Leelanau News
updated Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Leelanau Hills: A Steal of a Deal
The Ticker from the Traverse City Business News has a feature on the Leelanau Hills development that explains how contractor Bob Mitchell of Bob Mitchell & Associates of Kingsley became the new owner of Leelanau Hills in the the BayView development in Suttons Bay.
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This Saturday (September 4th) at 9 AM there will be a Port Oneida Run/Walk along a 5K barn to barn trail run. Runners are offered a unique tour of the Port Oneida Rural Historic District, through the pastoral landscape of farmsteads from the late 1800s and along the shores of Lake Michigan.
The run benefits Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, a nonprofit partner of the Park dedicated to saving the historic structures and landscapes in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
"I wanted to believe this was going to happen," Wickstrom said. "But he's obviously without the means to do anything."
Smith's website stated, "Unfortunately, at some point it is not healthy to (pursue) a deal," and he was pulling out of the project.
"I'm like the sixth buyer here, and I've got the farthest," he said.
Really? I wasn't aware that there were varying degrees of "nowhere" you could get to. Now we're left at the point where we were when Liko crashed into the scene this spring with one very important difference: a bunch of people are paying attention to Sugar Loaf.
Tom took this shot of Victoria Creek Park in Cedar last month. See it bigger and see more in his Up North Michigan slideshow.
I have to say that if you're looking for a nice canoe or kayak trip, Victoria Creek is an excellent choice! Read about the Cedar River Preserve from the Leelanau Conservancy!
Post your comments about the weather, the week's news or events you're looking forward to below!
The 1st annual Third Coast Bicycle Festival is a weeklong celebration of 2 wheel fun in Traverse City that features something for every bicycle enthusiast.
Thursday features a celebration of bicycles and bicycle fashion with a cruise on Front Street at 7:30 PM by the State Theatre in your best bike duds. Prizes will be given for best dressed, best bike, best combination bike/fashion, and best bike family followed by some short biking films and aspecial screening of Bicycle Dreams – The True Story of The Race Across America by Stephen Auerbach.
On Friday there's tons of fun including a hill climb, Kids Bike Rodeo and downtown sprints at 6:30 PM and the Twin Bay Cyclocross Race at 5:30 and the Two Wheel Technique trials at 6:30 at The Village at Grand Traverse Commons.
Saturday afternoon features the Cherry Roubaix Criterium Road Races downtown. As someone who's checked this the last two years, I have to say that this is about the most entertaining racing event I've seen as cyclists tear around a loop at high speed. There's also Roller Sprints and a Cyclocross Race at the TC Microbrew and Music Festival at The Grand Traverse Commons.
Here's video from the winter cyclocross to take you out!
Northern Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is “bear country” and seeing one of these magnificent creatures may be a highlight of a visit to the park, particularly this summer, as there have been numerous bear sightings within the National Lakeshore near the Platte River Campground. Visitors have observed black bears crossing Lake Michigan Road, in the Platte River, and even traveling through the Platte River Campground. Superintendent Dusty Shultz noted, “This is the first year in recent memory in which bears have been observed so frequently. As always, the safety of our visitors and staff is our first priority.”
Park officials are compiling data on bear observations and if the bear obtained food from sources within the campground. Visitors have been very helpful in reporting the details of their sighting. Bears, like humans, are omnivores. Most of their diet is berries, nuts, and insects, but they are attracted to human food and have a very strong sense of smell.
Read on for more including information about protecting bears and how to best deal with a bear encounter. HINT: It's not to smear yourself with honey and bacon and talk really loud about your pic-in-ic basket Boo-Boo!
The annual fly-in and breakfast at Woolsey Memorial Airport (four miles north of Northport on County Road 629) will be held this Saturday (Aug 21) from 8 AM – noon. You may also drive-in of course and the breakfast fee is $8 adults ($4 children). In addition to small planes, there are also Coast Guard Helicopter and military aircraft (one year there was a C-130!), antique & custom cars and demonstrations and tours of aircraft. All in all, it's a great day!
Here's a great article on the history of Woolsey Airport from the Traverse City Record-Eagle. It begins:
Clinton F. Woolsey, a Northport native son born in 1894, was considered one of the nation's best pilots in the Army Air Corps in the 1920s. He died a hero when he and his co-pilot, John W. Benton, were killed in a 1927 mid-air collision near Buenos Aires during the first-ever U.S. international goodwill flight to 23 Central and South American countries. The 22,000-mile tour took two months. Buenos Aires was the halfway mark.
Woolsey probably could have parachuted to safety but apparently chose to ride his amphibian biplane down in an attempt to land because Benton was on the wing, without his chute, attempting to lower the landing gear by hand.
This Leland River scene from last week is courtesy Ian Pettman. Our weather has been pretty hot & humid and I've noticed that people who are getting time on the water seem to be smiling brighter than those who haven't!
The 80s and sun we've had has pretty much demanded regular trips to the beach. Does any other place that you know of have the sun, sand, scenery AND fresh cool water than Northern Michigan? This photo was taken on the beach at Platte Bay.
The Platte River, which flows through the Pere Marquette State Forest, is about 14 miles long and averages 2 – 3 feet deep. The river is a favorite for canoers, kayakers, and tubers. The upper Platte is fast moving with tight turns and underwater obstacles perfect for the more experienced canoer. The lower Platte's flow is more gentle, making a tubing or canoeing trip the perfect family activity for a hot summer day.
The mouth of the Platte empties in to Lake Michigan, located in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Platte Point Beach is the end destination of many of the canoers and tubers. The river is shallow and flows rapidly at this point. Riding the current into Lake Michigan is an exciting activity for beach goers. The park, which also hosts a picnic area, boat launch, and restroom facilities, is a wonderful place to relax and enjoy the activity on the river with the view of Lake Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes in the background.
The Glen Arbor Sun reports on Summer bike tours offered at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Interpretive Park Ranger Ryan Locke will lead bicycle tours that focus on how invasive species are affecting our native plants and animals here on the Lake Michigan shoreline. Superintendent Dusty Shultz says:
“While we will be offering our usual wide variety of daily Park Ranger-led walks, historical demonstrations, and evening campground programs, the GLRI is providing park visitors and locals the opportunity to see and learn about the National Lakeshore with a knowledgeable bike guide. Ryan worked with us as an intern the past two summers pioneering the bicycle program, so he is quite familiar with the park and is very excited about continuing these bike programs.”
Ryan will pedal two different routes: one each on Wednesdays and Thursdays. The easy to moderate rides will cover between seven and 10 miles, lasting approximately two hours. Topics include:
Discovering the Changing Landscape: North of Glen Arbor, through the Port Oneida Rural Historic District. Wednesdays at 5 p.m.
Aliens in the Ecosystem! South of Empire, through an agricultural landscape, ghost town, and former logging area. Thursdays at 11 a.m.
Leelanau Hills: A Steal of a Deal
This Saturday (September 4th) at 9 AM there will be a Port Oneida Run/Walk along a 5K barn to barn trail run. Runners are offered a unique tour of the Port Oneida Rural Historic District, through the pastoral landscape of farmsteads from the late 1800s and along the shores of Lake Michigan.
The headline reads 
