The World Of Cherries!!!

True North 

Traverse City Tops the List!

Traverse City has always been a place where my friends and family have always like to vacation at every year. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was 14,674 at the 2010 census, with 143,372 in the Traverse City micropolitan area. Despite its modest population, Traverse City functions as the major commercial nexus for a seven-county area totaling over 2,700 square miles. The Traverse City area is the largest producer of tart cherries in the United States. Near the time of cherry harvest, the city holds an annual week-long Cherry Festival in the first full week in July, attracting approximately 500,000 visitors annually. The surrounding countryside also produces grapes and is one of the centers of wine producation in the Midwest. Tourism, both summer and winter, is another key industry. The Traverse City area features varied natural attractions, including freshwater beaches, vineyards, a National Lakeshore, downhill skiiing areas, and numerous forests.

National Cherry Festival

This festival is something I would recommend to anyone once in their lives to come see. The National Cherry Festival, held during the first full week of July every year, is drawn for tourists to Traverse City. The festival features parades, fireworks, an air show, election of festival royalty, live music, a pie-eating contest and cherries. It is estimated that the Grand Traverse region produces up to 360,000,000 pounds of cherries annually. The largest variety of cherry produced locally is the Montmorency cherry, or the "pie cherry". Other cherries grown in the region include the Ulster, or sweet cherry, and the Balaton, a cherry situated between the Montmorency and Ulster in terms of color and taste.

The Traverse City State Park

We stayed on this campground which has about 250 campsites. It's located three miles east of downtown on 47 acres including a quarter mile beach on the Easst Bay arm of Grand Traverse Bay. There are over 50 wineries in the Traverse City area. Most offer free wine tasting. Traverse City is located at the base of the Old Mission Peninsula wine region.

Shopping

Traverse City's central business district is located along Front Street downtown. Another major shopping district is on US 31 southwest of town, where several big box stores are located, as well as two shopping malls, the Grand Traverse Mall, anchored by Target, JCPenney, Macy's, and the Preferred Outlets, a factory outlet center. Another mall, Cherryland Center, is located on Garfield Avenue on the south end of town; this mall features Kmart, Younkers, and Sears. The shopping environment is just like if you were at home.

The Traverse City Film Festival

This was a very interesting festival my family and I went to while we were here. I am really into plays and movies and thought this was a great festival for a wide variety of reasons. It was founded by filmmaker Michael Moore, which takes place every summer. The six day event presents independent films and documentaries, as well as discussion boards with directors, actors and others involved with the film industry. In 2007, the film festival acquired the historic State Theater for year round screenings. The Festival of the Senses, a city wide festival with events designed to stimulate all five of the senses, occurs in the fall. Th festival features art exhibitions, music and theater.