Lynda Wheatley | Author

A Homespun, History-rich Festival of Trees in Benzie

Nov. 19, 2021

There are festivals of trees, and then there are Festivals of Trees. Consider this year’s three-day extravaganza (Nov. 26-28) for Habitat for Humanity of Benzie County to be one of the coolest.

A near-20-year tradition, this event last year raised $7,000 for the nonprofit.… Read More >>

Amical's Faroe Island Salmon

Nov. 13, 2021

Had you, like us, been lucky enough to eat at Amical last week, when it served up nearly a dozen dishes and cocktails from “Chiltern Firehouse: The Cookbook,” we’d not hesitate to steer you to its Asparagus appetizer, tender green and white stalks bathed in brown butter ma… Read More >>

Where to Hike vs. Hunt Nov. 15-30

Nov. 13, 2021

Nov. 15 marks opening day of firearm deer season in Michigan, and with it comes the annual question all hiking northerners ask perennially: Where is it safe to roam? Little Traverse Conservancy has done all of us — and our leaping, bounding cinnamon-colored canine pets especially &mda… Read More >>

How Can We Keep from Singing?

Nov. 12, 2021

We can’t. And we shouldn’t. Which is why the 1982-founded Northern Michigan Chorale is determined to get audiences in the vocal groove as they sing patriotic songs of gratitude; uplifting Broadway selections; inspiring music from Burt Bacharach, Simon & Garfunkel, and Lerner… Read More >>

Downtown TC Lights Up

Nov. 12, 2021

Downtown TC is the place to be on Saturday, Nov. 20! This night of joy begins at 5:30pm with carolers singing around the giant tree located on the corner of Cass and Front streets. See Santa Claus and Traverse City Mayor Richard Lewis light up the tree and kick off the holidays around 6pm. … Read More >>

Is Biden Leaning Toward a Tunnel for Line 5?

Nov. 12, 2021

Hot on the heels of the Climate Summit in Glasgow, many Michiganders’ high hopes for global cooperation in combatting climate change took a hit at home last week.

President Joe Biden, who has so far styled himself a leader in environmental concerns, is looking less so after tw… Read More >>

Go South This Weekend

Nov. 12, 2021

The fun never stops, and the gin never sloes on Randa’s veranda in Savannah, Georgia. Traverse City audiences can get a taste of those high spirits and Southern charm at Old Town Playhouse’s upcoming performances of The Savannah Sipping Society. The play follows four women of a … Read More >>

An Up North Tour for Mid-century Modern Junkies

Nov. 6, 2021

Not that we ever need an excuse to cruise the scenic roads snaking west from Traverse City to Leelanau and Benzie counties, or north to Charlevoix, Petoskey, and Harbor Springs. But this year seems extra special. An especially mild autumn has left loads of gold and orange leaves standing ta… Read More >>

Make Way for the Queens!

Nov. 6, 2021

Ladies, bid your hunters a joyous buh-bye next weekend. Four fun and fabulous drag queens — Michigan’s own Sydney Chablis, Deja Vaton, Krystal Van Kartier, and our personal favorite, Vajojo Visage — are about to storm Castle Farms in Charlevoix for one of the few events wo… Read More >>

Rush Tribute in Manistee

Nov. 6, 2021

The Rush catalog will come when The Rush Tribute Project takes the stage at the historic Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts (RRCA) Friday, Nov. 12. An homage to one of the most enduring and influential bands in rock music, RTP covers all 40-plus years of Rush’s run, painstakingly r… Read More >>

We’re Going Gray — Fast

Nov. 6, 2021

Much of northwest Lower Michigan is getting grayer, and we’re not talking about the folks who quit coloring their hair when pandemic restrictions shuttered salons in 2020. The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey reports that 33.3 percent of the people living in Antrim… Read More >>

New U.S.-built Freighter Hits the Great Lakes

Nov. 6, 2021

For the first time since 1983, a U.S.-flagged freighter has been constructed on the Great Lakes. Fincatieri Bay Shipbuilding, based in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, built the 639-foot beast for the Great Lakes’ own Interlake Steamship Company, whose roots trace back more than a century, to… Read More >>

ERG! Choco-Cherry Bar

Oct. 30, 2021

Whether you’re an endurance athlete or an unapologetically lazy person when it comes to packing yourself a lunch, you either know — or should get to know — ERG! Bars. The calorie-dense, pocket-sized bars are cold-pressed, minimally processed bars are worlds apart from the … Read More >>

Native Art Immersion

Oct. 30, 2021

If you know next to nothing about Native American arts, chances are still good you’ve at least heard of one of Northern Michigan’s most esteemed Native American artists, Yvonne Walker Keshick.

Descended from a long line of Odawa/Ojibwe quill workers — artists… Read More >>

Show a Vet Your Gratitude

Oct. 30, 2021

Sometimes, saying thank you just isn’t enough. So show a vet — or active military member — your appreciation for their service by meeting them for a meal at Traverse City Elks Lodge #323 between noon and 4pm Sunday, Nov. 7. The public is invited to join the TC Elks’ … Read More >>

The North’s Newest VA Clinic

Oct. 30, 2021

Until February 2020, northwest Lower Michigan veterans had only a few options for VA medical care: the VA medical center in Saginaw, or the VA clinics in Grayling, Gaylord, or Cheboygan. Then the Colonel Demas T. Craw VA Clinic opened its doors in Traverse City — just in time for the … Read More >>

Christmas is Coming, Crafts Shows Are Accelerating

Oct. 30, 2021

Buh-bye, Halloween. Hellooo, Christmas. With only weeks till the gift-giving bonanza begins and warnings of near-empty retail shelves getting louder, small towns around the North are springing into action with early November craft shows and makers’ markets. Take advantage and support … Read More >>

TC Whiskey’s Sweater Weather

Oct. 30, 2021

While the rest of us reluctantly unpacked our fall clothes, Traverse City Whiskey Co. was conserving summer, cocktail-style. “We had so much fun with our ‘Fr-iskey’ [frozen] drink,” says resident ‘cocktail genius,’ Diane Corcoran, “that we wanted to… Read More >>

Dog Bakery’s Halloween Cookies

Oct. 23, 2021

We’re going to tell you a horrifying story. Once, in a fit of sugar-craving desperation, our editor nibbled on a dog cookie someone had gifted her then-new Cherryland Humane Society Rescue dog. That cookie was so tasty, she ate the whole darn thing. And then, because that cookie had b… Read More >>

Boyne City Kid & Pet Parade, Treats x 3

Oct. 23, 2021

Don your costume and bring your best furry friends: The annual pet-friendly Halloween Parade in Boyne City — sponsored by Boyne City Hardware, where all the cool dogs shop — starts marching north from the lineup point at Lake Street Market at 4:45pm on Sunday, Oct. 31. It’… Read More >>