World’s shortest ferry ride Meet Bob Pawlus, captain of the slow-chugging, cable-guided ferry, the Ironton By Patty LaNoue Stearns, Photo by Todd Zawistowski Each year from mid-April to the day before Thanksgiving, 54-year-old Bob Pawlus works 20 hours a week as captain of the slow-chugging, cable-guided ferry, the Ironton, operated by the Charlevoix County Transportation Authority. Pawlus hauls …
Take a Hike South Manitou Island is a beautiful and challenging trek. BY PATTY LaNOUE STEARNS Michael Hood likes to call his brand of outdoor activity a quiet sports adventure — a trip in which you will stretch your legs probably more than you believed you were capable and your inner explorer as well. Think …
Taking Their Art on the Road Through bone-chilling rain and searing heat, thin crowds and crass comments, they come back year after year to set up their tents and tables, socialize a bit and try to sell their wares. Meet the soldiers of the summer art fair circuit. They spend the winter turning clay and …
Dreamboat It began with an experiment in plywood. Eighteen years later, Al and Betsie Anderson have combined artisanship with ancient traditions to create sleek, glowing watercraft. Discover the alchemy that makes their Betsie Bay Kayaks the most sought-after boats in their class. By Patty LaNoue Stearns FRANKFORT–Legs straight, leaning back in the small cockpit, I …
So Long, Milky Milky leaves warm, lasting memories for a devoted fan BY PATTY LaNOUE STEARNS We shivered excitedly in the chilly Green Room at Channel 4 Studios. Clad in paper-thin Brownie uniforms, we watched the monitor and waited our turn to compete in the relay race. Maybe, just maybe, we’d get the chance to …
Nugget Mandolins The sweetness of bluegrass sound is built with the soul of a mandolin, and the best mandolins in the world are built in the shop of Antrim’s Mike Kemnitzer. Mike Kemnitzer sits quietly in his cramped shop in Central Lake, near Charlevoix, holding a nearly finished mandolin top to his ear with his …
RIP, Billy Bonds Ode to the best bad-ass newsman Detroit ever knew: “It’s Hard Being Bill Bonds” Mega-anchor describes the highs and lows of a high-octane life By Patty LaNoue Stearns Say what you will about Bill Bonds: You either love him or you hate him, plain and simple. Channel 7’s mega-anchor can be the …
The Inscrutable Mr. G His characters are so weird. But somehow so normal. BY PATTY LaNOUE STEARNS He has been called an angry man, a bon vivant, an irreverent wit, an irrepressible cynic, a guy who’s a little too preoccupied with carp. Richard Guindon is all that. And on this particular December afternoon, the legendary, …
Journey North Moving from the edge and energy of Los Angeles to the placid North forced artist Rufus Snoddy to look deep inside and adjust his bearings. It’s a frigid pre-spring day and Rufus Snoddy’s studio in the lower level of his Williamsburg home is nearly dark, save for a slice of gray light that …
Artisan Design Network Gallery Bold gallery harbors 54 Michigan fine artisans — and one fearless guy who signed the lease. By Patty LaNoue Stearns and Tom Tracey, Photo by Brian Confer In the depths of the recession last October, Rick Paid was rollerblading down Traverse City’s Front Street and saw a prime retail spot with …