July 13-17, Traverse City, MI

Beautiful day on the water for a 25 mile cruise from Elk Rapids to Traverse City. Kim and Ady join Owen on the boat and Linda drives the car around. Nice cruise this morning.

Tall ship MANITOU as we near the
Duncan L. Clinch Marina in Traverse City

Traverse City is located at the south end of the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay and is the largest town we have visited by boat so far this summer.

Downtown Traverse City

These flowering baskets get watered every day.

Railroad carries passengers
around the park in front of the marina.

Kim and Ady leave us and head to Mackinac Island for the day before driving through the upper peninsula of Michigan to Green Bay and then flying home to California.

Band plays on the street in Traverse City

We take our dingy into a creek
in downtown Traverse City

Seems like we are in the country

The STATE OF MICHIGAN is a training vessel for the
Great Lakes Maratime Academy located here in Traverse City

The Great Lakes Maratime Academy.
Modern building.

Mother duck and three baby ducks
make a temporary home in our marina.

Traverse City has a large farmer's market on Wednesdays and Saturdays during the summer.

Plants and flowers

Several varieties of fresh picked cherries.

Worms for your garden.
Must work - flowers and vegetables are beautiful.

The Traverse City Film Festival runs July 28-August 2, 2009 (started by Michael Moore) and will have 71 feature films and 50 shorts. Last year (their 4th) they had over 80,000 admissions. Films are shown in five indoor locations and one film is shown each night in an outdoor location in the park by the bay. The outdoor film showings (Men in Black, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Hair, The Goonies and Big) are all free of charge.