This year marks 30 years for the Leelanau Outdoor Center (LOC) on Pyramid Point. To celebrate this milestone, LOC will host a Fall Festival event on Oct. 5, where participants will be able to climb the rock wall, fly down the zip line, go on a hayride, carve a pumpkin, shoot a bow and arrow, and more! The outdoor center will be open to all from 1-5 pm, and it’s just $15/person to access all the activities. Concessions will also be available.
Leelanau County’s most remote village will host the final event of Pride Week for the fourth consecutive year. Sanctioned by Up North Pride and produced by The Chetcuti Evans Foundation, the Northport Tea Dance will take place at Faro on Sunday, Sept. 29, as a grand finale sendoff following a week of Traverse City-based celebrations centered around Northern Michigan’s queer community. The focus of this inclusive, family-friendly event is to create awareness and visibility for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Leelanau (Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, and the plus reflects the countless affirmative ways in which people choose to self-identify).
The local music scene in Leelanau County not only highlights the dedicated and seasoned professionals we see playing at venues through the year, but is unique in the way it welcomes and enriches the lives of young artists on the rise. From young performers like The Accidentals and Billy Strings who grew up singing and playing next to our shore of Lake Michigan, to the rising Trillium Groove, Leelanau is the perfect place for young artists and musicians to find their voice and place their roots. Trillium Groove’s upcoming Leelanau County schedule include performances at Leelanau UnCaged in Northport on Saturday, Sept. 28, and Thursday, Oct. 3, at Jacob’s Farm on M-72.
For one day each year, Northport becomes a musical haven, where folk and funk, blues and bluegrass, hip rock and hot horns all have a place. Welcome to Leelanau UnCaged, where some two dozen acts perform the last Saturday in September (Sept. 28 this year) on the streets throughout town. Despite taking its name and inspiration from avant-garde musician John Cage, Leelanau UnCaged is not dedicated to ultramodern cutting-edge music. It’s all about a good time with good friends as they celebrate a respite from the hustle and bustle after summer visitors and seasonal residents have typically departed.
The storied Earthwork Harvest Gathering will meet for the last time this weekend in rural Missaukee County—about an hour southeast of Traverse City. For 22 years, thousands of musicians, artisans, and activists have flocked to Bob Bernard’s farm near Lake City to celebrate the end of summer, dance in the fields, and foster community. Bob’s son Seth, who grew up on the farm, is a well-known musician and activist who founded the Earthwork Music Collective. “For me it’s emotional just to think about this one being the last of its kind. I’m so proud to have been able to work with these folks through all these years, so many people who have inspired me to be a better human being. I just want to extend a hearty invitation for people to come out and experience some of the beauty of northern Michigan and some of this beautiful culture of active artisans and activists and music lovers who know how to have a really good time.”
The Leelanau Historical Society hosts the third annual Leelanau Maritime History Festival on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 10 am-3 pm at the Leelanau Historical Society, located at 203 E. Cedar St. in Leland.
Hayward Draper, the author of The Colony: The history, families, society, architecture, and economics of a 1908 traditional American Cottage Row will give a presentation at Fountain Point Resort on Tuesday, Sept. 17, at 4 pm. This presentation is hosted by the Leelanau Historical Society in collaboration with Fountain Point Resort. Copies of Draper’s book will be available at the event.
The Bay Community Theatre is launching a new live entertainment series in downtown Suttons Bay called “Live at the Bay,” with the inaugural Fall 2024 season featuring artists from across Michigan and the United States, including renowned a cappella, comedy, live film accompaniment, and jazz/blues performances.
Coffee With the Authors is a live, conversational interview with local and regional authors about the craft and process of writing. On Sept. 14 Traverse City poet and teacher Teresa Scallon talks about To Embroider The Ground With Prayer, a collection of poems considering her father’s illness, death, and the Michigan farming community in which she was raised. Sarah Bearup-Neal, GAAC gallery manager, leads the conversation. The interview begins at 1 pm.
Leland Township Public Library will host Nikki Rothwell, Ph.D, on Thursday, Sept. 12, at 10 am as the final installment of its Leland Library Summinars series. Agriculture is a challenging occupation, and climate change has made this job even more difficult. Attend to hear about how the variable climate is impacting local farmers and how research and outreach programming are trying to address this key factor that is influencing how we grow fruit in northwest Michigan.