Entries by editor

The Blues Moves North: the Story of Junior and Sugar

Robert Jr. Whitall (aka Junior) brought his girlfriend Shirley Mae Owens (aka Sugar) to the Sleeping Bear Dunes in August of 1998 for camping, swimming, and hiking. They also attended the Dunegrass and Blues Festival. Sugar fell in love with Robert Jr. and the beautiful Sleeping Bear Dunes. Robert Jr. has been exploring the area since the 1980s. The following year Junior proposed to Sugar in New Orleans at Mardi Gras on Lundi Gras at Harry Connick Jr’s Orpheus parade. Junior remembers, “I had my grandmother’s ring and Sugar caught it!”

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Leelanau Conservancy selects contractor to build mountain bike trails at Palmer Woods

Exciting news for mountain bikers in Northern Michigan: work to expand Palmer Wood’s Forest Reserve’s trail system with single-track mountain bike trails is slated to begin next month. Flowtrack Mountain Bike Trails, LLC, a professional trail-building company from the Upper Peninsula, has been hired to lead the design and construction of the new trails.

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RIP, Mike Buhler

The Glen Arbor community, family and friends, and the braintrust of the Glen Arbor Sun newspaper are devastated by the sudden passing, Aug. 16, of H. Michael Buhler, who died of a heart attack. He was 57 years young.

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LivelyLands Music Festival amplifies northern Michigan music

The upcoming LivelyLands Music Festival will provide a musical adventure like nothing else in northern Michigan, featuring genre-diverse artists from Austin to Leelanau County and points in between. The festival is set for Aug. 24-26.

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After crossing Kejara’s Bridge, the Redheads branch out

Sarah Landry Ryder has come a long way from the 25-year-old restaurant owner and waitress she used to be. Her company The Redheads, which she and her sisters started in 2004, has taken off as another Leelanau business looking to make delicious food with local sustainable ingredients. 

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Perusing Leelanau’s best picnic stores

Sand in your sandwich is not a nuisance, but welcomed nostalgia. If you’re ready to pack your beach bags with too much food and drink, and slap down your territorial towel flags, here’s a breakdown of some of the best places to get stocked up for your next beach picnic in “the County.”

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Leelanau Peninsula Wine on the Water Festival rescheduled for Aug. 18  

The July 2018 Wine on the Water Festival that was postponed due to lightning and thunderstorms has been rescheduled. The organizers are excited to host the festival on Saturday, Aug. 18, in its same location at Marina Park in Suttons Bay.

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Trump’s tariffs—bad for local newspapers, bad for fruit, bad for Michigan

The news media has suffered in recent years. Corporate consolidations have forced mass layoffs; the Internet and social media have redrawn the map; and demagogues at podiums malign us as convenient scapegoats. The latest blow to local news is the current administration’s shortsighted, illogical tariffs on newsprint from Canada.

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Leelanau Wine Trail holds Small Plates, Aug. 16

The next wildly popular Small Plates—an intimate progressive dinner along the Leelanau wine trail—is Thursday, Aug. 16,  starting at 6 p.m. Enjoy a glass of wine paired with a gourmet tapas dish in the tasting rooms of up to three wineries during this unique dinner event that happens just twice per year.

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The perfect day in Leland: Chubby Mary, Cheese Shanty and beach reads

Leland is a getaway in every sense of the word. It’s idyllic and old school, clean and comfortable, and there’s just enough to do without overwhelming you. On this shore, Lake Michigan can be calm and quiet, or raging and dark. The weather decides which experience you’ll have. Big lake storms can be the best excuse to huddle up and reset in a cozy spot, hypnotized by the rain and wind.

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