Over the years we’ve taken the weekend that falls between our birthdays in June as a chance to escape to northern Michigan. It’s one of our favorite places to visit to stretch ourselves and dream a little bigger without ever even having to leave our own state! This year had a more relaxed schedule than years past. In fact, we went sans itinerary completely!
We spent most of our time in Traverse City, Charlevoix and Bay Harbor, A resort town in Petoskey. If you ever find yourself in Traverse City, you have to stop in 7 Monks for the Sriracha Maple chicken wings! Even Brian, as picky of an eater as he can be, found this unusual combo to be some of the best wings we’ve had! The Little Fleet is also a must do. With its live music and endless options in this little food truck haven, it makes for an easy comprise where we can both get something we love. We definitely worked up an appetite with all of the biking we did on the Traverse City Wheel-way and both the little fleet and 7 Monks are the perfect pit stops to grab some yummy grub after a day on the trail!
We loved starting our days walking the docks in peaceful the peaceful little downtown area of Charlevoix, MI. My favorite morning ritual was to stop and grab a cup of coffee from That French place with one of their legendary crepes before heading out to stroll the Harbor. Its the perfect way to start the day in my opinion! We love “boat shopping” along the marina and its hard not to feel completely relaxed with the towns picturesque scenery surrounding you! Charlevoix feels like a town straight out of a story book with its vintage charm. The town even has an old school siren alerting you to the time at 9AM, noon and 9:30PM. The draw bridge that runs every half hour is just another touch that adds to this post card perfect Northern Michigan city! In fact, its on the top of our list of places we would like to retire to one day and we had a painting commissioned of the town and its unique drawbridge to keep us focused!
This year we decided to rent a hotel room rather than camping like we normally do and it was so nice to have the opportunity to stay in Bay Harbor! Knot Just a Bar is the perfect place to grab a quick bite and I highly recommend dining alfresco on their patio with a view of the marina. The Inn at Bay Harbor is only a 5 minute walk from the The Village shops and makes for the perfect sunset watching location! Brian also said his filet at Vintage Chophouse was one of the best he’s ever had which ,if you know Brian, is saying a lot!
We always spend a lot of our time reflecting on this getaway and while so much has changed for us since our first trip up here, one thing that hasn’t is the inspiration we get from these few days away. Getting away as a couple specifically to spend time growing our vision together has been hands down one of the most impactful traditions we’ve started together. Our minds were on over drive on our trip back talking about our focus points for the rest of this year and where we want to be when we return in June 2021
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