A leaf-peepers guide to Michigan's Grand Traverse Region
A Press-Ready Travel Feature
From the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau
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Michael A. Norton
Media Relations
(800) 940-1120; (231) 947-1120, fax (231) 947-2621
mnorton@VisitTraverseCity.com
Photo Credit: Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau
Cutline: Nestled against the twin fjords of East and West Grand Traverse Bay, the Lake Michigan resort community of Traverse City is surrounded by dense northern hardwoods that glow brilliantly in the light of an autumn evening.
(Other high-resolution photos available on request.)
By MIKE NORTON
TRAVERSE CITY, MI – Bela Barner loves the great outdoors. In fact, the Chicago native hopes to visit every national park in the United States some day. But when fall comes around, his favorite destination is the rolling landscape of forests, dunes and deep blue water around Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay.
“I love the cooler weather and fall colors,” Barner says. “Northern Michigan in fall is heavenly.”
Barner is especially fond of the magnificent Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, about 20 miles west of Traverse City, whose steep hillsides and lush hardwood forests burst into sheets of flaming scarlet, orange and gold each fall. Set against the deep indigo of Lake Michigan, the towering bluffs and islands of Sleeping Bear are particularly dramatic when clothed in their autumn finery.
But the Traverse City area abounds in such places. Its characteristic landscape of rolling glacial ridges, lush forests and wide expanses of open water makes the perfect canvas for nature’s annual fall masterpiece. In this glacier-sculpted setting with its wide panoramas, autumn color is simply the finishing touch to a dramatic vista of water, sand and sky.
For generations, veteran “leaf-peepers” have made the Traverse Bay area the base of operations for their annual fall color pilgrimage, and the local Convention & Visitors Bureau annually receives hundreds of inquiries from prospective visitors who want to know when and where to see the best colors.
One of the best places to enjoy the interplay between water, sky and foliage is the Old Mission Peninsula, which juts bravely into Grand Traverse Bay -- nearly 20 miles long and in some places as little as a mile wide. A beautiful patchwork of orchards, vineyards, forests and villages, it’s the perfect place for a morning or afternoon drive that combines fall color with beautiful views of the bay, visits to wineries and roadside fruit stands, and unforgettable meals at several charming restaurants.
The most spectacular views along the peninsula are generally to be had along M-37 (Center Road), which runs along the steep ridge at its center, through the charming hamlet of Mapleton to the picturesque lighthouse at Old Mission Point.
But it’s just as lovely to amble along the roads that follow the shoreline on either side, stopping to visit the historic village of Old Mission and the quiet settlement of Bowers Harbor.
Northwest of Traverse City is the much larger Leelanau Peninsula, the “little finger” of the Michigan mitten – a place of beautiful scenery, quaint lakeshore villages and fascinating history, and home to the magnificent Sleeping Bear Dunes. The coastal fringes of this remarkable area can be sampled easily along M-22, which follows the shore of Grand Traverse Bay to Northport, then turns abruptly southwest to skirt the coast of Lake Michigan through Leland, Glen Arbor and the Sleeping Bear Dunes. (Here, a must-do is the side jaunt on M-109 past the ghost port of Glen Haven and the famous Dune Climb to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive (permit required) which offers splendid views of the surrounding lake and dune country.)
Still, when it comes to fall colors, the peninsula’s hilly interior often provides a more brilliant show than the coastlands. Here, along the slopes above Lake Leelanau and the two Glen lakes, are farmlands, woods, vineyards and small towns that still retain traces of their Polish and Bohemian founders.
Some of the same feeling can be had just to the northeast of Traverse City, in the glacier-scoured Chain of Lakes region of Antrim County. This is a dramatic landscape of rolling drumlins and long, deep blue glacial lakes. Two of the largest, Elk Lake and Torch Lake, are particularly beautiful when the hills in which they nestle are aflame with fall colors. Nearby is the steep valley of the little Rapid River, whose forested slopes look as though they could have been transported from the Appalachians.
A good introduction to this region can be had by following U.S. 31 north from Traverse City, past orchards and farms along the shore of East Grand Traverse Bay to the lively little port of Elk Rapids. From here, it’s possible to drive east between the lakes and into the hills above them, where the autumn views of distant blue hills evoke fall in the lochs of Scotland. The tiny village of Alden, on Torch Lake, makes a great stop for lunch and some shopping, while the summit of Shanty Creek near Bellaire provides awe-inspiring views of the surrounding countryside.
The highlands to the south of Traverse City are dotted with dozens of small lakes, sturdy farm towns and dense forests of evergreens and hardwoods – as well as the majestic Boardman Valley. Much of this intensely varied landscape is contained in the Pere Marquette State Forest, and it is best explored by heading out into the maze of twisting roads that wind through the forests, around lakes and along the tops of high wooded bluffs.
One place to start is by circling Long Lake, whose islands and coves provide a pleasant fall backdrop for a drive to the village of Interlochen, home to the renowned Interlochen Center for the Arts. From here, it’s an uncomplicated trip east through rolling farmlands to Kingsley and the even smaller hamlet of Mayfield on the Boardman River, where a traveler must choose whether to follow the river valley (which broadens dramatically just beyond this point) or ascend the steep bluffs above the river to the Forest Lakes region. Of course, one can always do both!
WHAT ELSE TO DO: You can cover a lot of ground by driving through the fall landscape – but to experience the full sensory richness of autumn, you have to get out and listen to the crunch of leaves, smell the spicy aroma of apples and woodsmoke, breathe the crisp autumn air. Fortunately, Traverse City has dozens of hiking trails. Another great way to see the autumn foliage is to paddle a canoe or kayak down one of the area’s gentle, slow-moving rivers.
WHEN TO COME: Thanks to its coastal location and diverse landscape, the fall color season around Traverse City usually lasts a bit longer than in neighboring areas. Color changes usually begin in mid-September in the higher elevations south and east of Grand Traverse Bay, especially the steep inland valleys of the Boardman, Jordan and Manistee rivers. By the end of the month, when those areas are experiencing peak colors, the coastal forests along the Lake Michigan shoreline and the larger inshore lakes are just beginning to show good coloration and can often continue to grow in intensity well into October.
The Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau publishes a full-color brochure highlighting its recommended color tours and maintains a Fall Color Hotline at 1-800-727-5482 where visitors can find out about the progress of the color season. This year, the Bureau is also offering a series of “fab fall” lodging packages priced as low as $25 per person per night (plus tax, based on double occupancy) that includes discounts on dining, shopping and other fall activities.
For information about color tours and other events and activities in the Traverse City area this fall, as well as a comprehensive listing of area restaurants, accommodations and attractions, contact the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-TRAVERSE or on line at www.VisitTraverseCity.com
