Michigan Outdoors
“Absolutely no one knows the wild places of northern Lower Michigan better than Mike Terrell, whose writing has enchanted and inspired thousands of readers through the years. Mike leads the way down trails and waterways that most of us would be hard-pressed to discover in the course of a lifetime. His love of the outdoors chimes with the heart of nature.” ROBERT DOWNES, author of Biking Northern Michigan
On the Trails of Northern Michigan by Traverse City Record-Eagle reporter Mike Terrell is your passport to over 70 of the best hiking, biking and waterway trails in the region.
On the Trails of Northern Michigan covers state parks and national forests from coast to coast, leading you through Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore, the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, Leelanau Conservancy and Little Traverse Conservancy holdings.
From the Upper Manistee Headwaters to the Jordan River Valley, Arcadia to Power Island, the Clay Cliffs to Houdek Dunes, Terrell’s trail notes highlight trail length, special features, flora and wildlife and driving directions, with bold icons clearly indicating trail uses.
Organized according to season, On the Trails of Northern Michigan will take you to some of the best spring wildflower displays in northern Michigan and cool cathedrals of pine and old-growth forests to hike under during summer’s heat. Hike to stunning windswept vistas of Lake Michigan, inland lakes, forests and river valleys. Find fall hikes that lead to colorful panoramas, and winter trails that take you on a hushed day trip through snow-covered forests and fields.
On the Trails of Northern Michigan is 318 pages of fully- illustrated outdoor exploration for all seasons. As author Robert Downes says, “In a world that is increasingly filled with pavement, traffic and noise, Mike Terrell is a guiding light, leading us back to what is sacred and hidden in the wild, untouched trails and waterways of northern Lower Michigan.”
MIKE TERRELL has spent over 40 years exploring the nooks and crannies around northern Michigan, writing hundreds of columns and directing thousands of readers to trails throughout this scenic, glacier-carved landscape. It’s easily some of the most impressive scenery you will find in the Midwest, and trails that are as varied as you will find around the Great Lakes.
M-22, the 116-mile state highway that wraps around Michigan’s little pinky like a glove, is quintessential Northern Michigan, a spectacular landscape of dunes and beaches, orchards and vineyards surrounded by a freshwater sea and dotted with small towns and harbors.
But it is the amount of public land and trails along M-22 that is remarkable. The highway passes through the heart of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, the state’s most popular national park with 71,000 acres of public land and 35 miles of beaches. It is also the gateway to more than two-dozen preserves protected by the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy in Benzie County and the Leelanau Conservancy in Leelanau County.
The Trails of M-22 is the first guidebook dedicated to leading you away from the pavement and into the dunes, forests and wetlands seen along 48 of Michigan’s most beautiful trails, including all the mainland trails in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The paths reward the adventurous with remote beaches, shoreline shipwrecks, outstanding birding opportunities and panoramic views that make you feel like you’re on the edge of the world.
Explore the hills, ridges, sand dunes, and breathtaking views of the Great Lake State, one trail at a time
Michigan’s Lower Peninsula offers extremely diverse terrain, from beaches that are home to shipwrecks and lighthouses, streams populated with trout, and wildflower and orchid fields to spaces with unusual geological formations, sand dunes, and steep climbs, and beech forests perfect for birding.Each chapter begins with an overview of each hike—the type of hike, total distance, time, difficulty, highlights, maps, and trailhead GPS coordinates. Readers will learn the best way to access the trail, tips and suggestions, and key features to look out for along the way (scenic views, drinking water, rest stops, waterfalls, and old growth trees). Whether readers are setting out in the Sleeping Bear region to observe shipwrecks, open dunes, and beach walking on the South Manitou Island trail, 50 Hikes in Michigan (with 10 bonus hikes!) is the perfect companion.
"Although we purchased our Leland home over 20 years ago, we did not move here permanently until three years ago. I asked Mark Carlson whether that made us 'locals.' Mark said 'no, you are now perma-fudgies.' I didn't fully understand until I read Scott Craig's new book. It is great medicine during these times of quarantine." -Richard Rossman, Executive DirectorNational Association of Former U.S. Attorneys
"With Craig's first book, The Story Next Door, I could tell within the first page I was in the hands of a great storyteller. With Laughing In Leelanau, I knew within the first few words I was in for some great laughs." -Jeff Probst, Host of the CBS television reality show, 'Survivor'
"Scott Craig and I worked together in Chicago for twenty years where he was producing numerous national award-winning documentaries for NBC, CBS and PBS. I knew him as an excellent storyteller but not until I read this book did I truly appreciate his unique ability to recognize and capture the warm and down-home humor of Northern Michigan." -Ed Spray, Co-Founder of the Home and Garden Television Network
"At least one smile on every page Fun, engaging, and a valuable contribution to the history of The County." -Ron Jolly, Morning Radio Host, WTCM, Traverse City
Leelanau -- one of the country's most beautiful counties-- is famous for its farms and orchards, wineries, friendly villages, and gorgeous drives. People from the world over are drawn to its hiking and biking trails, and pristine lakes, rivers and streams. Leelanau is also the place that most of the Sleeping Bear Dunes Lakeshore calls home.
There are many ways to take in the beauty of Leelanau -- one of the best is from a kayak.
The updated Second Edition of Leelanau By Kayak includes:
- 16 additional pages
- 4 additional Leelanau inland lakes
- 30 new photos
- additional historical and geographic information about Leelanau
Ken Scott presents his photographic marvel, ICE CAVES OF LEELANAU:
Renowed artists, photographer Ken Scott and painter Kaye Kraphol, trekked the entire 100-miles of the Leelanau Peninsula Lake Michigan shoreline. They recorded and documented its beauty while walking two miles at a time through all seasons. During their 10-month journey, they experienced the warmth of sandy beaches and colorful skies as well forboding clouds and rain, turbulent waves and snow and ice. You name it, Ken and Kaye encountered it, now sharing their art and two unique visions in this magnificent book
Traverse City resident Chris Roxburgh is an electrical contractor who owns First Class Wiring. He’s also a scuba diver and underwater photographer, known for the beautiful images and videos he takes of Great Lakes shipwrecks—and for diving in all four seasons, even under ice.
(This book cannot be returned.)
SOFTCOVER WITH MATTE INTERIOR PAGES.
STORM STRUCK: When Supercharged Winds Slammed Northwest Michigan
It was a hundred-year storm, said some. Thin trees snapped like matchsticks; thick ones toppled, one atop another, like felled soldiers. The storm's straight-wind blast left houses with gaping holes, thousands of residents with no power for days, a Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore that is, said one official, unrecognizable, and a cleanup that could take years.
A UNIQUE, CROWD-SOURCED BOOK FROM THE COMMUNITY
Following a social media blast by Mission Point Press, over 70 local or visiting photographers submitted their visions of the storm, resulting in well over 300 photos from Leelanau County, Traverse City, Old Mission Peninsula, Acme, Williamsburg, Alden, Frankfort, Mackinaw, Kalkaska and Antrim County. Mission Point Press, a Traverse City publisher, will release a book on Sept. 27, 2015, chronicling the historic, tragic event. Titled Storm Struck: When Supercharged Winds Slammed Northwest Michigan, it will include:
- The storm's anatomy ... what caused it, and why it was so devastating.
- A foreword by Bob Sutherland, founder of Cherry Republic.
- Mapped details of the path it followed.
- Extensive photographs showing the storm and the impact on Leelanau, Grand Traverse and Antrim counties - and more - from more than 70 different photographers.
- Stories of the people affected - their heroics and the swift response to repair the damage.
Photographer Mike Barton created Charlevoix in a nutshell, with over 190 full-color photographs. From colorful Bridge Street to the legendary Earl Young stone houses to the spectacular sunsets over Lake Michigan, everyone will find this little book a joy to read.
The Life of the Sleeping Bear celebrates the world famous Sleeping Bear Dunes area in Northwest Lower Michigan -- its land and its people -- from prehistoric to modern times.
(This book cannot be returned.)
Northern Harvest: Twenty Michigan Women in Food and Farming looks at the female culinary pioneers who have put northern Michigan on the map for food, drink, and farming. Emita Brady Hill interviews women who share their own stories of becoming the cooks, bakers, chefs, and farmers that they are today-each even sharing a delicious recipe or two. These stories are as important to tracing the gastronomic landscape in America as they are to honoring the history, agriculture, and community of Michigan.
Divided into six sections, Northern Harvest celebrates very different women who converged in an important region of Michigan and helped transform it into the flourishing culinary Eden it is today. Hill speaks with orchardists and farmers about planting their own fruit trees and making the decision to transition their farms over to organic. She hears from growers who have been challenged by the northern climate and have made exclusive use of fair trade products in their business. Readers are introduced to the first-ever cheesemaker in the Leelanau area and a pastry chef who is doing it all from scratch. Readers also get a sneak peek into the origins of Traverse City institutions such as Folgarelli's Market and Wine Shop and Trattoria Stella. Hill catches up with local cookbook authors and nationally known food writers. She interviews the founder of two historic homesteads that introduce visitors to a way of living many of us only know from history books.
These oral histories allow each woman to tell her story as she chooses, in her own words, with her own emphasis, and her own discretion or indiscretions. Northern Harvest is a celebration of northern Michigan's rich culinary tradition and the women who made it so. Hungry readers will swallow this book whole.