Traverse, Northern Michigan’s – July 2019

Traverse, Northern Michigan’s Magazine | JUL ’19 45

GLIDE LIKE AN EAGLE

It's the silence that strikes you first as you glide like a hawk on

the thermals high above the North. Then there's the occasional

roller coaster-style thrill as you catch an air current and both

glider and tummy leap. Seek views from as high as 7,000

feet—that Northern quilt pattern of lakes, forests, rivers and

rolling hills—from a glider with a pilot (and you). Cadillac,

the “high and dry” base for the Northwest Soaring Club, has

perfect glider conditions, says president Erik Saxon. Sandy,

dry soils create great thermal updraft, he explains, especially

when the sun is out and clouds white and puffy. Book

flights with club members ($125) on Saturdays and Sundays,

but call on Thursdays to confirm if weather conditions are

right. NORTHWESTSOARINGCLUB.COM; 231.352.9160

CATCH A FLIGHT

Cherry Capital Airport is the North’s welcome wagon with

its Frank Lloyd Wright-style décor and increasingly local

offerings like craft beer, wine and spirits in the airport

restaurant. It's also a gateway for locals traveling across the

country. TVCAIRPORT.COM

BY THE NUMBERS:

3: Ranking in Michigan airport size after recent growth

4: Number of air carriers offering flights

11: Non-stop flights in and out of Traverse City during

peak season (Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago, LaGuardia,

Newark, Sarasota, Charlotte, Dallas, Atlanta, Washington

D.C., Denver); more than double the five offered in 2015

76: Daily direct flights in and out of TC June to Labor Day

500,416: Total passengers flying through in 2018—an

all-time record

MAKE A GRAND GESTURE

It can set you back as much as $1,000 for two passengers but

will make quite the impression. Pick up your date or business

colleague by float plane and head off for a round of golf at

Arcadia Bluffs or to a dinner date in the Upper Peninsula.

TC Helicopters offers float plane trips to various locations

(dinner and golf extra) along with more affordable helicopter

tours over the bays. TCHELICOPTERTOURS.COM; 231.668.6000

BUCKET-LIST BARGAIN

Thirty dollars could get you dinner—or a flight over the Lake

Michigan shoreline and Manistee National Forest. You don't

even need to pre-reserve flights peak season (though it's not

a bad idea) with Orchard Beach Aviation. Just show up—

and go up. Located five miles north of Manistee on U.S. 31.

ORCHARDBEACHAVIATION.COM; 231.723.8095

SOAR OVER MACKINAC

Great Lakes Air offers views of the Mackinac Bridge, Island

and Straits from its base in St. Ignace. Fall color tours can

take you anywhere in the forest-covered Upper Peninsula.

And while the best value is from St. Ignace, they'll fly to your

home airport and pick you up, too. Thirty-minute sightseeing

tours run at $125 for one to five people, depending on weight.

GREATLAKESAIR.NET; 906.643.7165

Kim Schneider is a long-time travel writer specializing in Michigan adventures,

food and wine. The Midwest Travel Journalist Association has named her Mark

Twain Travel Writer of the Year, and she's the author of the recently published

book, 100 Things to Do in Traverse City Before You Die. kimschneider.net

Sky’s the Limit

Think Northern Michigan stuns from the

ground? Catch the view from on high.

TEXT BY KIM SCHNEIDER

what to do | travel

PHOTO BY TAYLOR BROWN