WHY MICHIGAN Good Times • Love the Outdoors? Enjoy 1,700 Miles of Upper Great Lakes Fresh Water Shoreline and 16,500 Square Miles of Pristine Land
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WHY MICHIGAN Good times • Love the outdoors? Enjoy 1,700 miles of Upper Great Lakes fresh water shoreline and 16,500 square miles of pristine land. Peninsula • Standing over treacherous waters, 40 lighthouses dot the U.P., including 12 open to the public. Bounded on three sides by • Nature lovers can escape to an island on Isle Great Lakes, the region offers an Royal National Park, where unspoiled forests, environment rich in natural beauty, wilderness lakes and rugged shoreline wait to local history, cultural diversity and be explored. economic wellbeing. The Marquette Seriously? • The Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore area is the largest population center encompasses sandstone cliffs, beaches, sand • Marquette was named eighth best small city in dunes, waterfalls, lakes and forest, not to and has become a regional hub for America by NerdWallet. mention 40 miles of Lake Superior shoreline. retail, restaurants, education and • The Upper Peninsula boasts three national • I think I just saw a moose…and a bear…and outdoor recreation. parks, including the Porcupine Mountains a wolf…oh my! Michigan’s Upper Peninsula Wilderness State Park where 90 miles of boasts thousands of acres of unspoiled Hey Veteran! trails lead to waterfalls, mountain views and a forests, crystal clear lakes and streams, and • The Straits of Mackinac breathtaking overlook of Lake of the Clouds. endless opportunities for outdoor adventure. (pronounced “mack-in-naw”) • Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is home to almost is one of the nation’s most 200 major named waterfalls, including the important shipping channels, gorgeous and roaring Tahquamenon Falls. Be more smart and the brave men and women • Mackinac Island is the truly “all natural” theme • The Upper Peninsula is home to four at Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. park of America. Limited to transportation of horse and buggy, bicycle or foot, surrounded universities and five community colleges. Marie work year-round to keep by water, it will transport you back to Victorian • Lake Superior State University’s annual this strategic waterway navigable. times. “Banished Words List” receives worldwide • Who says the Army are • The UP200 is one of America’s premier media coverage. landlubbers! The Army Corps of 12-dog, mid-distance sled dog races and • Northern Michigan University is home to a Engineers maintain the famous draws mushers from around the United States U.S. Olympic Training site, currently providing “Soo Locks.” A destination for and Canada. residents with education and world-class nearly a million visitors a year, training in Greco-Roman wrestling and the locks are a wonder of weightlifting. engineering and a living, breathing history lesson. Culture • Watch ships navigate the 21-foot drop between lakes Superior and Huron at the Soo Locks. • Explore eerie remains of an iron-smelting town at Fayette Historic State Park. • Learn the stories of sailors and ships who braved the waters of Lake Superior and those who were lost to her menacing waves at the Top employers Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. The bell of • Cliff’s Natural Resources the famous Edmund Fitzgerald is displayed as a memorial to her lost crew. • Dickinson Health Care System • The Museum of Ojibwa Culture uncovers • Marquette General Hospital/Duke Lifepoint the vivid history of life during the 1860s when • Michigan Tech University the Ojibwa, Huron and French lifestyles met in • Northern Michigan University St. Ignace. Take a closer look at the Upper Peninsula: www.livetheup.com www.michigan.org www.mitalent.org/veteran Shut the front door! Northwest • The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, recently named by Good Morning America as “America’s Most Beautiful Place,” is a 64-mile Michigan curve of vistas, miles of perfect freshwater beaches, forested wilderness islands, and miles of hiking trails. Where new ideas and natural beauty combine to create one of the best • Beaver Island is world renowned for its places to live, work and play in America. beaches, recreational harbor, and seclusion. Northwest Michigan attracts people It was also the home to James Strang, who declared himself “King” in 1850. Long story. globally with their blend of upscale, Suffice to say, the USS Michigan showed up small town vibe and abundance cultural and it didn’t turn out well for “King James.” and recreational experiences. The Good times region is home to some of the most • The region boasts over 1,200 miles of visited communities in Michigan such motorized and non-motorized trails, as well • Named one of USA Today’s top 10 annual as Traverse City, Manistee, Frankfort, as a variety of skiing and golfing opportunities festivals, the National Cherry Festival is an for year round fun! Suttons Bay, Charlevoix and Petoskey. eight-day celebration with more than 150 • The Headlands International Dark Sky Park, events (including the Navy’s Blue Angels Hey Veteran! one of just 31 internationally, offers visitors regularly) along the shores of Lake Michigan’s • Traverse City is one of only 18 cities a chance to learn about the night sky, hike Grand Traverse Bay. or simply stargaze on the park’s 550 acres in America designated a “Coast • Take in a game with the region’s semi-pro of pristine woodlands including two miles of Guard City.” baseball team, the Traverse City Beach Bums. undeveloped shoreline. • Frankfort is home to the luckiest • Traverse City is home to the Detroit Red sailors in the world: stationed at Wings’ training camp. Coast Guard Station Frankfort on • Tall ships—big schooners, sloops and frigates beautiful Lake Michigan. —glide along the Lake Michigan shoreline, • Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver offering excursions and floating classrooms. Training Center is one of the largest military training sites east of the • Enjoy a trip along M-119’s Tunnel of Trees, Mississippi, with over 147,000 acres one of Michigan’s most spectacular drives spanning three counties. They have through an area once largely inhabited by the an awesome AAFES PX, too! Odawa, or Ottawa Indians. • Wine country! Traverse City sits • Visit one of the region’s many wineries, directly on the 45th parallel, halfway distilleries, or breweries for drink or a tour between the equator and the North —a bustling pub and value-added agriculture Pole, which is the same locale as scene that is an eclectic blend of good food, the finest wine regions in France Culture drink and northern Michigan life. and Italy. Sip…Yum… • The Traverse Symphony Orchestra, often performing in the beautifully restored City Opera House, is easily on par with orchestras from large metropolitan areas. • The Dennos Museum Center features one of the largest and most complete displays of artwork by the Intuit people of the Canadian Arctic. • Founded by actor Michael Moore, the Traverse Be more smart City Film Festival brings films and filmmakers • Northwestern Michigan College is home from around the world to northern Michigan. to the Great Lakes Maritime Academy and Great Lakes Water Studies Institute. Top employers • The Interlochen Arts Academy is an prestigious fine arts boarding high • CloudAccess.net school—500 students from around the world • EJ (East Jordan Iron Works) come to learn, create and perform. • Graceland Fruit • According to Bridge Magazine and MLive, • Materne USA five of Michigan’s top 25 school districts call • Magna Interior Trim Northwest Michigan home. Take a closer look at Northwest Michigan: www.mynorth.com www.michigan.org www.mitalent.org/veteran Good times Northeast • US-23 Heritage Route, a Pure Michigan by-way, is a 200-mile recreational touring route along the Lake Huron coast. Michigan • The 22-mile River Road National Scenic Byway extends westward from Lake Huron into the Northeast Michigan is known for Huron National Forest. its abundant waterways, quaint • Visit Colonial Fort Michilimackinac, an downtowns, family-friendly safe 18th-century fort and fur trading village, neighborhoods and natural reconstructed based on historic maps and more than 50 years of archaeological surroundings. Alpena and the 10 excavations that continue today. surrounding counties attract people No way! • Ocqueoc Falls is the largest waterfall in the globally with their blend of upscale, • Iosco County is recognized as the state’s lower peninsula, and you can swim the falls. small town vibe, affordable cost of premier birding location and is home to rare • 59 golf courses. living, educational opportunities Kirtland warbler habitat. and abundant cultural and • Alpena High School and Cheboygan High recreational experiences. The city of School robotics teams qualified for 2015’s Natural wonders FIRST Robotics World Championship. Alpena is the region’s largest city. • Over 350 parks and campgrounds, plus 1.6 • Camp Grayling is ranked as a premier world- million acres of state and national forestland class Joint Maneuver Training Center. for hunting. Hey Veteran! • Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in • 160,000 acres of lakes and 4,000 miles of • Home to the Region 3 Veteran Alpena County has over 200 shipwrecks in the rivers with 200 public water accesses offer only freshwater National Marine Sanctuary in Community Action Team. endless fishing opportunities. the world. • Alpena Combat Readiness • Trails abound: 966 miles for hiking, biking and Training Center boasts the largest cross-county ski trails; 280 miles for horseback airspace east of the Mississippi. riding; 1,253 for ORV and motorcycles; 1,220 • Alpena is home to the Clement miles for snowmobiles. C. Van Wagoner VA community- based outpatient clinic. • Saginaw VA Medical Center is Culture a short drive from the region. • 200-mile arts and culture trail called “ARTown” • More than 25,000 veterans call along the coast of Lake Huron. Northeast Michigan home. • Over 25 art galleries and more than 18 museums. • Numerous outdoor and indoor music venues and eight regional playhouses. Be more smart • University Center: a “communiversity” partnership of colleges, universities, and industry offering certifications and degrees through the master’s degree level.