MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS
FROM
THE HOLOGLOBE PRESS
(The 38th Edition)by
Victor Edward Swanson,
Publisherwww.hologlobepress.com
RULES OF USE
The reports and stories contained on this Web page have been put together with information taken from "The Victor Swanson Fabulous Files of Places to See in Michigan and Wisconsin" and with information obtained from operators and staffers of tourist attractions and from press releases, Web sites, and other sources. The reports and stories are provided as a public service by Victor Swanson and The Hologlobe Press. Almost all persons and entities, such as staffers of radio stations, may freely use the materials; neither AAA Michigan nor any employee of AAA Michigan may use, distribute, download, transmit, copy, or duplicate any of the material presented on this page in any way or through any means.
- - - Travel Thoughts for Everyone - - -
In the thirty-first edition of Michigan Travel Tips, not only did I talk about a few places to visit around Michigan but also I talked about painting, trying to make you look more closely at restored houses or other buildings that you might see and make you a better painter. One day this past April, I tried to explain to a guy and a gal (a husband-and-wife team) in Bay View (of Emmet County in the Lower Peninsula) how to do painting better and make painting jobs not so troublesome or burdensome, hoping to save each person time and effort. Through editions of Michigan Travel Tips, I tell how I attempted to make a long-established tourist attraction in Michigan better.
The main destination of this edition of Michigan Travel Tips is the Terrace Inn. This is a thirty-eight room inn (with a restaurant) at Bay View of Emmet County; Bay View is a little town near Petoskey, which one of the big cities in Emmet County. The inn was built in 1911, and it had been operated by several different owners--the current owners, who have owned the place for about three years are Mo and Patty Rave, a husband-and-wife team (a team that also has the Khardomah Lodge, which is at Grand Haven of Ottawa County in the Lower Peninsula). In essence, the Terrace Inn is a three-story building. On the first floor are a large lobby and sitting area (a part of which is near a big fireplace), a large dining room, which has a recently resurfaced wood floor, a kitchen, and other rooms, such as a bedroom suite, in which I talked with or mostly listened to Patty for quite some time while she made a bed--slowly. There are two upper floors of rooms, which are reached by climbing a wide staircase, and all the rooms are different, having various styles of wallpaper Many of the rooms of the Terrace Inn have a feminine feel, and some of the rooms have a male feel. I can report that, as a rule, the rooms have the original furniture, and none of the rooms has the "chain"-type hotel or "chain"-type motel look or feel--sterile and non-homey.
Oh, I must report that the trip to the Petoskey area was not made so that I could see the Terrace Inn--the trip to made to go to "Hospitality House," which is associated with Northern Michigan Hospital, which is at Petoskey. Hospitality House is a place where, for example, people who live far away from Petoskey and who have relatives in the hospital might stay the night or a few nights so that they are close to the relatives in the hospital or people who will have surgery on a certain day can stay over night before the day of surgery. The trip to Hospitality House was done so that a friend of mine could drop off kitchen type things, such as pots and pans, as a donation. While at Petoskey, I learned something to pass along to people, especially senior citizens who like to travel and wish to keep traveling expenses as low as possible. If you wish to save money on a meal, you might think about stopping in at the cafeteria of Northern Michigan Hospital. There, a senior citizen will find good food, and the prices are what I will call "reasonable," and if you can claim a "senior discount," you will truly find the prices are "low," and you could get what is consider a full meal for less than $4.00.
Patty took time to give a full tour of the Terrace Inn or nearly a full tour of the place--I did not see the basement, which has some rooms, once used by staffers, such as the hostess of the inn, and storage areas. It was while being shown around the rooms of the place when we sort of stumbled upon Mo. Mo was working in a bathroom of a room--he was painting. Officially, he was doing touch-up painting work, and when I saw him, I had to say that I could explain how he could do a better job. I noticed he was using water-based paint, and he had a brush that is not a type of brush that I would recommend for the type of job that he was doing (doing what is like "cut-in work"). For the type of work that he was doing, he should have had a half-inch-wide brush or a one-inch-wide brush that had natural bristles. The biggest problem with the brush that he was using was that, when looked at at the side, it did not come to a point--when viewed from the side, the brush looked like it was about a quarter-inch thick at the tip. Because of how the brush was made, no one would make nice lines. Unfortunately for Mo and me, I did not have one of my good brushes (which cost less than seventy cents) with me so that I could show Mo how such a brush would make his job easier and better, and but I tried to show him how a good brush would be handled.
Actually, I was trying to give painting tips to not only Mo but also to Patty. One tip that I passed along is, when painting and when you begin to hear the sound of the bristles when running a line, the brush needs more paint. Another tip that I passed along is a good painter does not slap a brush around when doing what is like cut-in work--the brush should be slowly wiped or slowly swiped over the surface being painted, and the painter should let paint be drawn off of the brush by what is being painted (like the capillary-action idea).
Some things about painting I did not get around to explaining. For example, I did not note that a painter who is using water-based paint should not be regularly cleaning the brush, such as under a faucet after a few minutes or a few swipes of painting (the water will dilute the paint already in the brush, and the brush should have paint in it). I did not make it clear that a brush should have just enough paint in it--not too much so that paint drips off.
I get the feeling Mo and Patty were worried about having paint get up near the metal part of the brush--the metal used to hold the bristles to the handle. There is nothing wrong with having paint get up in the bristles up near the metal part of the brush, but paint should not be heavy on the outside bristles near the metal part (because paint will probably drip off when the brush is moved or the bristles are bent). When paint gets on the outside of the brush near the metal part, such as by dipping the brush too far in to the paint container, the painter should wipe the brush off a bit on the edge of the paint container before applying paint to the surface to be painted.
While I was riding way from the Terrace Inn, a couple thoughts came to mind. For one, I wondered if I was any help to Mo and Patty; I knew they had at least one full bedroom to paint--it only recently having been covered with new plaster board--and I felt my painting demonstration was not fully convincing. Also, I hoped they would at least get the type of brushes that I recommended, which are very inexpensive, and then learn on their own how to uses the brushes
Incidentally, on the way from Petoskey and really Bay View, I stopped a few moments to see two train cars that are on display, though they were not necessarily open, and I stopped to see them since they look newly painted (Yes, I am still carrying on with the painting theme). The two train cars were sitting on railroad track a little off of US-31 at Conway, which is a small town in Emmet County (of the Lower Peninsula). The train cars are labelled "Crooked Lake Express," and it seems to me, they never were part of a "Crooked Lake Railroad" or something like that. For now, I can only report that there are two train cars at Conway or near a lake called Crooked Lake that you can see from the outside. You might get there, though, and find you can see the inside of each, since it does look as if they will be something to see regularly this summer. Incidentally, too, during the trip to Petoskey, I stopped to see another train car, which was not open to visitors--yet. Generally speaking, the train car, which is at Oden, is only open to visitors for inside tours during the summer tourist season. The train car is a replica of the last "fish car" used in Michigan (fish cars were used in the process to stock Michigan waters with fish). The train car is a replica of the "Wolverine" train car and is at the "Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center," which is along US-31 at Oden. Besides the train car and the main building to see, you can see what is along a nature trail that exists at the Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center (of course, you may walk the nature trail even when to get to the Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center during the off-season).
Remember: I do not get involved through editions of Michigan Travel Tips in reporting that any specific place like a hotel or motel or inn is a place that you should stay at or not stay at, or I do not rate places. It is up to you to choose whether or not you wish to stay at a place with sleeping accommodations that I talk about within editions of Michigan Travel Tips. In essence, what has been done through this edition of Michigan Travel Tips is to report that the Terrace Inn exists at Bay View and that you might think about seeing it, even if only for a few moments.
Through this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, you have found information about being a better painter, and my presenting information about being a better painter or doing better home renovation or something like home renovation is not the purpose of Michigan Travel Tips. My talk about painting has been used a "hook" on which to tell stories through editions of Michigan Travel Tips, and I have no intention of talking about painting in the future through any edition of Michigan Travel Tips. Of course, through this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, it was my hope to improve the standards of places to see in Michigan by talking about painting, since, to me, it looks as if the standards in a lot of things in Michigan, such as the quality of construction and renovation work, are lower than they should be and people are accepting lower and lower standards in everything every day, as can be seen in people's accepting lower and lower quality of products from day to day and allowing their standards to come down to those exhibited in other places in the world. Really, the intention of Michigan Travel Tips is to present to you information about places to see in Michigan, especially if you are not native to Michigan and are more used to being at such places as Los Angeles, Des Moines, Toronto, New York, and Cotswolds.
That concludes the main theme of this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, but I have a bit of extra information to pass along--"for the record." Recently, I talked with two "DNR" staffers (Department of Natural Resources, Michigan) about various topics. One of the staffers was Bernie Potter, who works regularly at the Hammond Bay Refuge Harbor of Presque Isle County (of the Lower Peninsula); the Hammond Bay Refuge Harbor is a little harbor along Lake Huron (sort of half away between Rogers City (of Presque Isle County) and Cheboygan (of Cheboygan County of the Lower Peninsula), and it can be used by any boater for free as a place to get in from a storm and set down anchor (as long the boater does not pull into a slip or pulls up to the dock), and it is a place for a boater to get fuel (diesel or gasoline). Bernie Potter talked about his hobby of taking photographs, and he especially talked about taking photographs of wildflowers (after meeting him for only one time, he let me borrow a CD-ROM that had some of this work). He noted that one very good place to see wildflowers, especially at this time of the year (late spring/early summer) is the day-use area of Cheboygan State Park (which is in the Cheboygan area and which can be reached off of US-23). A few days later, I talked with Blake Gingrich, who is a DNR staffer who is based at P.H. Hoeft State Park (known informally as Hoeft State Park), which is in the Rogers City area, and he did not note that there is one really good spot to see wildflowers at Hoeft State Park--he simply said that, in general, a visitor to the park will find wildflowers all along the trail system of Hoeft State Park. Besides talking a bit about wildflowers at Hoeft State Park, Blake Gingrich talked about the "bugs" at the park, and he noted that he finds them not so much trouble, and he said that noting he has been in areas that are truly "buggy" places (places with a lot of bugs, such as mosquitoes), and one area he specially talked about was the Paradise area of the Upper Peninsula--along trout streams, which he likes to fish. (Blake Gingrich has a good recommendation about what to wear to fend off bugs in really buggy areas, and I will leave his recommendation unreported--you must see him for that information, such as at Hoeft State Park). Incidentally, Bernie Potter noted that again this season, there is no fee to use the boat launch at the Hammond Bay Refuge Harbor (as is the rule at "state" boat launches), and he noted that, next season, there will be a fee to use all the boat launches that are defined as the "state" boat launches. Remember: To enter a state park, you either buy a one-day pass or a season pass (once you buy a state park season pass, you can enter--all season--all the state parks without having to pay any more money, and if you buy a one-day pass, that pass can be used at as many state parks as you are able to get to).
It occurs to me while writing the end of this edition of Michigan Travel Tips that I could say, "If you go to the Terrace Inn, you could have Mo or Patty show you the types of brushes that I recommended to them and you could have them show you how to use the brushes properly."
Your travel tips of Michigan in this edition of Michigan Travel Tips are:
Cheboygan State Park, the Cheboygan area, Cheboygan County, the Lower Peninsula.
"Crooked Lake Express" train cars, Conway or the Crooked Lake area, Emmet County, the Lower Peninsula.
Hammond Bay Refuge Harbor, the Huron Beach area, Presque Isle County, the Lower Peninsula.
Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center, Oden, Emmet County, the Lower Peninsula.
Northern Michigan Hospital (and "Hospitality House"), Petoskey, Emmet County, the Lower Peninsula.
P.H. Hoeft State Park (a.k.a. Hoeft State Park), the Rogers City area, Presque Isle County, the Lower Peninsula.
Terrace Inn, Bay View, Emmet County, the Lower Peninsula.
- - - Public Service Copy for Broadcasters (four pieces) - - -
Number One:
And now it's time to catch a train! No, you are not going to take
a train to Chicago or Santa Fe. Along US-31 in Emmet County,
there are three train cars that you can see anytime of the year, though
only from the outside during some days of the year. One of the train
cars is at Oden. The car is a replica of the last fishing car used by
the state--fishing cars were used in the process to stock waters of
Michigan with fish in years past. Officially, this train car is at the
Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center. Not too far from Oden is
Conway or the lake called Crooked Lake, and along US-31 in
the Oden or Crooked Lake area are two train cars labeled
"Crooked Lake Express." These two cars are real passenger
train cars. When you get to the three train cars this summer, they
will probably be open for tours, and on your trip to see them, you
may come across yet-in-use train tracks. Be careful, and drive
to enjoy your safe traveling in Michigan!
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Number Two:
When you travel in Michigan, you will see parts of many towns
and cities look alike, and that is often because the cities or towns
have the same national-type stores or national-type restaurants
or national-type hotels and motels. Fortunately for travelers,
Michigan is yet a state in which there are many local-feel inns and
such, and one example of such a place is the Terrace Inn at Bay
View of Emmet County. The place was built in 1911, and since
then, it has remained pretty much as it was built. Recent renovation
work, though, has enlarged a few rooms. All the rooms are different,
featuring various types of wallpapered walls and furnishings, such as
canopy beds. The place has a large dining room, but although the
Terrace Inn is open to guests throughout the year, the restaurant is
only open from mid-June through August. If you drive to Bay View
and the Terrace Inn, watch for the drunk driver, and enjoy hour safe
traveling.
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Number Three:
As the publisher of Michigan Travel Tips, a monthly free
Internet-based travel publication about Michigan, will tell you--It is
impossible to see all the tourist attractions that exist in Michigan in a
single year. Based on that idea, you may not have been to Ishpeming
of the Upper Peninsula in a while and are unaware Ishpeming is the
location for the "Cliffs Shaft Theme Park," which was opened for the
first time in 2002. The main theme of the place is the old "Cliffs Shaft
Mine," which was used to mine iron ore for about nine decades. If
you were to go to this museum complex, you could see such things as
the old Cliffs Shaft Mine, displays maintained by the Ishpeming Rock
and Mineral Club, and Engine House donated by the LS&I Railroad,
and, of course, there are photographs, artifacts, and other items.
The Cliffs Shaft Theme Park is at Ishpeming, and it is one of the many
places to see in Michigan. Enjoy your safe traveling, there!
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Number Four:
In Michigan, there are all types of gardens. For instance, there
are famous gardens, such as Dow Gardens of Midland of the Lower
Peninsula and Matthaei Botanical Gardens of Ann Arbor of the
Lower Peninsula, and there are home gardens too numerous to count.
In Michigan are special gardens, one of which is at Muskegon of the
Lower Peninsula. The City of Muskegon and the Community
Foundation of Muskegon County created a garden based on a garden
in France. The garden at Muskegon is called "Monet Garden," the
name of which comes from Claude Monet, the French impressionist
painter. This garden is a miniature of Monet's garden in France. You
may not plan a trip to Muskegon to specifically see Monet Garden,
but if you go to Muskegon to see, for instance, the Muskegon Museum
of Art, think about seeing Monet Garden, too. And on the way to
Muskegon, drive the speed limits, and enjoy your safe traveling.
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The Hologlobe Press
Postal Box 20551
Ferndale, Michigan 48220-0551
The United States of Americacopyright c. 2007
File date: 10 June 2007To see the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #39.
To see the previous edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #37.
To see the catalog page for Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel.
To go to the main page of The Hologlobe Press,
click on: www.hologlobepress.com.
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