Traverse City, Michigan

After driving ninety miles south from Petoskey, we checked in at the Holiday RV Resort near Traverse City on Monday, August 12th, for a seven-night stay.

Site #191

GRAND TRAVERSE LIGHTHOUSE

Grand Traverse Lighthouse is located at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula, which separates Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay. Built in 1852, it marks the Manitou passage, where Lake Michigan joins Grand Traverse Bay. 

The lighthouse is located within Leelanau State Park.

There were many rock sculptures around the lighthouse. This one was built in 1926 by the lighthouse keeper during his free time.

We noticed this amazing array of flowers in the front yard of a house in Northport.

SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL SEASHORE - PIERCE STOCKING SCENIC DRIVE

Covered bridge along the 7.1-mile scenic drive.

Overlook of Glen Lake

The scenic drive took us to the top of the dunes and overlooks of Lake Michigan.

The lake below is a 450-foot climb down and up.

The news said so far this summer there have been eight rescues from the base of the dunes.

The Park Service kindly provided this overlook deck. Not for the faint of heart.

The sad story of how the Sleeping Bear Sand dunes were named by the Native Americans.

These are really steep, tall dunes.

Picture Perfect View

LARGEST CHERRY PIE IN THE WORLD

This is the pie pan that baked the cherry pie that now holds the world record. In 1987 Traverse City baked this 17-foot diameter pie weighing 14 tons.

MISSION POINT LIGHTHOUSE

Mission Point Lighthouse is located at the end of Old Mission Point, a peninsula jutting 17 miles into Grand Traverse Bay. It is located on the 45th parallel.

The lighthouse that Virginia remembers visiting with her family in 1963.

The lighthouse opened in 1852.

The Hessler home, built in 1852, is typical of the homes constructed on the Mission Peninsula at that time.

MUSIC HOUSE MUSEUM

We took a ninety-minute tour to see hundreds of historical musical instruments, listen to and observe many of them in operation. From player grand pianos to 1910 nickelodeons. There were also old phonographs, music boxes and radios.

 The 1922 Mortier Dance “Amaryllis” Organ was built in Belgium. Of the four hundred built, only two survived. At thirty feet long this one still has its original paint. We enjoyed listening to this fully operational instrument.

This 1924 Wurlitzer Theater Organ was relocated from the Cinderella Theater in Detroit. We watched a Laurel and Hardy silent film, The Battle of the Century (1927) - The Pie Fight, accompanied by this mighty Wurlitzer.

SOUTH MANITOU ISLAND - SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL LAKESHORE

We took an all-day trip to South Manitou Island. South Manitou Island is part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

The Island is sixteen miles west of the town of Leland. It is about 90 minutes via the Manitou Island Transit Ferry.

We had a beautiful morning and a smooth ride to South Manitou Island.

We passed by the North Manitou Shoal Light Station at about the halfway point with North Manitou Island in the background.

As we approached the island, we saw the South Manitou Island Lighthouse.

We signed up for a two-hour guided tour in an open-air wagon. It felt like an old-fashioned hayride.

We stopped at the end of the road and then hiked to the Giant Cedars Grove. This white cedar was the world's champion until 1988 when it was struck by lightning and lost its top.

Many of the old grove white cedars are between 500-1000 years old.

Our next stop was a hike to the Morazan shipwreck.

The freighter, Francisco Morazan, ran aground during a blinding snowstorm on November 29, 1960.

After our wagon ride, we walked to South Manitou Island Lighthouse and Museum.

With storms moving in our return ferry was right on time to take us back to Leland ahead of the rain.

POINT BETSIE LIGHTHOUSE

Along the coast, just north of Frankfort is another historic lighthouse.

Point Betsie Lighthouse went into service in 1859.