Northern Michigan

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This article is about the region; for the university, see Northern Michigan University

Northern Michigan - or more properly Northern Lower Michigan - is a region of the U.S. state of Michigan, popular as a tourist destination. It is home to several small- to medium-sized cities, extensive state and national forests, lakes and rivers, and a large portion of Great Lakes shoreline. The region has a significant seasonal population much like other regions that depend on tourism as their main industry.

Contents 1 Geography 2 Summer destinations 3 Non-summer destinations 4 History and local culture 5 Education 6 Economy 7 Transportation 7.1 Airplanes 7.2 Automobiles 7.2.1 Interstate highway 7.2.2 US highways 7.2.3 Michigan highways 7.3 Ferries and bridges 7.4 Trains 8 Festivals 9 Flora and fauna 10 Business 11 Media 11.1 Newspapers 11.2 Magazines 11.3 Radio 11.3.1 FM 11.3.2 AM 11.4 Broadcast Television 12 Cable sources 13 Other television sources 14 Notes 15 See also 16 External links 17 Bibliography and further reading

[edit] Geography

See also List of Michigan state parks and geography of Michigan.

The region is not precisely defined, with residents in the far southern part of the state tending to include areas just north of Flint and Grand Rapids, but more northern residents restricting it to the area north of Mount Pleasant: the "fingers" of the mitten-like shape of the Lower Peninsula. People from Northern Michigan generally use the term "downstate" to refer to people and places south of the region.

The geographical theme of this region is shaped by the fact that it is part of greater Michigan, which has: 58,110 square miles (150,500 km²) of land; 1,305 square miles (3,380 km²) of inland water; 38,575 square miles (99,910 km²) of Great Lakes water area; 3,288 miles (5,292 km) of Great Lakes shoreline; 11,037 inland lakes.^[1] and 36,000 miles (57,936 km) of rivers and streams.^[2]

Across the Straits of Mackinac, to the north, west and northeast, lies the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (the "U.P."). Despite its geographic location as the most northerly part of Michigan, the Upper Peninsula is not usually included in the definition of Northern Michigan (although Northern Michigan University is located in the U.P. city of Marquette), and is instead regarded by Michigan residents as a distinct region of the state. The two regions are connected by the Mackinac Bridge.

All of the northern Lower Peninsula -- north of a line from Manistee County on the west to Iosco County on the east (the second orange tier up on the map) -- is considered to be part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord.^[3]

There are 149 lighthouses around Michigan's Great Lakes coasts, including several in Northern Michigan. They serve as functioning warnings to mariners, but are also integral to the region's culture and history. See the list of Michigan lighthouses for more information on individual lighthouses.

Adjacent to the Traverse City Cherry Capital Airport is a United States Coast Guard air station (CGAS), which is responsible for both maritime and land-based search and rescue operations in the northern Great Lakes region.

The state forests in the U.S. state of Michigan are managed by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Forest, Mineral and Fire Management unit. It is the largest state forest system in the nation (3.9 million acres (16,000 km²)). See List of Michigan state forests. The Northern lower peninsula includes three forests:

• Mackinaw State Forest
  • Atlanta FMU (Alpena, northeast Cheboygan, most of Montmorency, and most of Presque Isle counties)
  • Gaylord FMU (Antrim, Charlevoix, most of Cheboygan, Emmet, and most of Otsego counties)
  • Pigeon River Country FMU (southeast Cheboygan, northwest Montmorency, northeast Otsego, and southwest Presque Isle counties)

• Pere Marquette State Forest
  • Cadillac FMU (Lake, Mason, Mecosta, Missaukee, Newaygo, Oceana, Osceola, and Wexford counties)
  • Traverse City FMU (Benzie, Grand Traverse, Leelanau, Kalkaska, Manistee counties)

• Au Sable State Forest
  • Gladwin FMU (Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, southern Iosco, Isabella, and Midland counties)
  • Grayling FMU (Alcona, Crawford, Oscoda, and northern Iosco counties)
  • Roscommon FMU (Ogemaw and Roscommon counties)

In addition, large portions of this area are covered by the Manistee National Forest and the Huron National Forest. In the former, a unique environment is present at the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness. This relatively small area of 3,450 acres (14 km²), on Lake Michigan's east shore, is one of few wilderness areas in the U.S. with an extensive lake shore dunes ecosystem. The dunes are 3500 to 4000 years old, and rise to nearly 140 feet (43 m) higher than the lake. The Nordhouse Dunes are interspersed with woody vegetation such as jack pine, juniper and hemlock. Many small water holes and marshes dot the landscape, and dune grass covers some of the dunes. The wide and sandy beach is ideal for walks and sunset viewing.

Michigan is a unique travel environment. Consequently, drivers should be forewarned: travel distances should not be underestimated. Michigan's overall length is only 456 miles (734 km) and width 386 miles (621 km) -- but because of the lakes those distances cannot be traveled directly. The distance from northwest to the southeast corner is 456 miles (734 km) 'as the crow flies'. Unlike the crows, travelers must go around the Great Lakes. For example, when traveling to the Upper Peninsula, it is well to realize that it is roughly 300 miles (480 km) from Detroit to the Mackinac Bridge, but it is another 300 miles (480 km) from St. Ignace to Ironwood.

Likewise direct routes are few and far between US I-75 and M-115 do angle from the southeast to the northwest), and most roads are oriented either east-west or north-south (oriented with township lines) (See Land Ordinance of 1785). So travel may take longer than newcomers might otherwise think.

[edit] Summer destinations

Boating, golf, and camping are leading activities. Sailing, kayaking,^[4] canoeing, birding, bicycling^[5][6][7], horse back riding, motorcycling, and 'off roading' are important avocations. The forest activities are available everywhere. There are a great many Michigan state parks and other protected areas which make these truly a 'pleasant peninsula.' These would include the Huron National Forest and the Manistee National Forest, plus the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness.

• Many city dwellers from "downstate" and nearby areas (notably Chicago) have summer vacation homes in Northern Michigan. The largest resort cities in Northern Michigan are in the west on Lake Michigan, with its sandy beaches and warm bays. Popular tourist towns in Northern Michigan include Traverse City, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Manistee, Empire, Frankfort, Harbor Springs, and Leland. It should also be noted that there is a large wine district in the area along the Lake Michigan Shore.
• At the top of the lower peninsula are Mackinaw City, and Mackinac Island (which lies between the Lower and Upper Peninsulas in the Straits of Mackinac).
• Less well known and less developed is the northeastern lower peninsula along the Lake Huron shore. It offers many great vacation spots, particularly along the coast. These are, in order from south-to-north, Au Gres, Omer, Tawas City, East Tawas, Oscoda, Greenbush, Michigan, Harrisville, Alpena, Presque Isle, Rogers City, Cheboygan, and points in between. Some consider these to be more 'up north' than the relatively congested west coast. Indeed, the Detroit Free Press noted that the area between Oscoda and Ossineke included beaches that are "overlooked" and among the "top ten in Michigan." This would include the area around Harrisville (and two state parks). It was noted that: "Old-fashioned lake vacations abound on this pretty stretch of Lake Huron."^[8]
• In between the two (or three, depending on how you count) coasts, there are a large number of inland cities and lakes (Michigan has 11,037 lakes), and a varied landscape that has many rivers. Such places as Cadillac, Kalkaska, Grayling and Gaylord are also prized summer destinations for Michiganders and visitors from other states. Among many others, Houghton Lake, Higgins Lake, Torch Lake, so-called Grand Lake (there are at least two in northern Michigan) and Hubbard Lake are massive inland lake resorts that are worth exploring.

[edit] Non-summer destinations

Some of the ski resorts located on the western side include Boyne Mountain, Boyne Highlands, Crystal Mountain Resort, Nub's Nob and Schuss Mountain. Some of these also serve as summer golf resorts.

Fall activities include harvest festivals, and driving around in the woods to watch the colorful fall leaves. Hunting in Northern Michigan is a popular fall pastime. There are seasons for bow hunting and a muzzle-loader season as well as for using modern rifle season. The opening day of deer season (November 15) is often an unofficial local holiday, so important that a number of area high schools close on that day.

In winter, a variety of sports are enjoyed by the locals which also draw visitors to Northern Michigan. Snowmobiling, also called sledding, is popular, and with hundreds of miles of interconnected groomed trails cross the region. Icefishing is also popular. Tip-up Town on Houghton Lake is a major ice-fishing, snowmobiling and winter sports festival, and is unique in that it is a village that assembles out on the frozen lake surface. Higgins Lake also offers good ice fishing and has many snowmobiling, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing trails at the North Higgins Lake State Park. Grayling and Gaylord and their environs are recognized for Nordic skiing.

[edit] History and local culture

See also: Timeline of Michigan history and history of Michigan

Northern Michigan was inhabited by Native American tribes, most recently Ojibwa, well before English settlers founded a fort on Mackinac Island. Later, industry depended on natural resources such as lumber and fur trading which contributed to the rise of Traverse City. When the railroads connected Northern Michigan to the large cities through Kalamazoo, some wealthy urbanites established summer home associations in Charlevoix and Bay Shore. As passenger railroad usage ended in the 1960s because of increased automobile travel, aggressive promotion of Northern Michigan by local chambers of commerce led to many of the festivals and attractions that bring visitors north even today.

The area was populated by many different ethnicities, including groups from New England, Germany, and Poland. Native American reservations exist at Mount Pleasant and on the Leelanau Peninsula.

The Lumberman's Monument honors lumberjacks that shaped the area, exploiting the natural resource. It is located on River Road, which runs parallel with the beautiful Au Sable River, and is a designated National Scenic Byway for the 23 miles that go into Oscoda.^[9] The State of Michigan has designated Oscoda as the official home of Paul Bunyan due to the earliest documented publications in the Oscoda Press, August 10, 1906 by James MacGillivray (later revised and published in the Detroit News in 1910).^[10]

Hartwick Pines State Park is a 9,672-acre (39.2 km²) State Park and Logging museum located in Crawford County near Grayling and Interstate 75. It is the third largest state park on Michigan's Lower Peninsula and the state's fifth-biggest park overall. The park contains an old growth forest of white pines and red pines that resembles the appearance of all of Northern Michigan prior to the logging era.

[edit] Education

Interlochen Center for the Arts is a notable arts center that offers a high-school-level academy and summer camp near Traverse City. There are also several institutions of higher education in Northern Michigan. Community colleges include North Central Michigan College (NCMC, pronounced "nuck-muck" by locals), Alpena Community College, Huron Shores Campus-Alpena Community College, Kirtland Community College, and Northwestern Michigan College including the Great Lakes Maritime Academy, the only U.S. maritime academy on freshwater. Northern Lower Michigan has arguably only one four-year university (depending on the definition of the southern boundary of the region), Ferris State University in Big Rapids. Other nearby universities are in the Upper Peninsula (Northern Michigan University and Lake Superior State University), as well as Central Michigan University and Ferris State University in the more southern reaches of the state. The University of Michigan runs the University of Michigan Biological Station out of Pellston, MI. Central Michigan University runs the CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island.

[edit] Economy

See Economy of Michigan.

The economy of Northern Michigan is limited by its lower population, few industries and reduced agriculture compared to lower Michigan. Seasonal and tourism related employment is significant. Unemployment rates are generally high. (In June 2007, seven of the ten highest unemployment rates occurred in counties in the Northern Michigan area.[1])

Historically, lumbering and commercial fishing were among the most important industries. Logging is still important but at a mere fraction of its heyday output. Commercial fishing is a minor activity.

A major draw to Northern Michigan is tourism. Real Estate, especially condominiums and summer homes, is another significant source of income. Because money spent in the real estate and tourism market in Northern Michigan is dependent upon visitors from southern Michigan and the Chicago area, the Northern Michigan economy is sensitive to downswings in the automobile and other industries. See Also: Economy of Detroit and Economy of Chicago

Agriculture is limited by the climate and soil conditions compared to southern regions of the state. However, there are significant potato and dry bean farms in the east. wine grapes, vegetables and cherries are produced in the west in the protected microclimates around Grand Traverse Bay. The Grand Traverse region has two of Michigan's four federally-recognized wine growing areas. The Grand Traverse Bay area is listed as one of the most endangered agricultural regions in the U.S. as its scenic land is highly sought after for vacation homes.

Large industries are sparse; cement-making and the mining of limestone and gypsum on the Lake Huron shore are the major exports of the area. Much of Michigan's natural gas extraction is from wells in Northern Michigan. A small number of men work on the Great Lakes freighters.

The only military presence in Northern Michigan is in two places:

• Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center in Alpena, Michigan is run by the Air National Guard and is co-located with the Alpena County Regional Airport.
• Camp Grayling near Grayling, Michigan. Camp Grayling is the largest military installation east of the Mississippi River, and the nation's largest National Guard training site. It is used by the U.S. National Guard, as well as active and reserve components of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Year-round training is conducted on its 147,000 acres (595 km²) in Crawford, Kalkaska and Otsego counties. Much of the land (including Lake Margrethe) is accessible to the public for hunting, fishing, snowmobiling and other recreational uses (when military training isn't happening).
• Wurtsmith Air Force Base near Oscoda closed in 1993.and has been converted to civilian use as Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport

[edit] Transportation

[edit] Airplanes

Scheduled airlines serve Midland, Pellston Regional Airport^[11], Traverse City Cherry Capital Airport and Alpena County Regional Airport in the Lower peninsula. Depending on one's dectination, Chippewa County International Airport in Sault Ste. Marie, in the eastern Upper peninsula might be a viable alternativae. Grand Rapids and Bishop airport at Flint (although neither is within the area) also have scheduled service proximate to parts of the region. The Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport is now a public airport which gives 24 hour near-all-weather service for general aviation.

[edit] Automobiles

The primary means of transportation in Northern Michigan is by automobile. Northern Michigan is served by one interstate, and a number of U.S. highways and Michigan state routes. (Roads are organized by number.)

[edit] Interstate highway

• Image:I-75.svg I-75 continues from the Ohio border, passing Detroit, Flint, Saginaw and Bay City; it then proceeds in a roughly north and westerly route, touching Grayling and Gaylord, and connects with the Mackinac Bridge at Mackinaw City, which leads on to the the Upper Peninsula and Sault Ste. Marie).

[edit] US highways

• Image:US 10.svg US-10
  Image:SSBadger.JPG

  The S.S. Badger connects the Wisconsin and Michigan segments of U.S. 10.
  enters Michigan after it crosses Lake Michigan from Manitowoc to Ludington. U.S. 10 is concurrent with Image:US 31.svg US-31 from Ludington to Scottville before Highway 31 heads north. The road then heads east through Baldwin and Reed City before it becomes a freeway west of US-127 near the junction with M-115. US-127 and US-10 overlap for a short distance near Clare. US-10 bypasses Midland and terminates at I-75 in Bay City.^[12] Viewed from an east-west orientation, it provides a mainly westerly road across Northern Michigan from Bay City off Image:I-75.svg I-75 toward Ludington.
• Image:US 23.svg US-23 comes out of Ohio merges near Flint with Image:I-75.svg I-75, and then breaks away at Standish. It then proceeds 200 miles along (or parallel with) the Lake Huron shoreline, eventually rejoining Image:I-75.svg I-75 at [Mackinac Bridge]] at Mackinaw City. This section of US-23 has been designated the Sunrise Side Coastal Highway.
• Image:US 27.svg US-27
• Image:US 31.svg US-31 mainly parallels the Lake Michigan shore, and runs for 356 miles in a northerly direction from the Indiana-Michigan state line southwest of Niles to its terminus at I-75 south of Mackinaw City. From Traverse City, it runs west across the base of the Leelanau peninsula to Benzonia before continuing south to Manistee and other points on the Lake Michigan shore. Northwards, it continues along the east shore of Grand Traverse Bay to Charlevoix and Petoskey, ending just before reaching Mackinaw City and the Mackinac Bridge.
• Image:US 127.svg US-127 ends its 758 mile (1,220 km) journey at Grayling^[13] and directly connects northern Michigan (and the Mackinac Bridge via I-75) to Lansing, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee (all the way down to Chatanooga)^[14]
• Image:US 131.svg US-131

[edit] Michigan highways

• Image:M-13.svg M-13 is a 72.22 mile north-south highway that cuts through the bay region of the U.S. state of Michigan. The southern terminus is at I-69 south of the town of Lennon with its northern terminus located south of Standish. It is a shorter alternative route, instead of I-75, from Bay City to US-23 in Standish.
• Image:M-22.svg M-22 follows the Lake Michigan shoreline from Traverse City to Manistee and is a scenic drive. It is 114.5 miles long and traverses Manistee, Benzie, Leelanaue and Grand Traverse counties. For most of its length, it closely parallels the Lake Michigan shore. It also passes through the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
• Image:M-32.svg M-32 is 100.14 miles long. Although it is not a true 'cross-peninsular' highway -- it crosses the lower peninsula from near Lake Michigan to Lake Huron -- it is close, and there are efforts being made to restore the road and the status.^[15]
• Image:M-46.svg M-46 is a transpeninsular road,^[16] as is M-55 and M-72.
• Image:M-55.svg M-55 is a 155 miles transpeninsular road. It starts in Tawas and ends two miles north of Manistee across the Lower Peninsula.^[17]
• Image:M-65.svg M-65 runs northward from Image:US 23.svg US-23 at Au Gres (just north of Standish), and is the most direct route to Rogers City and Alpena from the south.
• Image:M-72.svg M-72 starts at downtown Harrisville as its eastern terminus and ends at Empire, Michigan on the west.^[18]. In 133 miles (214 kilometers) M-72 it runs across the lower peninsula, and is one of three true cross-peninsular highways.^[19]
• Image:M-115.svg M-115 state highway in northwestern Lower Michigan, United States. It is a 'diagonal highway,' taking a generally northwest-to-southeast direction from Frankfort, Michigan, junction M-22 on Lake Michigan and an intersection with US 10 to the east of Clare.
• Image:M-168.svg M-168 is one of the shortest state highways in Michigan, extending 0.95 miles from a junction with M-22 in downtown Elberta northwest to the former Ann Arbor Railroad ferry docks.^[20]

[edit] Ferries and bridges

Several car ferries still operate in the region. The S.S. Badger departs from Ludington, Michigan and arrives in Wisconsin. Another begins in Charlevoix, Michigan and goes to Beaver Island. The Straits of Mackinac are a haven for lake ferries that take passengers to Mackinac Island from either Mackinaw City in the Lower Peninsula or St. Ignace in the Upper Peninsula.

The major bridge in Northern Michigan is the Mackinac Bridge connecting Northern Michigan to the Upper Peninsula.

[edit] Trains

Alpena is situated along the Lake State Railway, formerly the Detroit and Mackinac Railway (D&M).^[21] Several other railroads have existed in Alpena's history.^[22]

While train lines like the Chicago and West Michigan Railway (later the Pere Marquette Railway) and several commercial cruise lines were early in generating traffic to Northern Michigan destinations, most of these have been discontinued.

[edit] Festivals

A number of annual festivals occur in Northern Michigan including:

• Alpenfest (Gaylord)
• Weyerhauser Au Sable River Canoe Marathon -- Grayling to Oscoda, one leg of the "Triple Crown of Canoe Racing”.
• Bass Festival (Mancelona)
• Blissfest (folk festival) (Bliss Township) [2]
• Brown Trout Festival (Alpena)
• Cedar Polka Festival (Cedar, Michigan)
• Cadillac Chestnut Harvest Festival is held every year, on the second Saturday of October.^[23]
• Chicago to Mackinac Boat Race ends on Mackinac Island.
• Coho Salmon Festival (Honor)
• Dulcimer FunFest - (Evart)
• Firemens Memorial Festival (Roscommon) [3]
• Freedom Festival (East Jordan)
• Great Lakes Bioneers Conference
• Harrisville Arts & Crafts Show - Each Labor Day weekend there is a regional craft show, parade, and national jamboree often referred to as Harmony Weekend.^[24]
• Leelanau Peninsula Wine Festival (Northport, Michigan)
• Nautical Festival (Rogers City)
• Mushroom Festival (Mesick)
• Mushroom Festival (Boyne City)
• National Cherry Festival (Traverse City)
• National Forest Festival (Manistee)
• National Trout Festival (Kalkaska) end of April
• North American Snowmobile Festival (Cadillac, MI)
• Northport's Harbor Day and July 4th Celebration (Northport, Michigan)
• Polish Festival (Boyne Falls)
• Port Huron to Mackinac Boat Race ends on Mackinac Island.
• Posen Potato Festival
• Salmon Slam (Northport, Michigan)
• Sarnia to Alpena sailboat race.
• Tip-Up Town (Houghton Lake)
• Venetian Festival (Charlevoix)
• WinterFest (Kalkaska)
• World Famous Labor Day Fish Boil (Northport, Michigan)

The Au Sable Canoe Marathon, one of the few pro-am canoeing events in the U.S., occurs on the Au Sable River, where winning times may be as long as 21 hours.

[edit] Flora and fauna

Northern Michigan has many tree types including maple, birch, Oak, white cedar, aspen, pine, and beech. Ferns, milkweed, Queen Anne's lace, and chicory grow in the open fields and along roadsides. Forest plants include wild leeks, morel mushrooms, and trilliums. Marram grass grows on beaches. Several mosses cover the land.

Common animals in Northern Michigan include white-tailed deer, fox, racoons, and rabbits. black bear, elk, coyote, and bobcat are also present. There have also been various wolf and mountain lion sightings in Northern Michigan. Fish include whitefish, yellow perch, trout, bass, northern pike, walleye, muskie, and sunfish.

Common birds are ducks, seagulls, wild turkey, blue herons, cardinals, blue jays, black-capped chickadees, Hummingbirds, Baltimore Oriole, and ruffed grouse. Canada Geese may be seen flying over head in spring and fall. Less well known birds that are unique in Michigan to the Northern Lower Peninsula are spruce grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, red-throated loon,Swainson's hawk, and the boreal owl. [4] [5].

The Au Sable State Forest is a state forest in the north-central Lower Peninsula of Michigan. Much of the forest is used for wildlife game management and the fostering of endangered and rare species, such as the Kirtland's warbler -- there are regular controller burns to maintain its habitat.

Insect populations are similar to those found elsewhere in the midwestern United States. Lady bugs, crickets, dragonflies, mosquitoes, ants, house flies, and grasshoppers are common, as is the Western conifer seed bug, and several kinds of butterflies and moths (for example, monarch butterflies and tomato worm moths). Notable deviations in insect populations are a high population of June bugs during June as well as a scarcity of lightning bugs because of the lower average temperatures year round and especially in the summer.

There are no fatally poisonous snakes native to Northern Michigan. The poisonous Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake lives in Michigan, but it is not common, particularly in Northern Michigan. In any event, its nonfatal bite may make an adult sick, but it should be medically treated without delay.

Snakes present include the eastern hog-nosed snake, brown snake, common garter snake, eastern milk snake and the northern ribbon snake. The only common reptiles and amphibians are various pond frogs, toads, salamanders, and small turtles.

[edit] Business

Prominent Northern Michigan corporations include:

• Jesse M. Besser invented concrete block in 1904 and founded the Besser Block Co. in Alpena, Michigan.
• Morton Salt operates one of the largest salt plants in the world in Manistee, Michigan.

[edit] Media

Northern Michigan is in the Designated Market Areas of " Traverse City-Cadillac" (113), "Alpena"(208), and some portions of the "Flint-Saginaw-Bay City"(65) .

[edit] Newspapers

• Alcona County Review Harrisville, Michigan ^[25]
• Alpena News ^[26]
• Cadillac Evening News ^[27]
• Charlevoix Courier^[28]
• Citizen-Journal (Boyne City/ East Jordan)^[29]
• Crawford County Avalanche published in Grayling, Michigan.^[30]
• Gaylord Herald Times^[31]
• Grand Traverse Herald, weekly newspaper^[32]
• Iosco County News-HeraldIosco County.^[33]
• Ludington Daily News^[34]
• Manistee Daily News Advocate^[35]
• Midland Daily News^[36]
• Northern Express Weekly^[37] is the largest weekly newspaper in Northern Michigan, with distribution of up to 30,000 copies in 13 counties
• Oscoda Press serving northern Iosco County and southern Alcona County^[38]
• Petoskey News Review^[39]
• Presque Isle County Advance^[40]
• St. Ignace News (serving the Mackinaw area)^[41]
• Traverse City Record-Eagle^[42]
• White Pine Press at Northwestern Michigan College, with a circulation of 4,000.

• Daily editions of the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News are also available throughout the area.
• Daily editions of the Bay City Times^[43] and Saginaw News^[44] are available in eastern portions of the area.
• Daily editions of the Grand Rapids Press also are available on news stands in the western portions of the region.

[edit] Magazines

• Thirdeye Magazine is a bi-monthly periodical focusing on social and political issues as well as art in and around Traverse City.
• Traverse is published monthly with a focus on regional interests.

[edit] Radio

[edit] FM

• 88.1 W201CM Traverse City - Religious
• 88.5 WKKM (Alpena) contemporary Christian, "Smile-FM" (from WLGH Lansing)
• 88.7/100.9/88.5 WIAA/WICV/WIAB Interlochen/East Jordan/Mackinaw City - Classical "IPR Music Radio"
• 89.3/91.3/104.9/89.7 WTLI/WJOG/WAIR/WJOJ Petoskey/Good Hart/Lake City/Harrisville - Contemporary Christian "Smile FM"
• 89.7 WJOJ - Contemporary Christian (Harrisville)
• 89.9 WLJN Traverse City - Religious
• 90.5/91.1/106.1/99.7 WPHN/WOLW/WHST/W259AD Gaylord/Cadillac/Tawas City/Petoskey - Religious "Northern Christian Radio"
• 90.7 WNMC Traverse City - Variety
• 90.9 WTCK Charlevoix - Catholic
• 90.9 WMSD Rose Township (Ogemaw County) - Religious
• 91.5 WICA Traverse City - Public News/Talk
• 91.7/103.9/95.7 WCML/WCMW/WCMB Alpena/Harbor Springs/Oscoda - Public Music Variety/News/Talk "CMU Public Radio"
• 92.1 WOUF Beulah - Americana "92.1 the Wolf"
• 92.5 WFDX (Atlanta) classic hits, "The Fox" (from WFCX Leland-Traverse City)
• 92.9 WJZQ Cadillac - Adult Contemporary "92.9 the Breeze"
• 93.7 WKAD Harrietta - Oldies "Oldies 93.7"
• 94.3/92.5/95.3 WFCX/WFDX/W237DA Leland/Atlanta/Petoskey - Adult Hits "94.3 the Fox FM"
• 94.5 WLJZ Mackinaw City - Hot Adult Contemporary "Star 94.5"
• 94.9 WKJZ (Alpena) classic hits, "Hits Fm" also airs on 98.1 FM translator in Alpena (from WQLB 103.3 Tawas City)
• 95.5 WJZJ Glen Arbor/Mackinaw City - Modern Rock "The Zone"
• 95.7 WCMB - CMU Public Radio (Oscoda)
• 96.1 WHNN - Oldies (Bay City)
• 96.3 WLXT Petoskey - Adult Contemporary "Lite 96"
• 96.7 WLXV Cadillac - Hot Adult Contemporary "Mix 96"
• 96.9 WWCM Standish, MI
• 97.5/98.9 WKLT/WKLZ Kalkaska/Petoskey - Album Rock "KLT the Rock Station"
• 97.7 WMLQ Manistee - Soft Adult Contemporary "The Coast"
• 98.1/105.1/107.1 WGFN/WGFM/WCKC Glen Arbor/Cheboygan/Cadillac - Classic Rock "The Bear"
• 98.5 WUPS Houghton Lake - Classic Hits "98.5 UPS"
• 99.3 WATZ/WRGZ Alpena/Rogers City - Country also airs on WRGZ (96.7 FM)
• 99.3 WBNZ Frankfort - Adult Contemporary
• 99.9 WHAK-FM Rogers City - Oldies "99-9 The Wave"
• 100.3 WGRY Grayling - Country "Y100"
• 100.7/94.1 WWTH/W231BF Oscoda/Alpena - Country "Thunder Country" also airs on 94.1 FM translator in Alpena
• 101.1 WQON Roscommon - Adult Contemporary "Decades 101"
• 101.5 WMJZ Gaylord - Adult Hits "Eagle 101.5"
• 101.5 WMTE Manistee - Oldies "Oldies 101.5"
• 101.9 WLDR Traverse City - Country "Sunny Country"
• 102.1 WLEW - Adult Hits (Bad Axe) -- This is listenable on the Lake Huron west shore up to Harrisville.
• 102.3 [[WSRT (FM) See 106.7
• 102.9/93.9 WMKC/WAVC St. Ignace/Mio - Country "Big Country"
• 103.3/94.9 WQLB/WKJZ Tawas City/Hillman - Adult Hits "Hits FM"
• 103.5/93.5 WTCM/WBCM Traverse City/Boyne City - Country "Today's Country Music"
• 104.3 WRDS-LP Roscommon - Southern Gospel "The Lighthouse"
• 104.7 WKJC Tawas City - Country
• 105.5 WBMI West Branch - Classic Country
• 105.9 WKHQ Charlevoix - Contemporary Hits "106 KHQ"
• 106.1 FM WHST - Religious
• 106.3 WKLA Ludington - Adult Contemporary
• 106.7/100.7 WSRT/WSRJ Gaylord/Honor - Adult Contemporary "106.7 WSRT" also airs on 102.3 FM translator in Alpena
• 107.5/107.9 WCCW/WCZW Traverse City/Charlevoix - Oldies "Oldies 107.5"
• 107.7 WHSB Alpena - Hot Adult Contemporary "107-7 The Bay"

[edit] AM

• WTCM 580 50000 watt day, 1100 night, directional day and night, Talk, Traverse City
• WLDR 750 1000 watt day, 330 night, directional day and night, Country (with WLDR-FM 101.9), Petoskey
• WMMI 830 1000 day only, talk, Shepherd
• WHAK 960 5000 watt day, 137 night, Country (simulcasting WWTH FM Oscoda), Rogers City - simulcast of WWTH 100.7 FM
• WJML 1110 10000 watt day, 10 night, directional day and night, Talk, Petoskey
• WJNL 1210 50000 watt day, 2500 critical hours, day only, Talk (with WJML-AM), Kingsley
• WGRY 1230 1000 watt day and night, Adult Standards, Grayling
• WATT 1240 1000 watt day and night, Talk, Cadillac
• WCBY 1240 1000 watt day and night, Adult Standards, Cheboygan
• WMKT 1270 27000 watt day, 5000 night, directional night, Talk, Charlevoix
• WMBN 1340 1000 watt day and night, Adult Standards, Petoskey
• WLJW 1370 5000 watt day, 1000 night, directional day and night, Christian Talk, Cadillac
• WLJN 1400 1000 watt day and night, Christian, Traverse City
• WATZ 1450 - news, talk and sports, Alpena
• WIOS 1480 1000 watt day only, directional, Adult Standards, Music of Your Life Tawas City

[edit] Broadcast Television

• WPBN-TV 7/WTOM-TV 4 - (NBC) (Traverse City/Cadillac)
• WWTV 9 - (CBS) (Cadillac)
• WCMU-TV 14 (PBS): WCML 6 (Alpena) / WCMW 21 (Manistee) / WCMV 27 (Cadillac) / W46AD 46 (Traverse City) / W69AV 69 (Leland)
• WBKB-TV 11 - (CBS) (Alpena)
• WGTU 29 - (ABC) (Traverse City)
• WFQX-TV 33/WFUP 45 - (FOX/UPN, secondary, until September) (Cadillac)

[edit] Cable sources

Alpena is the third smallest (208) Nielsen Designated Market Area (DMA) in the United States. Rebroadcasts of other television stations include:

   * Channel 6: WCML-TV - (PBS) - feed of WCMU-TV
   * Channel 18: W18BT - (TBN) - national feed

Cable only television:

   * Channel 3: Alpena Community College educational television.
   * Channel 21: "WBAE" - (The CW)

[edit] Other television sources

In the Alpena area, Canadian television available on cable only:

   * Channel 2: CBMT - (CBC)

Northeast Michigan is also served by major network affiliates in the Northern Michigan and Mid-Michigan DMAs. Cable television service is provided within Alpena and many outlying communities by Charter Communications.

[edit] Notes

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

• Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, Bibliography on Michigan (arranged by counties and regions)
• Leelanau Township Website
• Leelanau Township Library Website
• Life and Activities in the Area, from lifeinnorthernmichigan.com
• NM history from insiders.com
• Northern Michigan travel article from the Petoskey News Review
• Northport - Omena Chamber of Commerce
• USCG's complete list of Michigan lighthouses.
• Map of Michigan Lighthouse in PDF Format.
• Northern Michigan Live Streaming Webcam

[edit] Bibliography and further reading

• Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, bibliographies organized by county and region.

• Bogue, Margaret. Around the Shores of Lake Michigan: A Guide to Historic Sites. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1985. ISBN 9780299100049.

• McRae, Shannon, Images of America: Manistee County (2003).

• Reed, Earl H. The Dune Country. Berrien Springs, MI: Hardscrabble Books, 1979. [Reprint of 1916 Edition].

• Ruchhoft, Robert H. Exploring North Manitou, South Manitou, High and Garden Islands of the Lake Michigan Archipelago. Cincinnati, OH: Pucelle Press, 1991. ISBN 9780940029026.

• Russell, Curran N., and Dona Degen Baer, The Lumberman's Legacy (1954).

• Wood, Mable C. Scooterville, U.S.A. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1962.

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