Campfires and Comfort Food with Old Time Hawkey

Getting nostalgic with Michigan's outdoorsy TikTok star

By Kierstin Gunsberg | Aug. 17, 2024

If knocking back a couple of grape Faygos after a dip in the lake, then battling it out with your best buddies in Super Mario Bros sounds like the perfect late-summer night, you’re probably one of Old Time Hawkey’s 8+ million TikTok followers.

The account documents the quiet adventures of a mustachioed Yooper who goes by “Fritz” and his bright-eyed Australian Shepherds, Donnybrook and Kris Draper (named after the retired Detroit Red Wings player). The trio posts near-weekly as they explore their northern Michigan cedar swamp, all with a ’90’s nostalgic twist—there’s no trending songs or Facetuned mirror selfies to be found here.

Instead, the sweet sight of frolicking chickadees and the whine of a well-loved VHS kicking off the start to a relaxing weekend make up the comforting cottage-core vibe of Old Time Hawkey.

The Magic of Memory

“I never had any ambition of being on social media,” says Fritz, reflecting on how he started Old Time Hawkey as a creative outlet during the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdowns. Ambition or not, his follower count quickly grew from a few hundred dedicated fans to millions, including familiar names like Napoleon Dynamite’s Jon Heder and even Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

“In the beginning, my videos were mostly centered around hockey, fishing, and hiking. At some point, they started to feel more about me than the audience,” Fritz says. He shifted to making content that engaged viewers as if they were right there with him, aiming to present his experiences like “a good poem” that resonated on a personal level for viewers.

It was a winning strategy. At a time when the world felt on edge, Old Time Hawkey’s glimpses into a worry-free reality of bird watching, cast iron cooking, and cozy cabin slumber parties became a wholesome and welcomed blast from the past, especially for anyone who spent their childhood stomping through Michigan woods.

“Whether it’s through an old recipe, a campfire, a video game, or a classic movie, I think the videos can help people revisit and enjoy those old memories,” says Fritz, noting that the dogs have been a huge draw for audiences.

While most canine companions couldn’t handle the pressure of stifling their zoomies when the camera’s on, Kris Draper (the loving “goof” of the doggy duo) and Donnybrook (the “more stoic” pup) are mostly naturals. “There are things I do that might help them when we make videos, like calling out ‘good boys’ to get them to look at the camera,” Fritz explains. “But when it comes to everything else, that’s all them.”

Cooking for Company

Old Time Hawkey’s most popular content features comfort food recipes perfect for savoring after a day on the lake: Dutch-oven donuts tossed with cinnamon and sugar, chili slow-cooked in a floral vintage crockpot, and elevated camping dishes like “backpackers pad thai.”

After four years of sharing his dishes with the masses, Fritz narrowed down his favorites into a cookbook collection of 100 “simple recipes” inspired by the nostalgia of growing up in northern Michigan. Published by DK this spring, the cookbook, Old Time Hawkey’s Recipes from the Cedar Swamp, hit the New York Times bestseller list and led to a sold-out national book tour where Fritz got to meet and mingle with longtime fans.

“I felt like a fish out of water most of the tour,” he admits. “But I felt at home at the events just talking to people. It was great to put faces to all the comments, all the follows, all the love. The conversations were all heartfelt.”

Fritz, who loves to grab a quick bite at Andy’s Party Store in Charlevoix or Cousin Jenny’s Cornish Pasties in Traverse City, says it was important to him to create a cookbook that reflects both his Up North roots and his unique approach to cooking—which often involves pulling out the hot plate to whip up a one-course meal in his quaint U.P. cabin or baking up pudgy pie variations over an open fire.

“For me, cooking is also about serving and hospitality, so I tried to include a lot of group recipes: casseroles, crockpot meals, and meals cooked on and enjoyed next to a campfire,” he says. “I believe that food is meant to be eaten with a group, with family and friends, but I also think that good food can provide that same comfort when you’re alone.”

Fireside Favorites

Though the pups don’t get to indulge in the dishes from Old Time Hawkey’s cookbook, Fritz says they do love a dedicated dog food recipe made over an open fire “because that means we’re out on an adventure.”

Here’s their go-to chow after a full day of being good boys: 1) Brown 1 cup of ground turkey with a pinch of parsley. 2) Add vegetables: 1 cup of diced sweet potato, 1/2 cup diced carrots, 1/2 cup green beans (cut bite-sized). 3) Add 2 cups of water and simmer. 4) Cool, then serve.

As for his own quintessential picks from the book, Fritz says the Copper Miner’s Pasty, Fireside Apple Cider, and Grandpa Bob’s Fudge are at the top of his list.

“But my favorite overall is my grandmother’s Mistake Cookies,” he shares. A fluffy sugar cookie just begging to be plunged into an ice-cold mug of milk, the recipe was a family staple passed down to Fritz’s grandma who messed up some key details in the baking process. But, he concludes, “It turned out delicious anyway and became a family favorite.”

Lightning Round Q&A with Fritz

Old Time Hawkey is all about a slower pace of life, but we got him to answer these 10 quick questions:

1. Top 3 must-haves for tailgating before a Red Wings game? “Cold Pops, coneys, Bob Seger.”

2. Without giving away your secret spots, what’s your morel hunting strategy? “Look where the dew drips.”

3. It’s county fair season and you’ve just ordered a heap of fries. Are you dousing ’em in malt vinegar or a pump of hot cheese? “Hot cheese for sure. Also chili.”

4.You had a little too much fun on the tilt-o-whirl. Is your cure ginger ale or lemon-lime pop? “Ginger ale if it’s Vernors. Lemon pop if it’s not.”

5. Cast iron—soap or no soap (and why)? “I used to not use soap because I heard it was bad for it, but I’ve since learned you can use it as long as there’s no degreaser or antibacterial components. But I normally use hot water and coarse salt to scrub. I’ll use equal parts white vinegar and water to clean them good every once in a while.”

5. It’s pastie time. Ketchup, gravy, or nada? “Gravy mostly. Sometimes spicy ketchup, and sometimes plain.”

7. You went wild renting videos for a relaxing weekend at the cabin. What’s the lineup? “It’s summer right now so I would pick Sandlot, Jaws, Big Fish, Hook, Now and Then, Happy Gilmore, A Goofy Movie, and The Great Outdoors.”

8. Best way to get a dysfunctional Game Boy cartridge to work again? “Grow a mustache, or find someone with a mustache, to blow in it.”

9. You’re headed to the lake for a little catch and release. What flavor of Better Made chips did you pack? “Rainbow Old Fashioned Dark.”

10. If you could bottle one scent from the cedar swamp to share with your followers, what would it be? “The cedar smell in general, or maybe the smell of my campfire when I’m cooking a pineapple upside down cake or some monkey bread.”

Photo by Kelley Jordan Schuyler