Longtime Glen Arbor physician Matthew Houghton passed away early Sunday morning, his family confirmed. Details about a memorial service will be forthcoming. Houghton’s patients received the sudden and sad news in March that “Doc” Houghton was closing his practice, effective March 10.
Sitting with owner and executive winemaker Charlie Edson on Bel Lago Vineyards and Winery’s tasting room patio on a sunny summer day, it’s easy to appreciate his Italian father-in-law’s inspiration for the name “Bel Lago,” which means beautiful lake in Italian. From the vantage point of a steep hill above the western shore of Lake Leelanau, the view is indeed spectacular—white clouds in a blue sky reflecting onto the bluer waters of the southern end of the lake.
The vineyards are lush, and the grapes are plumping up in preparation of the upcoming harvest. And, to celebrate, folks are gearing up for the annual Harvest Stompede held Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 6-7.
Action. The brain really likes action. In fact, the brain loves action, even when we are veging out on the beach, action runs in the drift of our minds. After all, we are part animal, and we still have that watchful animal awareness that what moves might be predator or prey, so it gets and keeps our attention. But how does this translate into that more sophisticated thinking we do when we write, even just one paragraph.
Who: The Thatcher sisters, Becky and Cookie. What: Rescue a lost girl. Where: Alligator Hill in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a.k.a. the Park. When: Summer 2013. Why: It was their job. For now, though, suffice it to say there are a million stories in The Park. This is just one of them.
On a mid-August day at Empire beach, tourist Christian Lubbers battled the sand, and the birds.
By the time you read this, Andrew Pritchard, Kwin Morris, Jeff Guy, Joe Lorenz and J Mueller may be sitting at Frankfort’s Stormcloud Brewery, tipping back a round of well-deserved pints. Or they may be still en route, traversing 60 miles across Lake Michigan, from Wisconsin to Frankfort beach on standup paddleboards. The goal of the journey is to raise $10,000 for the Alliance for the Great Lakes, which has preserved and protected the “freshwater seas” since 1970.
The Glen Arbor Township Board is working on a new Master Plan for Glen Arbor. Faced with burgeoning summer tourist crowds, national media attention, and a popular new bike trail, the time seems right for Glen Arbor to reexamine its identity, in what direction the town is going, and what changes are needed to keep the community safe, sustainable, beautiful and profitable.
Taking a stroll down Western Avenue in the village of Glen Arbor, you’ll come to a lawn that is beautifully landscaped in Michigan native plants. This is 6391 Western Avenue, the headquarters of Sleeping Bear Birding Trail (SBBT). What, you wonder, is a birding trail? That’s the most frequently asked question by both tourists and locals coming through the door, said operations director Mick Seymour. “What the heck is a birding trail?”
It was all about art in Glen Arbor, August 1-2, at the Glen Arbor Art Association’s sixth annual Plein Air Paint Out weekend. One of the largest plein air events in Michigan, attracting both artists and art collectors, the 2014 Paint Out featured 45 artists who participated for the Quick Draw on Friday afternoon and over 50 artists at the main event on Saturday.