After the rain stopped, it looked like a good time to visit the dunes again near the Cannery off M109. The clouds helped me out again while we were there.
I dropped off some more Leland Report books at Leelanau Books in Leland last week and Paula handed me an Oxford Essential Atlas 8th Edition which has the Leelanau Peninsula on the cover! She has a shelf full of them, so go pick one up. It’s now been six years since I came out with “The Leland Report- 15 Years… Read more »
I headed South toward Gen Arbor and Sleeping Bear Dunes Trail this afternoon and stopped by Sugar Loaf Resort (or what used to be). The main chalet and hotel building is now completely demolished. Only a couple hotel buildings remain and only a single light pole and chairlift pole remain on the hill. From there, I drove down to the… Read more »
I’ve said it before, what a difference a day makes! I’ve never taken the hike all the way down to the big lake from the Sleeping Bear Dune climb before, so I took the opportunity today with bright blue skies and, better late than never, some puffy white clouds. I always thought this path ended at a steep dune next… Read more »
As I headed back down to Illinois, I took a chance on some two-track trails I passed by on past trips up M22 near Esch Rd Beach. Leland Report Jeep #2 meandered slowly through the old pine plantations and eventually past Deer and Bass lakes. I’m definitely going back in the Summer and Fall in Jeep #1.  The sky… Read more »
Past Glen Haven where the iconic red Cannery building sits, M-209 runs to the old Life Saving station, and beyond that, to a parking lot for the trailhead of the Sleeping Bear Point trail. We weren’t the only ones out there on a mild Sunday afternoon. A dusting of snow played up the contrast in this wild dunes landscape. It… Read more »
Just for today, we are trotting out some “Favorite Things” images from summertime, a couple of summers ago…watching for the Joy to return to Leland… gazing at the Big Dipper surrounded by the aurora borealis, from Glen Haven… and tumbling down the Dune Climb. Here are the 2020-21 Snow Gauge Contest entries! We had 41 entries and looks like the… Read more »
Greetings from up north, where we have had our first real snowfall. It turned the woods into a magical place, with tree branches bowed low under the wet snow. I’ve been walking outdoors as much as possible. These are scenes from three different walks in the past week; all but the last were taken within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National… Read more »
The northern end of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has some marvelous hiking trails, some well-marked, others not so much. What I have noticed this year more than others, is the presence of swales and marshes that never quite dried up across the summer. Today’s photos are from a late Saturday afternoon hike north of Little Traverse Lake, along Lake… Read more »
(Report by Jim) Officially, I am not here, so don’t tell the Governor! I am respecting social distancing and even have a special mask made for me by my daughter. The drone was also distancing itself up and down the Lake Michigan shore fighting a stiff and chilly Northerly breeze, but you couldn’t tell from how calm it was. Another… Read more »