Beautiful Video of the Fall Colors in Michigan's Upper Peninsula

I just love fall here in Michigan. In fact, I came up with a solid list of the five main reasons that it's such a favorite of mine.

1. Cool, crisp air means sweatshirt weather.
2. Apple picking (and eating in pie, applesauce, apple crisp, etc.)
3. Cider season (and my favorite cider donuts from Corey Lake Orchards!)
4. I feel like making chili, pot roast, and turkey with all the fixings
5. Last, but not least - The Beautiful Fall Colors

Put on a sweatshirt, grab a glass of cider, and dunk a donut while you watch this beautiful video of the fall colors in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. See if you can spot the locations - Pictured Rocks, Grand Marais, Au Train, and Kingston Lake.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXzP-jY8k2w

50 Fun Things to do in Michigan This Summer

[Edit: May 16, 2014] Wow, this post has gone viral the past few weeks! Thanks for sharing my love of Michigan. Another great way to share some of the great things that Michigan has to offer is by sending our great Michigan gift baskets and boxes.

During the long cold winters here in Michigan I like think of all of the places I want to visit and things I want to do during Michigan's beautiful summer. The list tends to grow and grow until it reaches a length that I know makes it impossible to see and do everything that is on it.

So, I thought I would share my list with everyone in the hopes that others will find something in Michigan that they hadn't thought of before or didn't know about.

These are in no particular order.

1. Climb the big dune at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park.
2. Spend the day at Mackinac Island.
3. Catch a Tigers game at Comerica Park.
4. Take a copper mine tour in the U.P.
5. Visit Fort Michilimackinac with your kids.
6. Go for a swim in Lake Michigan.
7. Go camping at one of the numerous state or private campgrounds.
8. Take the family and watch the synchronized musical fountains of The Cascades in Jackson
9. Climb Castle Rock in St. Ignace
10. Tour the Valley Camp Ship museum in Sault Saint Marie
11. Take a hike in the Porkies - The Porcupine Mountains that is
12. Drive one of the Great Lakes Circle Tours
13. Bike around the 8 mile highway, M-185, on Mackinac Island. You won't have to watch out for vehicles :)
14. Love cherries? Get your fill at The Cherry Hut in Beulah, Michigan. It started out as a roadside pie stand in 1922.
15. Cross the Kalamazoo River in Saugatuck via one of the oldest hand-cranked chain ferries in America.
16. Visit the Roadside Attractions store in Metamora, Michigan.
17. Take in a movie at the Capri Drive-In in Coldwater. Rated one of the Top 10 Drive-In movie theaters in the country.
18. Hike or bike the Kal-Haven Trail.
19. Ride the S.S. Badger Car Ferry from Ludington to Manitowoc, Wisconsin.
20. Take a couple of days to visit The Henry Ford and Greenfield Village
21. Watch a Great Lakes freighter pass through the Soo Locks.
22. Spend some time hiking around Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
23. Visit one of Michigan's 115 Historic Lighthouses
24. Play a pickup game of baseball at the Tiger Stadium site at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull
25. If you happen to be driving along U.S. 2 in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, stop in for a refreshing glass bottle of soda at the Hog Island General Store just east of Naubinway.
26. Stay the night at a working lighthouse on Lake Superior - Big Bay Point Lighthouse Bed and Breakfast
27. Drive across the Mackinac Bridge. For only $3.50 for a car you, too, can earn the badge of honor of being able to say, "yep, I drove across that bridge."
28. Visit one of Michigan's numerous farmers markets. Find a Michigan Farmers Market near you.
29. Spend a day at Michigan's Adventure. It's the perfect size amusement park for young families. You get all of the rides plus their huge waterpark for one admission fee.
30. After Michigan's Adventure stop in at a classic drive-in, Dog-N-Suds in Montague.
31. While I'm on the subject of food - if you are ever near New Buffalo, do yourself a favor and try a burger at Redamak's.
32. Give some love to the overlooked Great Lake - Lake Huron. Drive along M-25 and M-23 and discover all of the great places on Michigan's east side.
33. Take in a concert on a Thursday in South Haven along the river. The Community Riverfront Concert Series is all summer long and starts at 7pm.
34. Get the tastiest and freshest whitefish at Scalawags Whitefish and Chips in downtown Mackinaw City or Traverse City.
35. Get all Bavarian up in Frankenmuth.
36. Go for a ride on the dunes with Mac Wood's Dune Rides in Mears.
37. Do some beachcombing along Michigan's 2,147 miles of Great Lakes shoreline. You never know what you will find.
38. Go fishing!
39. If your kids are acting like animals, consider a trip to the zoo. John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids, Binder Park Zoo in Battle Creek, Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, the Detroit Zoo, and Kalamazoo (not a zoo, but still a fun town!).
40. While you are in Kalamazoo, how about the Air Zoo! (technically in Portage, but who's counting?)
41. Go blueberry picking eating!
42. Want to see some Michigan black bears up close, but not be in any danger? You have to go to Oswald's Bear Ranch near Newberry, Michigan.
43. Tour a Michigan Ghost Town. The Fayette Historic State Park is a unique opportunity to walk through a wonderfully preserved abandoned townsite from the early days of iron mining in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
44. There are 197 waterfalls in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. You won't have to travel far to find one!
45. Do yourself a favor and visit Traverse City. One of Michigan's most beautiful beach towns.
46. Stay at one of Michigan's numerous Indoor Water Park Hotels.
47. Shoot for par (I like to aim low, just like my drives off the tee :) ) at one of Michigan's golf courses.
48. Spend the day at the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners just minutes from Kalamazoo. Over 200 cars of all eras to gawk over, grab something to eat at a 1940s era Diner, and see what a gas station looked like in the 1930s.
49. Canoe the Platte River near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. We canoed the Lower Platte before and had a great time spotting wildlife and enjoying the ride.
50. Ride into history on the Little River Railroad in Coldwater. Take a ride on a steam-powered locomotive for a unique experience the whole family will love!
51. Bonus! Stop in at one of Michigan's 14 Welcome Centers and come up with hundreds of ideas for great things to do in Michigan.

Interesting article about Pictured Rocks

If you have never visited the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore near Munising in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, this article in the Mining Journal might convince you to head north. I have hiked the Pictured Rocks area (nothing too rugged) but have not had the pleasure of viewing the impressive rock formations and waterfalls from a boat. According to the article, viewing the Pictured Rocks from a boat is the best way to go as far as what you get to see. I would love to take a Pictured Rocks Cruise sometime as well as take a shipwreck tour from a glass bottom boat via Shipwreck Tours which is also based out of Munising.

Pictured Rocks Cruise Ticket Prices: Adults - $31 Children 6-12 - $13 Children 5 & Under - Free

Shipwreck Tours Ticket Prices: Adults - $27 Children 6-12 - $11 Children 5 & Under - Free

Pictured Rocks National Lakseshore official website

Collapse of Miners Castle at Pictured Rocks

I just read on The Mining Journal that the northeast turret of Miners Castle at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore broke off and fell into Lake Superior last week. Evidently, the annual freezing and thawing had taken its toll on the crumbling layers sandstone and led to its ultimate demise. Miners Castle is probably the formation that most people remember when they think of their visits to Pictured Rocks. It is one of the most photographed formations as well.

I remember it from a family vacation from quite a while back. I snuck over the railing and leaned over the edge of the sandstone cliffs staring straight down the 90 foot drop into Lake Superior's icy blue waters. Pictured Rocks are probably one of the most picturesque spots in Michigan.

I'll be posting a photograph from flickr.com of what Miners Castle looked like with both turrets standing so you can refresh your memory of what Miners Castle looks (or looked) like.