Unusual Things To Do In Traverse City Mi

Traverse Area Recreation Trails

TART Trails

The Traverse Area Recreation Trails, known simply as TART, provides transport and recreational paths across Traverse City, spanning the Leelanau Peninsula.

More than 60 miles of multi-use trails, with the longest being the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail of 27 miles, encompass TART, filled with lots of places to see.

Traverse City has many different routes of a point-to-point variety that are a part of TART, all distributed across the downtown area.

These trails allow residents and tourists alike to travel quickly from this Michigan city to other close locations, like Sutton Bay.

Its a great way to go sightseeing across the general area, especially if youre into wooded trails and nature.

Hikers, bikers, runners, joggers, and even snowshoes users can enjoy the challenging trail of Vasa Pathway while those who want a more picturesque journey can try the Boardman Lake Trail.

Take A Tour Of The Heidelberg Project

The Heidelberg Project is an outdoor art exhibit and vision of artist Tyree Guyton located in Detroits East Side. Whats fantastic about the project is that it aims to improve peoples lives and neighborhoods through art. If you love art, this place is worth a visit.

Please take extra safety precautions during your visit, though, such as taking a car and traveling in a group. The Heidelberg Project is in a dangerous neighborhood. Mack Ave./Helen St. made the top 25 list based on factors such as arrest records in Michigan, population density, and other factors.

Go On A Wine Tasting Tour Of Old Mission Peninsula Or Leelanau Peninsula

Old Mission Peninsula and Leelanau Peninsula, which both border Traverse City, are filled with rolling vineyards and tasting rooms. This area of Michigan is located along the 45th parallel and you could spend weeks exploring all the vineyards here!

This is one of my favorite activities in Michigan .

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Play Around At Pirates Cove

From the road, Pirates Cove appears to be a fun place to play putt putt. What you dont see is that beyond the giant mini-golf mountain, there are lots of other amusements to play on.

Specifically, Pirates Cove is home to:

• Ropes Challenge Course

COGNiTiON Science & Discovery Center in Beulah, MI

Traverse Colantha Walkers Grave

On the grounds of the Traverse City State Hospital in Michigan, on one far end, rests Traverse Colantha Walkers Grave.

It is a lone gravesite in a strange location for a rather unique individual: Traverse Colantha Walker, a cow who was a world champion, who died on the 8th of January in 1932.

Traverse Colantha Walker was born on the asylum grounds on the 29th of April, 1916, and was milked here for all her life.

She was a Holstein-Friesian cow and produced a whopping 200,114.9 pounds of milk in her entire life, as well as 7,525.8 pounds of fat.

She set a world record for milk production in 1926 after she produced 22,918 pounds of milk in a single year.

But why does she rest here, on Traverse City State Hospital grounds?

Well, she was actually a really important part of the history of the asylum, as it needed to be self-sustainable.

Traverse Colantha Walker helped to make this happen by producing more than enough milk for the facility.

This grave is one of the more fascinating Traverse City attractions, beautifully flanked by lovely evergreen trees.

This delightful cow is far from forgotten, too she still has a Facebook page run to this day and theres a yearly celebration in honor of her best achievements!

Address: 830 Cottageview Dr, Traverse City, MI 49684, United States

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Fall Events In Traverse City

In September, make your way along the Leelanau Peninsula during Harvest Days, a month-long seasonal celebration. This event features a VIP experience where ticketholders receive Wine Club benefits for one visit to each participating winery throughout the month.

If shopping and treats are what you’re looking for check out Downtown Traverse City’s Happy Apple Days in October and Shop Your Community Days in November.

November is also time to sip craft beers during Traverse City Beer Week. Seven days of sipping, snacking and getting hoppy in TC.

• 101 West Grandview Parkway, Traverse City, MI 49684
• T: 231-947-1120 or 1-800-872-8377

The American Horse Grand Rapids Mi

Out at the Meijer Gardens, there’s a bronze horse that measures 24 feet tall. Dubbed “The American Horse” and sculpted by one of the biggest names in animal sculpture Nina Akamu, it’s based around a similar work from legendary artist Leonardo da Vinci. The American Horse is actually half of a two-part set, as a second horse made from the same cast is currently seen in Milan, Italy. Thus the horse seen in Michigan is about the same as the one seen in Milan.

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Best Restaurants In Traverse City

• Poppycocks: Fantastic New American cuisine that often features live jazz. Enjoy an extensive martini and wine menu.
• Bubbas: A laidback bar is known for serving up some excellent food in a family-friendly environment. They have a menu with tacos, burgers, BBQ, and a varied beer menu.
• amical: European bistro that serves up seasonal menus in a light atmosphere. Good service and family-friendly with a kids menu.
• Firefly Restaurant: The eclectic restaurant serves up various everything, such as small plates, stir fry, sushi, and burgers.
• Trattoria Stella: A romantic Italian farm-to-table restaurant with a well-curated list from Italy and Europe.
• Spanglish: Counter-service Mexican restaurant with authentic Mexican cuisines such as tamales, corn tacos, and tostadas.
• The Filling Station: Microbrewery in a train depot that pairs their beers with housemade flatbreads and salads.
• Grand Traverse Pie Company: Cafe with a mouth-watering selection of pies and pastries. You have to try the cherry pie.

READ MORE MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS

I hope you enjoyed this guide on what to do in Traverse City! Hopefully, you found it useful. Here are a few relevant articles for more travel around Michigan.

Activities Near Me: The State Theatre Traverse City Mi

The State Theatre is owned and operated by the Traverse City Film Festival, which in turn is run by Michael Moore, activist and film-maker, whose movies have won him an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Palme dOr at Cannes. Every year in late July, more than 250 movies from around the world are previewed at this historic theater.

The theater building was first erected in 1916, has been destroyed twice by fire, but is now open with comfortable seating, affordable concessions, and over four hundred movies annually shown on its screen. Its sister theater is nearby, the Bijou by the Bay, also owned and operated by the Traverse Bay Film Festival.

233. E. Front Street, Traverse City, MI 49684, Phone: 231-947-3446

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Visit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a scenic stretch of dunes along the shore of the sparkling Lake Michigan. The dunes run for 35 miles, with some reaching up to 450 feet in height. Created naturally over time, the stunning park area also includes two islands and several small inland lakes.

The area is home to diverse fauna, including various bird species, deer, squirrels, raccoons, bats, bobcats, and otters. The terrain is made up of wetlands and woodlands, with long, hardy grasses, thistles, and trees like juniper, oak, pine, black cherry, and beech.

Where Is Leelanau Peninsula

Leelanau Peninsula is a geographic area in Leelanau County, Michigan, United States. Leelanau Peninsula contains Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park and Leelanau State Park. The peninsula is surrounded by Lake Michigan and West Grand Traverse Bay. It has about two hundred inland lakes on its rolling hills and evergreen forests on the sandy soil and is approximately forty miles long and seven and a half miles wide. Leelanau County covers the Leelanau Peninsulas entire area with Lake Leelanau, Leland, Empire, Maple City, Cedar, Northport, and Suttons Bay as the main communities on Leelanau Peninsula.

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What To Do In Traverse City: The River Outfitters

The River Outfitters rents equipment and leads tours. Located on the shores of Grand Traverse Bay, the company rents out paddleboards, kayaks, canoes, bicycles, tubes, and rafts. For adventurers who enjoy outdoor activity and good beer, the KaBrew Tours are just the thing: part bike ride, part paddling a kayak, and visiting four of Traverse Citys best breweries. The KaBrew Tours can be taken by individuals, couples, and groups.

For guests with their own kayaks, the BYOK tours allow modified KaBrew tours, minus the kayak rental. Guided bike and paddle eco-tours around the wetlands and dams of Northern Michigan can be arranged, and hike, bike, and paddle tours of the Boardman River watershed can be taken by groups with a minimum of five participants.

1910 W South Airport Rd, Traverse City, MI 49686, Phone: 231-883-1413

Experience A True Homestead

If you are looking for a really unique experience when in the area, I would suggest checking out the Hillside Homestead where you can have a true farm stay experience. You stay on the farm that is a maintained 1910 farmhouse. There are farm dinners, classes, and more here that all embrace the local ways from over a 100 years ago. You are located in the heart of Leelanau Peninsula so you still have access to all sorts of other activities as well.

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Turtle Island Toledo Mi

Perhaps the closest thing to a horror movie setting that Michigan has, Turtle Island is actually in two states simultaneously: Michigan and Ohio. The island is home to a slate of abandoned buildings, including what’s left of the Turtle Island Light, a lighthouse built back in 1866. The island is closed to the public, but given its remote nature and dual-state location, enforcement has proven impossible. The island features some of the most eerie scenery around, including a set of abandoned vacation homes.

Joe’s Gizzard City Potterville Mi

In Potterville lurks a restaurant devoted to one of the strangest foods around: chicken gizzards. A family business for generations, featured on Food Network mainstay “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” and known for the flavor of their gizzard batter, Joe’s Gizzard City may be the only such gizzard-focused enterprise around. For those less adventurous, meanwhile, have access to standard chicken dinners along with burgers and even battered onion rings.

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Kids Activities Near Me: Traverse City State Park Traverse City Michigan

Traverse City State Park is an urban park of forty-eight acres located only two miles from downtown Traverse City. Its quarter-mile of sandy beaches on Grand Traverse Bay draw campers and day-trippers from all over the state and beyond. The park is a convenient location for sunbathing, swimming, fishing, hiking, and metal detecting, and boats are available for rent. The beach has a snack concession and a playground.

The campground is a short walk across a bridge from the beach, and has sites with electrical and water hookup, picnic tables, and fire pits. In the campground there are clean modern bathrooms with hot showers, and wood and ice are available for purchase. Bike and hiking trails run through the park they are part of the Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation network.

1132 US-31 North, Traverse City, MI 49686, Phone: 231-922-5270

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Traverse City Chocolate Festival

In the spring, people from all over Northern Michigan and elsewhere cant wait to attend the Traverse City Chocolate Festival. For this event, chocolatiers from across the region offer tastings of their products. Its a celebration of the states chocolate history and features shopping, demonstrations, and live music.

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Still Looking For More Things To Do In Traverse City

Here are a few more things worth checking out in the Traverse City Area:

Grand Traverse Commons is a sprawling shopping and dining complex on the site of historic 1884 hospital. Its a unique setting, and accommodations are available here, too.

Tour A Tall Ship at the Traverse Tall Ship Company and bring a little of the freshwater sea into your life.

You can choose from a variety of tall ships upon which to cruise the stunningly scenic Grand Traverse Bay.

There are sunset cruises, brunch cruises, and more. Its a great way to take in the majesty of the bay.

Great Lakes Childrens Museum In Traverse City

Providing play-based learning, the Great Lakes Childrens Museum is an excellent venue for kids ages 1 to 8 years old. It features informal, interactive, and hands-on educational environments for early childhood development. Some of its weekday programs include interactive storytime and facilitated crafts.

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Things To Do In Traverse City Michigan: Flyboard Tc

Flyboarding is an adventure sport that combines wakeboarding and skateboarding, with the power of a jet ski. Flyboards are attached by a 55 foot hose to the front of personal watercraft, and allow the rider to fly above the water, up to forty feet in the air. Flyboards work best attached to 130 horsepower Seadoos, or Yamaha, Kawasaki, or Honda personal watercraft.

Flyboard TC offers packages for beginners, experienced riders, and groups packages include dedicated instruction and supervision, flight time, a wetsuit, helmet, and life jacket. A frequent flier discount is available. Flyboard TC has safety-conscious licensed instructors who wish their riders to have the utmost fun high above the water.

Clinch Park Beach, 181 E. Grandview Parkway, Traverse City, MI 49684, Phone: 231-715-1135

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Enjoy Yoga Classes And Eco

Stay at a community supported inn on gorgeous Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City. Neahtawanta Inn offers yoga classes, organic and local food, and is all eco-friendly.

There are five rooms at Neahtawanta, which can either be booked through a phone call, or on Airbnb. I stayed at Neahtawanta Inn last fall, when Michigan was blazing with color. It is one of the most peaceful places I have ever stayed.

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Things To Do In Traverse City: The Dennos Museum Center

The Dennos Museum Center is an art gallery affiliated with Northwestern Michigan College. It has an enormous collection of Inuit art from the Baffin Island area of Nunavut in northern Canada there are prints, drawings, sculptures, and textiles by Inuit artists.

The second largest of the museums collections is of Canadian Woodland Indian art. Beyond that, there are a significant amount of woodcuts by Hungarian-American artist Jozsef Domjan, 19th and 20th century American and European graphic art, and 18th and 19th century Japanese prints. The gallery has a shop, is open for school visits, has a concert series, and provides adult, youth, and family programming.

1701 E. Front Street, Traverse City, MI 49686, Phone: 231-995-1055

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Buy Fresh Produce At Gallaghers Farm Market And Bakery

Open since 1971 and still operated by the founding family, Gallaghers Farm Market and Bakery is a large space where local farmers and producers can bring a wide array of wares to sell to the local community.

Open from June through to October. Youll find fresh seasonal goods as well as year-round produce. Youll find fruit and vegetables, baked goods, artisan cheeses, homemade jams, local wines, honey, and more. Pick up ingredients for a delicious dinner or picnic. If youre visiting with kids, dont miss stopping by to meet the farmyard animals.

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