A Press-Ready Travel Feature 
From the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau

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Mike Norton
Media Relations
Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau
mnorton@mytraversecity.com
231-947-1120
101 W. Grandview Parkway
Traverse City, Michigan 49684

Photo credit: Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau

Cutline 1: Shivering her timbers: A young pirate-in-training takes the helm of the schooner Inland Seas, one of five tall ships that sail the Caribbean-colored waters of Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay.

Cutline 2: Set against the wooded hills of the Old Mission Peninsula, the tall ship Manitou carries a group of vacationers across West Grand Traverse Bay on a July afternoon. A replica of a 19th-century cargo schooner, Manitou is one of five sailing vessels based in Traverse City.

By MIKE NORTON

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – “It really is every bit as beautiful as the Caribbean,” says Kim Biocchi, looking out over the turquoise-colored waters of Suttons Bay. “We have everything but the sharks.”

Well… you can also forget about palm trees, coral reefs and year-round heat. But for several months each year, at least, the bays and coves of northwest Michigan can indeed be mistaken for the South Seas. It’s hard to reconcile their northern latitude with those dazzling sandy beaches, tall forested hills and a palette of exotic colors (from royal blue to jade, teal and aquamarine) that look as though they can’t possibly be real.

For a time, this Caribbean of the North even had its share of strange and rapacious pirates. Marauders from the bizarre Mormon “kingdom” established on nearby Beaver Island made frequent forays on isolated coastal settlements and lighthouses during the 1850s until the Navy finally dispatched a warship to the area to enforce some law and order.

This season, a whole new crop of buccaneer wannabees is swaggering around the docks of Traverse City and Suttons Bay. Blame the success of Disney’s second “Pirates of the Caribbean” film, “Dead Man’s Chest.” Fortunately, there are plenty of ways for them to satisfy their seafaring yearnings in this part of the world – five vintage sailing ships still ply the waters of Grand Traverse Bay, and their captains are more than willing to play along.

Biocchi, for instance, works for the Inland Seas Education Association, whose “floating classroom” programs aboard the 77-foot schooner Inland Seas and the 31-foot Friendship sloop Liberty teach would-be pirates about navigation, sail-handling, history and environmental science. (One program even features a “survivor” adventure where participants are marooned on a nearby island.) This year the organization’s summer fundraiser was a special benefit screening of “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” that drew a capacity crowd – including several in pirate costumes.

“We had a great little reception with a steel band, and people really got into the spirit,” said Biocchi. “We’re already planning to do it again when the next one comes out.”

Meanwhile, Capt. Dave McGinnis of the tall ship Manitou has decided to offer discounts for cruises aboard his 114-foot cargo schooner to passengers who showed up with movie stubs from the latest “Pirates” film. A traditional two-masted topsail schooner with room for 62 passengers, Manitou is one of the largest sailing ships on the Great Lakes, and during the summer McGinnis offers three two-hour sails each day – perfect for landlubbers who like their piracy in small doses.

"Life aboard the Manitou is fun and informal," said Captain Dave McGinnis.

"The object here is to slow down and take things as they come. Many folks have told us that this is the best stress reliever they have ever found."

In the fall months, McGinnis turns the Manitou into a floating bed & breakfast, offering special overnight musical and astronomy cruises (Oddly, there seem to be no looting and pillaging cruises on this year’s schedule, though.) But his Tuesday night “wine sails” and Wednesday “music sails” often feature stories and songs about the real-life pirates who once sailed the Great Lakes.

Some of that swashbuckling tradition is also preserved by the Maritime Heritage Alliance, a group of local history buffs based in Traverse City. The Alliance owns two historic sailing vessels -- the 92-foot Madeline, a replica of a 19th century wooden schooner that is frequently available for sailing excursions and guided tours, and the Welcome, a 55-foot replica of an 18th-century British armed sloop originally built for the 1976 Bicentennial of the American Revolution.

This summer, Madeline is joining more than 20 other sailing ships (including the Providence, the ship on which both “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies were shot) in the American Sail Training Association’s Tall Ships Challenge, a massive Great Lakes cruise that will recreate the glory days when America’s sweetwater seas were crowded with hundreds of sailing ships. The fleet will make stops in several Great Lakes ports, including Chicago, Cleveland, Bay City and Green Bay.

For more information about the programs of the Inland Seas Education Association, call (231) 271-3077 or log on to their site at www.greatlakeseducation.org For information about cruises aboard the Tall Ship Manitou, call the Traverse Tall Ship Company at (800) 678-0383 or on line at www.tallshipsailing.com And for information about free sailings and tours of the Madeline and Welcome, contact the Maritime Heritage Alliance at (231) 946-2647 or log on

To learn more about visiting the Traverse City area -- and for information about lodging packages, culinary treats, outdoor activities and indoor attractions -- contact the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-TRAVERSE or on line at www.mytraversecity.com