Exploring Manistee County! - Tour Package Contents!

Manistee County is the FINAL Destination Package JQ99 & Pure Michigan have to give away for Explore Magnificent Michigan, and it's a big one!

Manistee County's prize package contains:

• 2 Nights lodging for Two
• 2 Dinners for Two
• A $50 Gas Card
• A Manistee County Gift Basket
• and your choice of: The Outdoor Tour Package, Haunted Mystery Tour Package, or Cultural Experience Tour Package!

However...Would you like to know what the Tour Packages contain? Here you go!

Outdoor Tour Package:

• 2 hour Canoe Trip on the Manistee or Platte River OR 20 minute Scenic Airplane Ride!
• Color Tour map with stops at: Lake Bluff Bird Sanctuary, Apple Valley Orchards, Douglas Valley Organic Vineyard for tasting, Gwen Frostic Print Shop, and Arcadia Overlook (Gravity Hill)!
• Color Tour maps for Hiking and Biking, plus map of outdoor attractions!
• Maps for self-guided tours including Macabre Manistee County!
• AND...Your own Remembrance Photo of the two of you!

Haunted Mystery Tour Package:

• Haunted Hats to wear!
• 2 Tickets to Ghost Ship on the SS City of Milwaukee or Ramsdell Theatre Production!
• Color Tour map with stops at: Lake Bluff Bird Sanctuary, Apple Valley Orchards, Douglas Valley Organic Vineyard for tasting, Gwen Frostic Print Shop, and Arcadia Overlook (Gravity Hill)!
• Color Tour maps for Hiking and Biking!
• Maps for self-guided tours including Macabre Manistee County, Cemetery Tours, Halloween house Decorations, Scarecrow Displays, and County-wide Museum Tour!
• AND...Your own Remembrance Photo of the two of you!

Cultural Experience Tour Package:

• Salt City of the Inland Seas Book!
  
• 2 Tickets to Ramsdell Theatre Production!
• Color Tour map with stops at: Lake Bluff Bird Sanctuary, Apple Valley Orchards, Douglas Valley Organic Vineyard for tasting, Gwen Frostic Print Shop, and Arcadia Overlook (Gravity Hill)!
• Color Tour maps highlighting museums, art attractions and galleries, PLUS Michigan Legacy Art Park!
• Maps for self-guided tours including Macabre Manistee County and Historical Walking/Building Tour!
• AND...Your own Remembrance Photo of the two of you!

There you go! Check back all this week for Ceci's updates about her family's experience in Manistee County!

Jeremy

Exploring Charlevoix! - Day 5 (Final)

Alright...Last day of recapping my family's trip to Charlevoix!

We've had a lot of fun already; Shopping, Running around in the rain, Driving around the beautiful area of Charlevoix, and Dinner in a fancy restaurant.

To finish things off, we went and had fun at "Castle Farms"!

(By the way...Side note...On the way to "Castle Farms" is a cool candle factory outlet that everyone talked about, but we didn't have a chance to visit. "Bullfrog Light Co." their candles are special because the WHOLE candle glows, not just the top of the wick.)

Upon arrival, this is what we saw:

NEAT!

We walked in a little rain soak, and caught the introductory video just as they were starting it. So we sat through that and learned the history of "Castle Farms", at one point it was used as a concert venue!

Once the video finished, we were released to go start our self-guided tour. First stop...Butterfly Garden:

Next up...The Pond!

Oh...and they gave us fish food, check out what it did:

Here's the back of the castle:

We were able to do a majority of the tour, but since Emerson was in a stroller, it was a little more difficult to get around since there are many stairs and steps. (FYI)

Here's a cool shot of the side building:

And one of the big giant chess games on the grounds:

Here's part of the front of the castle:

Here's the upper banquet hall:

Oh...Did I forget to mention. This place is so large that they were set up to accommodate 4 separate weddings all at the same time that very day? Ha! Neat!

Well...That wraps up my family's recap of our trip to Charlevoix. It may have been a little on the chilly side and maybe a little rainy, but it didn't stop us from finding fun things that Charlevoix had to offer.

We plan to return at some point, because we'd really like to go on the Sunshine Charters Sailboat Tour.

Thanks so much for following along with me. You have the rest of the day today to get your 1 Point-Free entry into the Charlevoix Giveaway Contest on JQ Family Rewards. So make sure you go grab that.

Ceci and her family are gone today...Gone in Manistee! She'll recap her family's adventure next week as we wrap up Explore Magnificent Michigan with our last giveaway!

As I close, I want to thank the city of Charlevoix for showing us a good time, and I'd like to thank Lauren Brumley. She's the Executive Directore at the Charlevoix CVB. She was amazingly organized and helpful. If you have any questions about a trip to Charlevoix, I suggest you get in contact with her:

Lauren Brumley
info@charlevoixlodging.com
800.367.8558

The last thing I'd like to say is this...Don't forget how cool Michigan is. It's easy to get wrapped up in the news and talk of how poor our state is doing, but you know what...At some point someone told me, "Life is what you make of it." Well...They were right.

If all I take in and surround myself with is garbage and doom & gloom about where our state is at (or heading), that's what I'm going to believe. However...If I can shield myself from those things and actually shift my focus to the good...Michigan's an awesome state with a TON to offer!

So...That said. Go somewhere. Anywhere. Go show Michigan how much you love it by spending time with it. Even if that means going down to the local park and playing with the kids.

Enjoy.

Jeremy

Exploring Charlevoix! - Day 4

Dinner time!

After arriving...Finding the hotel and unpacking...Meeting up at the CVB...A little shopping...A Drive and some Naps...We finally make it to dinner time! Dinner at:

"THE GREY GABLES INN RESTAURANT"

We showed up, personally I was expecting a restaurant building, and we came face to face with a house! Yes, a house...a nice house, but still...a house!

So there we sat, Emerson in the back seat, my wife and I looking at each other in the front seat, wondering..."Do you suppose they accommodate little kids? You want to go in and ask? No...Why don't you, I'll stay in the car with Emerson." And so on.

Well...Annie made her way in and came back with good news, they allow children, in fact, when we strolled in, the hostess took one look at our daughter and said, "They're (babies) especially welcome when they're that cute!" Looks like we were good to go!

So we sat down and took in our surroundings. Yep...The outside of the house didn't lie...it was a house inside too! You know...modified to accommodate a large number of dinner guests.

We sat next to a cute old couple out to dinner for one of their birthdays. It was one of those situations where you look at your spouse and silently say to one another..."That's going to be us someday." And it may very well be, because the food was delicious!

I ordered Fish & Chips, Annie ordered some Whitefish, and Emerson had Cheerios, Bread, Turkey w. Squash (in a jar of course), and a bottle of milk.

Now...much like our encounter at "The Roadhouse" in Benzie County, in which you can recall my thoughts by checking the previous post, there were some shouts and screams, maybe a little breakdown here and there, but all and all...We made it through. For all you Veteran parents out there, we know you you do these types of outings blindfolded, but we're still working on it.

Oh...and we arrived at the right time. When we got there, there was only a handful of people, when we left, the entire restaurant was packed full!

"The Grey Gables Inn Restaurant" is included in this week's giveaway, so if you're the winner, you'll no doubt be going to dinner here, however...If you don't win, but still make your way to Charlevoix...stop by. The atmosphere is fun, the food is delicious, and it's overall, just a nice pleasant experience. Not something you get too often these days.

After dinner we contemplated ice cream, but bowed out due to being extremely full. It's back to the hotel to play for a while, then bed time!

Tomorrow's post is going to be heavy on the photos since the last part of my family's recap of Charlevoix finishes up a "Castle Farms".

Jeremy

Exploring Charlevoix! - Day 3

Hey! Welcome to the Day 3 recap. It's going to be a little shorted than yesterday, because mostly I'm going to show off some of the neat things we saw on our drive around before dinner.

See...With a 10/11 month old, we need to take pauses in our day for a nap. So after some shopping we decided to pack up and head back to "AmericInn" to get the kiddo a nap and recharge ourselves. After all...It was raining and we were a little soaked! Here's my soaked wife:

And a pretty wet daughter:

I didn't take a picture of myself, but I sacrificed my dryness to run to the car and come back and pick up my family who was huddled under an overhang.

Successfully back in the car we made our way back to home base, on the way, I got side tracked because out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of these two:

They were chillin' at the playground of the Church across the street, and let me get pretty close.

All rested and dried off, Emerson and I were ready to head back out:

More specifically, head out for dinner. On the way we drove down to one of the boat launches and snapped this pic Lake Charlevoix:

Might look a little gloomy, and maybe it was, but still...It was an extremely awesome view that the image can't do justice.

Like I said...Shorter post today. I'll wrap up and we'll have dinner tomorrow.

Jeremy

Exploring Charlevoix! - Day 2

Alright...Here's Day 2 of my recap of the family trip to Charlevoix.

Yesterday I left off saying that weather bumped our plans to take a sailboat tour. It did and instead, we decided to check out the downtown shops!

After walking away from "Sunshine" the sailboat, we walked towards the water and under the drawbridge. See...

Here's a cool shot of the red lighthouse from under the drawbridge.

The ladies of the "Henry" family smiling, with Lake Michigan in the background!

(This is after carrying the stroller up a flight of stairs.)

First memorable stop on our shopping trip...

THE TAFFY BARREL!

This place is seriously THE coolest candy store I've been to in quite a while. Focusing on taffy and hard to find candy, this place is a must see if you stop into Charlevoix. Check this shot out...Just a sample of the over 90 flavors they carry!

(That's Annie and Emerson at the end over there.)

Tip: If you are planning on getting married in the near future and need a party favor on the tables at the reception, might I suggest taffy? Comes in many colors and flavors!

Here's a part of the list of flavors; Candy Apple, Cinnamon Swirl, Egg Nog, Key Lime, Molasses Cookies, Cherry Cola, Root Beer Float, Watermelon, and MORE!

Visit "The Taffy Barrel" online at: www.TheTaffyBarrel.com

Next notable stop..."American Spoon"!

"American Spoon" has lots of fun flavors of Salsa, Jellies, Jam, and Butters! Also...3 words..."TASTE TESTING TABLES!" Yes...you can taste a lot of what "American Spoon" has to offer. Swing by when in Charlevoix, even if just for a snack!

That's about it for today...Tomorrow, I'll recap our drive around the area, leading up to dinner at the "Grey Gable Restaurant!"

Exploring Charlevoix! - Day 1

Ha! Two trips in a row, how fun!

Yes...It's me Jeremy, the overnight/web guy here at JQ99. My wife, daughter, and I went to the lovely city of Charlevoix (for the first time ever) this weekend, so that I could come to you all this week and recap the great time we had.

It was our first time to Charlevoix, and we weren't sure what to expect. Let me preface by saying that the next statement is of my own opinion and not that of the station, or anyone else. That said...Charlevoix is everything Holland (where I live and have grown up) should be.

Let me explain...Upon arrival we were in the familiar surrounding of a downtown area, similar to Downtown Holland. Only difference...It's right on the water! Here's a tip/idea for Holland...Move Padnos somewhere else and build a Boardwalk area with shopping, condos, boat tours, beautiful parks, etc. That's the secret to success...at least in my experience to Charlevoix.

*I don't mean to 'put down' Holland, I just see some room for improvement.

Moving on...Part of the prize package for Charlevoix is a 2 night stay at this place:

The "AmericInn" of Charlevoix!

Great accommodations! Close enough to town, but still a good distance away to avoid most of the traffic. After all...US-31 goes right through the city! Oh F.Y.I...The drawbridge seen below, goes up at the Top and Bottom of every hour.

Drawbridge down.

Drawbridge up!

We got to the "AmericInn", checked in and entered our room to set up and here's what we first saw...

Our welcome package!

The "AmericInn" also has a pool, but for whatever reason...um...We forgot our swimsuits. Ah well. Let that be a reminder to you if you are the winner, or decide to go up there.

Two sad ladies, wishing they had their suits.

After leaving the "AmericInn" we were supposed to head out on a Sailboat Tour, but unfortunately, with the winds, cold, and rain this past weekend, it got bumped. Here's a picture of the boat we could have been on...Too bad...Next time though!

"Sunshine"

Emerson in front of the boat.

I think today's post is long enough...So I'll end here. Check back tomorrow, when I share what we did instead of the Sailboat Tour!

Exploring Benzie County! - Day 5

Hey all...Welcome to the last recap day of my family's trip to Benzie County.

Before the recap, I just want to say, "Good Luck" to all who enter to win the awesome prize package we're giving away, because Benzie County is a very special treat and has TONS to do. We didn't even scratch the surface. Likewise...If you don't win...Make it a point to get up there, you won't be disappointed.

Lots to talk about today! After leaving the Gwen Frostic place, the family...more specifically the kiddo needed a break. Since we were close to Elberta, we figured, why not check it out. Cute little town, with a fun luscious park! Yea! Resting time!

Here's my wife and daughter resting under the shade of a tree looking over Betsie Lake to Frankfort. (The city we visited first on our trip.)


Cute baby picture time. Here's my daughter attacking me and trying to take the camera...well...okay maybe she's just being pretty.


After some time resting, which in my opinion is very necessary for any family trip, we made our way back to the car, passing this interesting structure in the park. It's an old set of train tracks. There used to be a train depot where the park now stands.


Time for some dinner! Yea! My wife and I had been looking forward to this, pretty much all day. See...Little known fact. On the short honeymoon that my wife and I had immediately following our wedding, we went to Traverse City, on the way, we stopped in Benzie County, more specifically Benzonia to eat at "The Roadhouse":

Ah..."The Roadhouse". This is going to be one of those places we bring our kids and say, that's the place where your mom and I spent our first days together as husband and wife. Or more recently...That's the table where Emerson was screaming really loud and everyone looked at us. Wait...Huh? Well, I guess you have to have those memories too.

Anyway..."The Roadhouse" is a fun Mexican Bar & Grill with indoor and outdoor seating and really amazing salsa! We brought a cooler with some ice packs so that we could stock up and bring it home! Dinner was yummy, and yes my daughter really did spend some time screaming, but she also spent time being sweet and waved to many that we were dining with. In the end...It was a great dinner.

That pretty much concludes what we experienced in Benzie County, but before I wrap things up, I have a few more thoughts.

First...If you're the winner, or if you're thinking of visiting Benzie County, here are some things to consider.

• Like it or not, Fall is on the way. You know what though...It's really beautiful up North when the trees turn. Ever heard of a "Color Tour"? Well, Benzie County teamed up with Leelanau and Manistee Counties to build the "M22 Color Tour"! Check it out...Coming later this year!
• Speaking of Fall, Benzie County also has an annual Fall Festival. It's 2 weekends, October 3rd & 4th...and...October 10th & 11th. There's TONS of stuff going on during this festival...One of the things that looked pretty cool was the "Pumpkin Chunkin' Contest". Just imagine giant catapults huckin' pumpkins through the air. Neat. Check it out...Details HERE!

Second...Thank yous!

• Thank you to Pure Michigan for redirecting our attention to Michigan from the negative to the positive. They're right...We do have a pretty great state and we need to appreciate that despite the struggles that are going on right now.
• Thank you to the Benzie County Visitor's Bureau and the participating business that helped make our one-day vacation a fun one.
  

Finally...If anything I shared over the last week interests you, and you'd like to learn more about Benzie County, or talk with someone about what they have to offer, I suggest you contact Mary Carroll. She's the president of the CVB and would love to give you assistance. Call: 800-882-5801

That's it for this week...Next week my family and I recap Charlevoix!

Jeremy

Exploring Benzie County! - Day 4

Hey there!

Alright...Well it's Thursday, and also day 4 of my recap of my family's trip experience to Benzie County!

It's also another day for you to register for the Benzie County giveaway (see link above). Remember, you get 1 Point-Free entry daily and that's it. If you aren't a JQ Family Rewards member yet, sign up and get your entry today and tomorrow. It still gives you a good shot at winning, since JQ Family Rewards members with points can't get extra entries! Pretty fair playing field if you ask me!

Anyway...Yesterday my family and I left you with thoughts of Cherries! That's because a short hop, skip, and a jump away from "A. Papano's Pizza" is..."The Cherry Hut".

Now...I need to tell you, before we even entered Benzie County, I was already thinking of "The Cherry Hut". Why? Because just outside of Manistee is a tiny little sign on the right side of the road for "The Cherry Hut". It caught my attention, and I needed to know what it was. Little did I know, my wife knew exactly what this place was.

So we entered and every thing was just peachy...I mean...Cherry. Really, it was. Cherry Jam, Preserves, Salsa, Candy, etc. It's also a restaurant by the way. However, since we just enjoyed a pizza lunch, we we're hungry for a meal, but desert...Another story!

Our "Passport to Fun" included "1 Free Cherry Pie Slice"! Score! So we enjoyed what had to have been the best tasting slice of Cherry Pie I've ever had. Before leaving, my wife bought, and this sounds bad but, she bought a jar of Cherry something. I'm not sure what it was, but apparently you put it on toast/bread. So it's either Jam, Jelly, or Preserves. I never knew there was a difference.

Recommendation for "The Cherry Hut"...Stop by...Good place. Besides, the sign's a smiley face, what could be more inviting than that?

Ever seen a beautiful nature print and wonder where it came from? Chances are, it could be a Gwen Frostic. She's a pretty famous artist, even though I never heard of her, for which I did apologize. She's no longer living, but her art is...The printing presses still run, and we were headed to where they were at.

Upon arrival, we couldn't help but admire the individuality of the 'home', now a workshop/store. If you take rustic, and take it one step further, you get this place. It was super neat. To be honest, I wasn't all that thrilled, I'm not a big 'arts-n-crafts' guy, but I knew my wife Annie would enjoy. In the end though...I thought it was neat.

The place has TONS and TONS of paper products with Gwen's nature prints on it. Oh...and how do those prints make it on to the paper...These things:

(Sorry for the slightly blurry picture, I was holding my daughter while my wife shopped.)

By the way...We people weren't the only ones enjoying Gwen's place...This little guy was running around the INSIDE of the building for a while before finally making his way out to snack on some interesting tree fruit. We named him "Alvin" for all intense purposes.

If you are just joining me on my family's wild adventure to Benzie County, go back a start reading from "Day 1", but then understand we did all this in 1 day so far! We needed a rest, so off for a drive to find a place to rest...That's...for tomorrow!

Jeremy

Exploring Benzie County! - Day 3

So yesterday I left you with my family and I heading to the Point Betsie Lighthouse. I will say that we lucked out and missed the little bit of rain that moved though, which was really nice.

We made our way North of Frankfort to the lighthouse, when we arrived, this was what we saw.

Our "Passport of Fun" package included 1 Free Tour, which was nice. After spending some time with the lighthouse we headed to the Gift Shop! We snagged a couple of souvenirs for the family Christmas tree later this year, and snapped a couple more pictures before heading out.

Here's one of my flying daughter and I.

Here's one of the whole family. (It's kind of hard to take a picture of yourself and get everything in the photo. Sorry lighthouse.)

Oh...and here's Lake Michigan from the lighthouse!

By the way...we found out that proceeds from everything purchased in the lighthouse gift shop go to help maintain and preserve the lighthouse. That's good stuff, so if you go...get something to help keep it around and looking good!

LUNCH TIME! Haven't had pizza in a while. Taking a look at the included map in our "Passport of Fun" we continued North and then headed East around Crystal Lake, which is honestly, one of THE MOST SPECTACULAR lakes I have ever seen. Talk about being jealous of those living on it!

Our trip around Crystal Lake landed us at quite a pizza joint, "A. Papano's Pizza"!

That have like 5 locations. Anyway...Our "Passport of Fun" rewarded us with some FREE bread-sticks. We ordered some pizza too, because, it's always nice to buy at least 1 thing with your free thing, right?

Amazingly enough, the FREE bread-sticks weren't your skimpy load of like 3 sticks and a thimble full of sauce...NO...this was a family order about the size of a large pizza, which Parmesan cheese and a light butter sauce on top...one word..DELICIOUS! Pizza was great too by the way!

Alright...With our tummies full once again...Time to head to the "Cherry Hut" for something "Cherry-Fied"! That and more tomorrow!

Jeremy

Exploring Benzie County! - Day 2

Hey there!

Yes...I realize that my wife, daughter, and I were only in Benzie County for 1 day, but the amount we did in that one day, is enough to spread across the rest of this week, you know...While you register to win the prize. Which by the way, if you don't know what's included in the Benzie County Prize Package...Look at the top of this page!

So yesterday I left off with my family and I enter the great port town of Frankfort. It's about a 10-15 minute drive down the street from the CVB. We hadn't had breakfast yet, so we flipped through our "Passport to Fun" package and found a special offer for the Crescent Bakery!
To me...This place was half diner, half bakery, and all trendy. It was really a neat place to enjoy breakfast. Busy too...The minute we walked in, a line of about 8-10 people joined us! Talking about arriving just in time! Anyway...We snagged a couple of doughnuts, some drinks, and some fresh baked bread and headed outside to a park bench for breakfast. Emerson needed her breakfast before us though.
Oh..and here's a picture of view we had from our breakfast spot! Made me feel like I lived in that little town in the movie, "Pete's Dragon", only these are sail boats, not fishing boats. But still...
And here's a picture of Frankfort's main street that essentially dead ends into beach access!
Now...With full tummies and a little shopping out of the way, we decided to head North to the Point Betsie Lighthouse. Check back tomorrow for more on that little adventure!

Jeremy

Exploring Benzie County! - Day 1

Hey there...It's Jeremy! Up until now...The JQ99 & Pure Michigan "Explore Magnificent Michigan" promotion has had only CITY destinations. That changes this week...This week's destination is an ENTIRE COUNTY!!

That might sound large...and it is, but as a side note...Benzie County is the smallest county in Michigan, but has TONS to offer. Way more than my wife, daughter, and I could cram into our day.

After a nice drive on good ole' US-31 we arrived with smiles!

(My wife Annie and my daughter Emerson)

We entered the Benzie County CVB and we were given part of the "Passport to Fun" package! We were also informed about many of the things Benzie County has to offer, like the only street light, which happens to be right outside the CVB:

Anyway...With our "Passport to Fun" in hand, we headed out! Where? To breakfast of course...Breakfast in Frankfort!

Check back tomorrow for more of our adventure!

Jeremy

Explore Magnificent Michigan - Old Mill Creek

Another adventure in Mackinaw City.

Explore

A trip to Mackinaw City would not be complete without crossing the Mackinac Bridge.

Mackinaw City... The Jack Pine Lumberjack Show

Highlights from our recent trip to Mackinaw City. The kids really love the Jack Pine Lumber Jack Show. Watch the video for some really cool highlights.