummy. Free and open to the public!

The fifth annual Roy Taghon Memorial Snowmobile Ride begins at 1 p.m., Sun., Jan. 22, at the Empire Airport and continues to the Maple City Fitness Center, behind Kerby’s Bar and Grill, 172 W. Burdickville Road, Maple City. Whether riding on a sled or driving, all are welcome to participate in the fun-filled afternoon. Hot dogs and chili will be served at 2:30. Suggested donation is $7 per adult, $4 per child.

All proceeds benefit the Roy Taghon Music Scholarship Fund which provides an annual music scholarship for Glen Lake High School students. Roy lived in Empire and was an avid snowmobiler and church organist for more than 30 years. For information, call (231) 326-5519.

Here's a great photo posted in the Friends of Sugar Loaf group by Scott Hedberg. Left to right they are Peppi Teichner, Jean Sweeny Raymond, Pixie Hoffman, Corky Beals, Bruff LaVan, Tom Kuhnan & Art "Major" Huey.

Peppi Teichner was a legendary figure in the the development of Michigan's ski industry. The Leelanau Conservancy's Teichner Preserve honors him and explains:

Hans “Peppi” Teichner is best known locally for having taught a region to ski – everyone from Helen Milliken to children with disabilities – and as one of the founders of Sugarloaf. But his history before coming to this country is equally as compelling. Peppi was a national ski champion from Germany – and a Jew –who was coaching the Spanish Olympic Team when Hitler rose to power.

When the Spanish Civil War broke out, he helped guide those who were fleeing Franco’s fascist regime over the mountains to France. A patrol spotted him, but he managed to out-ski his would-be captors. Still, his face ended up on wanted posters in the Pyranees Mountains, which forced him to seek haven in the U.S. When World War II broke out he helped train U.S. Army troops in the 10th Mountain Division.

Ultimately, after the war and stints teaching skiing in Sun Valley and Aspen, he settled in Leelanau. An army buddy had convinced him to come help plan a ski area that would one day become Sugar Loaf Mountain.

Teichner also was instrumental in developing Holiday Hills in Traverse City. I'm thinking that his army buddy was Stanley Ball. Anyone? See another photo of him right here, read a little more about the early days of skiing in Leelanau from the Enterprise,  and share and see photos of Sugar Loaf through the Sugar Loaf Mountain Club.

The Sugar Loaf Mountain Club is hard at work, getting the Loaf ready for skiing this winter - connect with them on Facebook!

Last week the TC Ticker posted a cool feature on Farm 651 near Cedar. They report that the Farm 651 project was selected from thousands of applications for the "Pepsi Refresh Contest" for November. Each month, Pepsi gives away over $1 million to 60 ideas that move communities forward. You can vote once a day until a winner is awarded at the Farm 651 at Pepsi Refresh. They also write that:

While most farms are shutting down for winter, one area farm is plotting out a path to education.
Farm 651 - an 80-acre, eco-agricultural farm just south of Cedar - is working to become a learning campus for students in pursuit of agricultural skills and knowledge.

“We’ve received intern applications from all over the world - from as far away as Ghana, Chicago, California and, of course, locally,” says Jason Roggensee, who established “The 651 Project” as a licensed Michigan non-profit organization in August with his wife, Junie.

Students can apply to live and work on the functioning farm, while studying specific focuses: organic farming, viticulture, construction technology, agri-tourism, responsible landscape design, and green energy technology.

Housing will be provided, and product sales via farm markets and onsite retail facilities will serve as a living stipend.

The couple’s biggest priority? Building a student “nest.” Starting next spring, they plan to start construction on a two-story, super-efficient farmhouse-style structure that should house six students comfortably.

Read on for more and cast your vote for Farm 651!
photo credit: squircle_7_cedar_michigan_farm_651_P_Petrat by Trish P. - K1000 Gal

A new article on the Glen Arbor Sun asks Will Sugar Loaf offer cross-country skiing this winter? It begins:

A breath of fresh air may have descended on Sugar Loaf. Just weeks before snow is likely to fall on the downtrodden Leelanau County ski hill whose chairlifts have sat idle for nearly 12 years, a local resort owner is developing a plan that would open the mountain to cross-country skiing and ice climbing — perhaps this winter.

Erik Zehender, fourth generation co-owner of Fountain Point Resort in nearby Lake Leelanau, is negotiating with Sugar Loaf owner Kate Wickstrom to lease the mountain from her and create the Sugar Loaf Mountain Club, a nonprofit that would offer backcountry and groomed trails to members of the club who, in Zehender’s words, “participate in the costs of insurance, grooming, outhouses, warming huts, parking, plowing, safety programs and other operating expenses.”

Empire resident and Director of Sales and Marketing at DW North, Rick Desrochers, and Glen Arborite Eric Luthardt, a Product Line Manager at Flow Snowboarding, have assisted Zehender. According to Wickstrom, those two “believe in Sugar Loaf and have stood by me. I wouldn’t go forward without them.” Desrochers and Luthardt have worked with Wickstrom for over a year, and she says they bring ideas to resurrect the resort lodge and mountain...

Read on at the Glen Arbor Sun for more about plans for this winter and share your thoughts on our Sugar Loaf thread!

Halloween dates back to ancient Celtic times, and although modern celebrations may not resemble the ancient ones, they're still a favorite of kids and adults alike! Here's our list of weekend activities in Leelanau and the surrounding area. Did we miss something? Undoubtably - add it as a comment below!

The Grand Traverse Lighthouse invites you out this Friday or Saturday night and next for a ghost walk where you can learn the stories of those who once dwelt there. Click through to get details from them. Also next Saturday Oct 29 in Northport is a free Halloween Concert at the Northport CAC featuring the Northport Community Band, The Village Voices and others - wear a costume!

Glen Arbor Trick or Treating for Children happens on Sunday, October 30 from 1-4 pm. The Empire Chamber invites you to the Town Hall on Front Street Halloween night (Oct 31) from 6pm to 8 pm for a spooktacular time filled with games & treats.

From 5-9 PM Cedar's Haunted House will again be scaring people October 31 starting at 5:00 pm. Come see what everyone is talking about!

The Haunted Hayrides at Black Star Farms will scare even the bravest of goblins, and are offered October 21, 22, 28, and 29, from 7-10 pm. $10 per person. Please call 231.944.1251 to confirm if the weather is iffy!

The Riverside Inn in Leland has reported ghostly activities in year's past, and while we have no official word, you should probably check it out. You might also enjoy Jacob's Corn Maze on M-72.

Looking for something unusual to do on Halloween? Check out the Zombie Run, sponsored by TART, a 5K Run/Walk starting at 9am on Saturday, October 29 at Right Brain Brewery. You are invited to register as "Infected" or "Survivor." "Survivors" will be given a one-minute head start at the beginning of the race and will want to be prepared to RUN FOR THEIR LIVES before the infected pursue their morning snack.

If you're wanting a little Halloween spirit in your cup, how about Vicious, an American wheat IPA from North Peak that pays tribute to Michigan's legendary Dogman? Read about the Dogman from Weird Michigan & Absolute Michigan. If beer's not your thing, Michiganvine.com suggests Leelanau Wine Cellars Witches Brew as the perfect treat. The secret recipe is made with cinnamon, cloves and other natural spices and is best served by warming it gently in the microwave by the glass or by simmering it in a crock pot with a cinnamon stick for a true “witches brew.”

Photo: Noche de luna llena - Full moon night by Flowery *L*u*z*a*

"We are very excited to have awarded the state championship road race to the Cherry-Roubaix event.The Cherry-Roubaix has continued to grow into a popular event in Traverse City and the surrounding area, and now, to have the Michigan State Road Race Championships as part of this event, brings it to another level."
~ Joe Lekovish, Director of the Michigan Bicycle Racing Association

Leelanau County and the Third Coast Bicycle Fest have scored a major event on the Michigan cycling scene, and also rounded out what was already one of the Midwest's best cycling weekends, the Cherry Roubaix.

It all starts tonight with the Downtown Drag Race sprints at Friday Night Live in Traverse City as bikers race head to head down the middle of Front street for prizes and bragging rights. There's also a kids bike rodeo and high-flying action on a BMX freestyle ramp.

Then on Saturday morning, the Charity Ride on Old Mission Peninsula to benefit the Munson Women’s Cancer Fund. That's followed by one of the highlights of the weekend, the fast-paced and exciting Old Town Criterium where riders fly around a closed course that twists & turns through the city streets and neighborhoods of Old Town. It's definitely not to be missed.

On Sunday morning the Cherry Roubaix Road Race returns cycle racing to Leelanau County. The Michigan State Road Race starts and ends in downtown Cedar and takes racers through a gear-shifting, lung-splitting, quad burning, 15.5-mile loop course.

There's lots more events this weekend and next week and weekend - head over to tcbikefest.org for all the details!

Photo Credits: 2010 cherry roubaix criterium mens pro 17 by northernlightphotograph and Charity Ride courtesy Cherry Roubaix.