Two peninsulas run north of Traverse City. The smaller one is Old Mission, the larger is Leelanau. Above is the Old Mission lighthouse at the very tip of the peninsula. We met a friend from home and she gave us a beautiful tour of her family's cottage and vacation spot just south of this lighthouse. She grew up vacationing there and now enjoys it with her grandchildren.
Above: Looking toward the eastern coast of the Old Mission peninsula. Below: Looking toward the western coast of the Old Mission peninsula, from the same gorgeous winery, Chateau Chantal. This is not far from our friend Debbie's cottage. I had to sample the sparkling cherry wine. Very nice wine!!!
On Leelanau peninsula, we toured Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan. The Indian lore says the mother bear was crossing this strait with her 2 cubs. The cubs could not make it across so perished. There are two islands off the shoreline, North & South Manitou, named for the cubs. There is a dune shaped like a sleeping bear supposedly the mother waiting for her cubs.
A view of South Manitou island.
The park warns people if they want to go down the face of this dune, it only takes a few minutes but it takes over 2 hours to climb back up. We did not do it! No way!
Cute little town of Leland where we had lunch. Very strange boat used on Lake Michigan.
Grand Traverse lighthouse at the northern tip of Leelanau peninsula.
Our bus tour guide talking to some ladies on our tour. He looked exactly like Richard Gere.
The cherries are almost ready to harvest. Traverse City grows over 40% of the supply in the US. About a week before harvest, the farmers spray the trees with a solution that helps the cherries to drop. They put a machine around the trunk and shake the free vigorously for about 15 seconds. The fruit drops into nets they have below the tree. The machine is then moved to the next tree. It's much faster and less expensive then hand picking.
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