Craig Manning | Author
Staycation Time!
March 17, 2018
A lot of local families are counting down the days until they can jet off to somewhere warm. Not one of ’em? We feel your pain.
If you’re sticking around for spring break, there’s a good chance you’ll be stuck with gray skies and cold temps, but there’s…
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Right Brain Brewery: Underdog on Top
March 10, 2018
A decade ago, amid the bleakest economy in nearly a century, a hairstylist/real estate appraiser with minimal beer-making experience opened an eclectic little brewery on a ragged alley outside of Traverse City’s downtown. Against all odds, Russell Springsteen’s Right Brain B…
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Feb. 24, 2018 Vinyl records are back. You might be surprised to read those words if you’re old enough to have ditched your record collection when CDs came along, or young enough that you’ve never dropped a needle on a record before. The vinyl resurgence is real, though. In 2017, vinyl…
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Feb. 17, 2018 What are the most iconic and legendary dishes in northern Michigan? You know the type: the dishes that locals make all their out-of-town friends or relatives try when they visit, or the ones that restaurants tout as “world-famous” on their menus. From…
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Feb. 3, 2018 Canada’s favorite Celtic super duo — and love story — are returning to Traverse City this month. The Northern Express grills MacMaster about their musical life, what it’s like being married to your work, and touring the country with their (nearly) seven kids in t…
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Dec. 16, 2017 If you walk all the way to the end of the TART Trail, near West End Beach, you’ll see a few things. You’ll see Grand Traverse Bay, of course, and a nice view of Leelanau Peninsula. You’ll also see a white stone marker, painted with the number 33 and marked with a plaque th…
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Nov. 11, 2017 Earlier this year, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced plans to make 7,140 bear hunting licenses available across the state. That number marked a 244-license increase from 2016. The jump overall wasn’t huge, but it was significant compared to minor fluctuations in t…
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Oct. 14, 2017 When Chase Hunt’s family relocated to Traverse City 20 years ago, he was struck by one thing: the lack of art along the streets of the downtown area. Just 12 years old at the time and a transplant from California, Hunt could hardly believe the contrast between his old home and his new…
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Sept. 16, 2017 When September comes to northern Michigan, it never comes alone. Along with its bushels of apples, peaches, and tomatoes, September never fails to bring a bounty of altogether different kind of fruit: the infuriating fruit fly … and, generally, 6,000 or so of its cousins. If you have…
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Vintage Vinyl: A local couple’s curated look back
Northern Michigan’s Legendary Dishes
MacMaster and Leahy on Love
Uncovering an Old Indian Trail
Bear Down
Portrait of the Graffiti Artist as a Young Man
Fruit Flies