Michigan Lodging Guests Invited to Check In To Michigan Apples

Nearly 300 Michigan lodging facilities are urging their guests to taste Michigan Apples this fall, during the 4th annual “Check in to Michigan Apples” program sponsored by the Michigan Apple Committee (MAC) and organized by Promote Michigan.

The focus of the campaign is to increase visits to local farm markets and u-pick orchards throughout the state, as well as encourage hotels to provide Michigan-grown apples as a healthy front-desk snack for guests. “This campaign will not only benefit the Michigan Apple growers, but the lodging properties and community tourism organizations such as chambers and visitor bureaus,” said Denise Donohue, executive director of the MAC.

Each of the participating lodging properties received an initial supply of Michigan Apples and the Michigan Farm Marketing & Agri-Tourism Association’s new Farm Market, U-Pick & Agri-Tourism directory. Deliveries begin Sept. 15 and continue for two weeks. “Lodging facilities are encouraged to refill the baskets with Michigan Apples throughout the year – even after the promotion ends,” said Donohue. “Our hope is that they’re more aware of the quality and variety of Michigan Apples available to them for their day-to-day services such as their continental breakfast, conference services or on-site restaurants.”

The Michigan Apple Committee is a grower-funded nonprofit organization devoted to promotion, education and research activities to distinguish the Michigan apple and encourage its consumption by consumers in Michigan and around the world.

$110 Fall Getaways to Mackinac Island!

Mackinac Island's Lake View Hotel has announced fall getaway savings through October 17! Enjoy all of these outstanding amenities:

• Deluxe Overnight Accommodations
• Complimentary Continental Breakfast
• 10% off Dinner Entrees at Goodfellow's Italian Chop House
• Round-trip Ferry Ride Discounts
• Preferred Guest ValueCard (good for discounts at 20 island establishments)
• Full Use of our Indoor Heated Pool, Whirlpool and Sauna

Boyne Mountain Hosts New Skitoberfest Event

Boyne Mountain’s newest event, Skitoberfest, is a weekend as unique as the name itself. Happening October 3 and 4, Skitoberfest celebrates the coming winter season with a Snowsports Summit hosted by Cary Adgate and the best of fall’s family offerings in an Oktoberfest style setting. Highlights include a meet and greet with Winter X-games gold medalist, Simon Dumont, and former U.S. Ski Team Coach, Greg Needell; a brewfest featuring a dozen Michigan breweries; bratwurst of 30 varieties plus other gourmet food; live music and dancing; and kids’ art, bounce house and instrument making.

Staged in the Village, the event kicks off on Saturday at 2 pm. Michigan craft brewers including Short’s, Bell’s, Founders, Arbor, Mt. Pleasant, Tri-City, Atwater Block, Michigan, New Holland, Frankenmuth, and Wolverine Brewing, each will be serving up a variety of their best beers from 2 pm to 8 pm. Numerous Michigan wines are also available for tasting. To soak up the frothy brew, there will be 30 varieties of bratwursts homemade and grilled by Tannery Creek Meat Market of Petoskey as well as other food. Admission is $20 and includes 12 tickets for beer sampling and wine tasting. Additional tickets can be purchased.

Skitoberfest attendees can also enjoy local art, family hayrides, a pumpkin patch, fall color chairlift rides, a parade, and more. No need to worry about missing out on the biggest rivalry game in the state; the Michigan versus Michigan State game will be broadcast on a big screen. And the celebration doesn’t end there. A live band will play in the tent from 8 pm to midnight. The Snowsports Summit hosted by two-time Olympian and 2008 U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame inductee, Cary Adgate, returns after a year off and is bigger than ever. Offered Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm and again Sunday from 10 am to 3 pm, the Snowsports Summit includes informative sessions on gearing up for the winter season and guest speakers, Simon Dumont and Greg Needell. Dumont is a successful freestyle skier who has won two gold medals in the Winter X-games and holds the current world quarter pipe height record. Needell, a U.S. Ski Team coach from 2002-2008, helped lead the men's team to 43 wins, 105 podiums and 264 top ten finishes. Entry to the Snowsports Summit is $5 per person.

Public Museum Announces Evening Hours, Special Package Pricing During Leonardo da Vinci Exhibit

Leonardo da Vinci: Machines in Motion brings to the Public Museum the largest exhibition of full-size machine replicas constructed according to da Vinci’s famous codices. On display September 5 – January 3, will be over 40 machines – 30 of them fully operational – including a revolving crane, an armored car, a robot, a bicycle, a printing press and a machine gun – built by a group of scientists and skilled craftsmen in Florence after an in-depth study of the master’s manuscripts. Visitors will be encouraged to touch and set the machines into motion, combining a fascinating hands-on experience with an exploration of the principles da Vinci employed to create each machine.

To make the exhibit more accessible, the Public Museum will extend its hours into the evening one week each month. Normally closed at 5 pm, the Museum will be open from 5 - 9 pm for da Vinci di Notte (Leonardo at Night) September 14-18; October 12-15; November 9-13 and December 28-31/January 2. The special evening ticket package includes Museum admission, special exhibit admission, a planetarium show, unlimited carousel rides and a pasta meal for just $12 per person. (Member price is $6.) A cash bar will also be available. The Public Museum is a collector of treasures, a motivator and resource for life-long learning, and a community partner in the pursuit of insight and understanding.

Baby Giraffe Now On Exhibit at Binder Park Zoo!

Gesi, one of the new additions to Binder Park Zoo’s reticulated giraffe herd, can now be seen on savannah in Wild Africa, the Zoo’s award winning African exhibit. The baby giraffe will share the savannah with his mother Jasiri and many other exotic animals that roam the 18 acre exhibit. Gesi is the first giraffe born at Binder Park Zoo and the first giraffe born in Michigan in over 16 years.

“Watching Gesi step out onto exhibit was the realization of a dream that started over 13 years ago,” says Greg Geise, Binder Park Zoo President and CEO. “What better way to celebrate 10 years of Wild Africa than with a pair of beautiful baby giraffe.”

The baby giraffe will be on exhibit for a few hours each day, which will allow the youngster to become acclimated to the exhibit and allow the community to get a good look at him. Viewing times will be posted at the Zoo daily, but will be subject to change based on the needs of the baby.

A video of Gesi’s birth and some other clips of the first few days of his and his half brother’s life is on display at a special exhibit in Wild Africa, courtesy of Best Buy.

Gesi weighed 137 lbs at birth and stood 6 feet tall. He was standing and nursing within an hour of his birth. Baby number two weighed 116 lbs at birth and stood a bit shorter than his half brother at 5 feet 6 inches.

"Get Lost at Robinettes" this Autumn as you explore their new Corn Maize!

With no UFO sightings reported in Michigan this year, the mystery remains as to how an extraterrestrial-like design has taken shape in a Grand Rapids cornfield, bringing the maze craze to the Peninsula State. The Robinette's Apple Haus family unraveled the mystery when they opened the area’s first MAiZE, an intricate network of twists and turns carved into 6½ acres of corn, on September 8.

The Robinettes and maze designer Brett Herbst – the world’s leading designer of 600+ corn mazes worldwide – hope to challenge the wits of those seeking to find the one exit from their mind-boggling puzzle – a unique source of good farmin’ fun for adults and children alike. Though the correct pathway can be walked in about 25 minutes, most wandering maze-goers will require about one hour to travel through more than three miles of twists, turns and decision points. As a tribute to its location, the maze is designed in the shape of and apple and says, “Get Lost at Robinettes”. The MAIZE will give Michigan residents the change to “get lost” now through Oct. 30. Hours of operation are Monday thru Thursday, starting at 11am with the last entry at 5pm; Friday, starting at 11am with the last entry 8pm; Saturday starting at 10am with the last entry 8pm, and Sunday starting at Noon with the last entry 5pm. Weekday field trip hours are available by reservation.

Ways to Enjoy the MAiZE In an effort to ensure that the MAiZE experience offers something for everyone, the public will find a variety of ways to experience the maze: Open both day and evening, The MAiZE caters to school field trips during the day and has created discounted field trip opportunities for groups of 15 or more and an agricultural “passport” that integrates education into the maze experience and helps guide students along the correct pathway. A series of “passports” are available for church groups, girl and boy scouts, corporate groups and the general public. Each containing ten questions that quiz the user on one of a variety of subjects, those who answer the questions correctly will receive clues that guide them along the correct path to the exit. The MAiZE is a great activity for birthday parties, corporate outings, and group rivalries.

Other things at Robinette’s are horse-drawn hayrides on the weekends, ice cream, fresh donuts, apples, Michigan-made food & gifts, local artwork, lunches, mountain bike trails, and wine tasting.

Equinox: An Adventure for All Ages in Newaygo County, September 19

Saturday, September 19 at the Newaygo Sports Park, M37

Adventure Opportunities to Expect:

• All Aboard: Kayaking/Canoeing on the Muskegon River and Chain of Lakes
• Into the Woods: Guided Hike on the North Country Trails Birch Grove Link including Loda Lake
• Get Spinning: Biking the Town and Country Path in Fremont and off-road including Disc Golf and intro to Geo-caching
• Off Road Biking on the North Country Trail
• Cross Country Bike Ride out of Grant
• Where Kids Meet Fun: Kids’ Camp at Camp Henry
• Are you Scared?: High Ropes Course at Camp Henry
• Pickin’ Great Tunes: Green Sky Bluegrass concert at the Dogwood in Fremont: 7:30 pm
• Star Light, Star Bright: Night Sky Stargazing at Stephen Wessling Observatory at dark

For more information visit www.newaygocountytourism.com or call the Newaygo County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau at 231.652.9298

Community Names Baby Giraffe Born at Binder Park Zoo “Dhoruba”

The results from Binder Park Zoo’s “Name the Baby Giraffe” contest are in! The community voted on four names for the youngster and the clear-cut winner was “Dhoruba” which means “Storm” in Swahili. Guests who visited Binder Park Zoo over the last few weeks could vote for their favorite name by dropping change, dollar bills, or Binder Park Zoo tokens into a tube corresponding with the name that they liked. All of the donations from the naming contest go toward the feeding and hand raising of the baby giraffe. Friends of the Zoo could also cast a vote online via Binder Park Zoo’s Facebook page through the Causes application. Four separate “Causes” were set up, one for each of the possible names. Voting was as simple as joining the Cause that corresponded with one of the names. After joining a Cause, members could invite their friends to join and had the option to make an additional donation, which would be added to the total for their favorite name.

Dhoruba has gained over 50 pounds since he was born and has grown to over 6 feet tall. He was 117 lbs at birth and was 5’6” tall. Gesi, the first baby giraffe born at Binder Park Zoo, can now be seen on exhibit with his mother, Jasiri. Since Dhoruba is being hand raised, he will be kept off exhibit where keepers can provide the best possible care for him.

For more information about Binder Park Zoo and the new giraffe go to www.binderparkzoo.org.

A Sweet and Savorty End to the Chef Series at the Holland Farmers Market.

Chef Angie K. Anderson, from up and coming Blue House Bistro in Holland, MI, will be presenting a sweet and savory end to the Chef Series at the Holland Farmers Market. She will be using common produce found at the Market in the fall to create some fabulous dishes. Combining two universally fall ingredients, Angie will make sweet potato doughnuts with an apple cider glaze. She’ll then follow up with a savory end of summer quiche.

Blue House Bistro, a new restaurant opening shortly in Holland, will feature a cozy bistro and garden patio for lunch, dinner and late-night dining. Combining local ingredients, seasonal specials, sommelier style drinks and superb service is at the heart of the Blue House Bistro mission.

Chef Angie K. began her culinary ambitions upon arriving in New Orleans in 1997. She spent the next nine years perfecting her craft at some of the finest restaurants in the area. When hurricane Katrina hit, Chef Angie K. found herself in Holland, MI, ready to draw upon her multitudes of culinary knowledge to bring a unique dining experience to its residents.

The Chef Series is held each Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Farmers Market from May 16 through September 12. The Market is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. from mid-May to mid-December rain or shine. The City of Holland’s Department of Leisure and Cultural Services hosts the Market at the Eighth Street Marketplace in Downtown Holland. Visit www.hollandfarmersmarket.com or contact Market Master Candy Todd at 616-355-1138 for more information. No pets of any kind are allowed at the Market.

The 2009 Chef Series at the Farmers Market is sponsored by Visser Farms, a family farm in Zeeland that has been in business since 1902. Visser Farms is proud to grow everything from Acorn Squash to Zucchini. Please visit them on the web at www.visserfamilyfarms.com.

Labor Day Getaways