Posts

Sleeping Bear applies brakes on controversial Heritage Trail extension along Little Traverse Lake

,

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is putting the brakes on its planned 4.5-mile extension of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, which was to run near Little Traverse Lake and conclude at Good Harbor Trail. National Lakeshore superintendent Scott Tucker announced the news today during a press conference at Park headquarters in Empire. (Click here to watch a livestream of the news conference.) The National Lakeshore is pausing the design of Segment 9 following months of conversations with the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, which opposes the route of the extension and which sent a letter of concern on Aug. 26 to Secretary of the Interior Debra Haaland and U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow.

Read more
/by

“I know this place.” Stones buy iconic Bicentennial Farm

,

Scott Stone, a woodworker and retired metallurgist from Ferndale, Michigan, was at Cavanaugh’s grocery at The Homestead resort in August waiting for his pizza when he picked up a copy of our Aug. 22 edition of the Glen Arbor Sun, flipped to page 2, and read a story about the iconic bicentennial barn property at the corner of M-22 and Bohemian Road being for sale again. The 1890s farmhouse and barn on a 4-acre property in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was purchased in February 2021 by Greg and Heather (Nachazel) Ford. “I know this place,” from biking by it on the Sleeping Heritage Trail, Scott told himself. Fast forward to Oct. 17, when Scott and his wife Tamara bought the bicentennial farm from the Fords, who are moving out of state. The Stones have vacationed in the Glen Arbor area for 23 summers, they love the National Park, the vibe here, the sense of community, and proximity to Lake Michigan. For the past year they’ve been casually looking for a place to buy.

Read more
/by

Iconic Bicentennial Barn property for sale again

,

Leelanau’s iconic Bicentennial Barn is for sale once again. The 1890s farmhouse and barn on a 4-acre property on the corner of M-22 and Bohemian Rd was purchased in February 2021 by Greg and Heather (Nachazel) Ford, who over the last three and a half years “have been pouring their love into the farmhouse and have dealt with the structure, roof, and windows—all the unromantic things,” said Ranae Ihme of Leelanau Vacation Realty, which lists the property for $665,000. The Fords are moving out of state and “passing the baton to someone who can complete the process and put the ‘frosting’ on it.”

Read more
/by

Introducing the Bohemians of Leelanau County

Bohemian Valley, Bohemian Beach, Bohemian Road, the Bohemian Settlement, and the Bohemian Cemetery. From where does the name Bohemian originate and why do we find it in Leelanau County? Rebecca Gearing Carlson asks this question in part six of our Leelanau Farming Family Series. “When I think of the word Bohemian, the social and cultural movement of the 19th century comes to mind: writers, journalists, painters, actors, and other creative people living outside the norms of society. Thackeray’s Vanity Fair, Puccini’s La Boheme, and Bizet’s Carmen are beautifully written stories about the Bohemians who purposely pushed the accepted limits of societal practices and despised conventionality. The only similarities, however, between Bohemianism and the central European Bohemians are the names.”

Read more
/by

TART Trails, Friends of Sleeping Bear host open houses

TART Trails and Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes will host two summer open houses at the intersection of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail and Glen Haven Road —on Thursday, July 27, from 11 am-1 pm, and Thursday, August 10, from 11 am-1 pm. Community members, visitors, trail users and those interested in learning more about the trail and its Pathway to Good Harbor extension are invited to stop by to talk trails.

Read more
/by