Get Spooked on a Ghost Walk in Traverse City

TRAVERSE CITY’S HAUNTED LIGHTHOUSE AND GHOSTLY INN
(AND THE OLD ASYLUM IS PRETTY SPOOKY, TOO!)

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – It’s hard not to get a little spooked at night if you’re walking around the Grand Traverse Commons. Surrounded by thick forest, the turreted buildings of Traverse City’s former mental asylum loom out of the darkness like ruined castles, filled with strange shadows and furtive rustlings.

It should come as no surprise, then, that dozens of legends about ghostly appearances have accumulated around the 19th century asylum, which is being gradually redeveloped into a smart “village” of condos, boutiques, offices and restaurants. There are stories of mournful apparitions in the halls, strange physical sensations – and even an enormous gnarled tree that’s supposed to mark the “gateway to Hell.”

People can be forgiven for letting their imaginations run away with them. In spite of the extensive makeover the former asylum is getting, many buildings on the 500-acre Commons campus are still waiting to be restored – and their gaunt, crumbling hulks seem ready-made for scary stories of demented spirits and restless souls. Every year, fans of the occult come to the Commons searching for thrills and chills, even though the owners of the property don’t exactly encourage the attention.

“There’s a ton of us who live and work here, and I’ve only heard one or two stories about things people couldn’t explain,” says Kristen Messner, who works for the project developers. “These are old buildings, and sound sometimes travels in strange ways. That’s it.”

The attitude toward hauntings is a bit more welcoming a few miles up the coast at the Grand Traverse Lighthouse Museum. For years, the isolated lighthouse at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula has held a family-oriented “haunted lighthouse” program in honor of its own ghostly inhabitant, and it now has added a series of October “ghost walks.” Small groups of visitors are invited in on Friday and Saturday nights to prowl the living quarters and working spaces of the historic 19th century buildings.

Established in 1850, the Grand Traverse Lighthouse is one of the oldest lights on the Great Lakes. It occupies a lonely point of rocky coast (now the site of a state park) marking the outer edge of Grand Traverse Bay, with sweeping views of Lake Michigan and the distant Manitou and Fox Islands.

One believer in the lighthouse ghost is museum director Stefanie Staley, who has spent more than her share of fall evenings alone at the isolated light station. She says she’s heard lots of inexplicable noises: voices in the hall heading toward the tower stairs, and the sound of someone with hard-soled shoes walking across the hardwood floors.

“I hear it, I walk out, and there’s not a soul anywhere,” she says.

Nor is Staley the only one who’s been dealing with strange happenings. The lighthouse runs a volunteer keeper program where people can stay in the lighthouse for weeks at a time, caring for the buildings and showing visitors around. Over the years, several volunteers have mentioned strange phenomena: the sensation of being brushed past by a moving form, and in one case actually seeing a man at the doorway, kicking off his boots.

Some locals claim the ghost is that of Peter Nelson, a Danish ship captain who settled in Northport and became the lighthouse keeper from 1874 to 1890. But no one knows of any particular scandals or secrets associated with Nelson’s life, and the haunting – if that’s what it is – seems to be a fairly amiable one.

Not so with the goings-on across the bay at Bowers Harbor, a lovely cove on the western shore of the Old Mission Peninsula, where the area’s most celebrated ghost has been carrying on at the former Bowers Harbor Inn for decades.. Genevive Stickney, whose husband built the rambling waterfront home in the 1880s, is said to have died in the house under tragic circumstances. Although recent research has cast doubt on much of the backstory told about the Stickneys (that Genevive was a scorned wife who committed suicide by hanging herself in the elevator shaft), the case has been featured in several books and television programs.

Guests, employees and visitors to the inn (now home of the Mission Table restaurant) insist that they have experienced strange rapping noises, doors slamming, lights suddenly turning on, mirrors and paintings falling from walls. One restaurant guest was severely frightened when she looked into a full-length upstairs mirror and saw the reflection of another woman standing behind her – dressed in clothing from the 19th century, her long hair pulled back into a tight bun. When she turned to speak to the stranger, there was no one there.

Having a ghost on the premises isn’t bad for business, so long as things don’t get out of hand. Far from downplaying their ethereal resident, the owners of the Mission Table and the adjoining Jolly Pumpkin Brewery enjoy regaling newcomers with tales of Genevive’s pranks. The restaurant has even devoted a page of its website to the ghostly legend. http://missiontable.net/legend

Ghost walks at the Grand Traverse Lighthouse Museum are held every Friday and Saturday in October, starting at 7 p.m. Groups are limited to 12 persons, and tickets are $5 per person; to make an advance reservation, call (231) 386-7195.

For more information about Traverse City fall festivals and activities, and for help with lodging and dining options and other attractions in the Traverse City area, contact the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-TRAVERSE or on line at http://www.traversecity.com/

Island Getaways Outside Michigan's Traverse City

Traverse City and surrounding areas are one of Michigan's top travel destinations.

Check out the islands- it looks tropical doesn't it?

Of course I would hate to see what this looks like in the middle of an icy gray winter.

Photo Credit: Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau

Seen from the northwest, Power Island and its tiny neighbor, Bassett Island, lie in the clear waters of West Grand Traverse Bay, beside the narrow Old Mission Peninsula.

The islands are only nine miles north of the resort community of Traverse City.

By MIKE NORTON

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – At least once a year, Jane Conway drives up the narrow Old Mission Peninsula, launches her kayak, and paddles two and a half miles across Bowers Harbor to the tree-covered dome of Power Island.

“It’s one of my little rituals, I suppose,” says the 27-year-old Ohio woman. “This is a place I just keep coming back to. Sometimes I bring a friend, but mostly it’s my special getting-away-from-it-all place. My own little island.”

A lot of people feel that way about Power Island (or Marion Island, as the locals still stubbornly insist on calling it). A 204-acre preserve of forests, wetlands, bluffs and beaches on West Grand Traverse Bay, its only human residents are the county park ranger and his family who stay in the summers to keep an eye on things. But for boaters and paddlers, it’s one of the most popular destinations on the bay – thanks to its sheltered location at the mouth of Bowers Harbor.

On summer weekends, in particular, the island’s tiny harbor is filled with boats and frolicking boaters who congregate around the dock and swimming beach, or cluster in the shallows off its southern edge to enjoy the limpid Caribbean-clear waters and picnic on the tree-shaded beaches.

But solitary souls like Jane Conway can find tranquility on the island even on the busiest days, since 90 percent of its visitors never venture more than a few yards from the water’s edge. The interior of the island is a treat for hikers: miles of well-maintained trails lead through the dense beech-maple forest (home to fox, bobcats and a diverse population of songbirds) to a high ridge known as the Eagle’s Nest and along the wild western shore with its steep bluffs and rocky shoals.

To the north, there’s even another, smaller island: little 2-acre Bassett Island, which in low-water periods is linked to its larger neighbor by a causeway of sand, gravel and boulders. Here, the Grand Traverse County parks department maintains a small five-site rustic campground. (Camping costs $15 per night, and reservations must be made ahead of time by calling (231) 922-4818.) It’s a strange experience to camp out on a “desert island” so close to the mainland that you can watch the lights of the homes and restaurants that line the opposite shore.

What’s equally strange is that in spite of its closeness to some of the most sought-after real estate in the Traverse City area, Power Island has never been seriously considered for development or settlement. It passed through several owners – including auto pioneer Henry Ford, who sometimes camped there with his pals Thomas Edison and Harvey Firestone – but aside from a brief logging attempt in the 1940s, it has always been left largely in its natural state.

Bassett Island’s career was slightly different. For years it was known as Haunted Island because of a tale (probably apocryphal) that it was inhabited by the ghost of an Indian girl who had been marooned there for some breach of tribal etiquette. In the late 19th century it was purchased by a Civil War veteran named Dick Bassett, who built a small cabin, raised his own food, and was considered a mysterious hermit. In 1901 a steamship company bought the island and erected a two-story dance pavilion that was a major attraction for excursion boats until the early 1930s.

During most of the intervening years, the two islands have been accessible only to boat owners. More recently, though, a new breed of excursion operators are bringing casual visitors out for tours in sea kayaks. One operator, Uncommon Adventures, has designed a “Water-to-Wine Day Tour” that pairs a paddling trip to Power Island with a gourmet picnic and a tasting tour of several nearby Old Mission wineries. A more laid-back approach is favored by Bowers Harbor residents Mary Man­ner and Susan Tar­c­zon, whose kayak livery, PaddleAway Tours, specializes in low-stress paddling excursions geared toward novice paddlers.

Kayakers who prefer to keep their own schedules can bring their own boats or rent them from any number of local liveries in and around Traverse City, such as McLain’s Cycle & Fitness.

GETTING THERE

The best jumping-off spot for a trip to the islands is at the public boat launch in Bowers Harbor, just off Peninsula Drive on Neahtawanta Road. Thanks to its sheltered location, the crossing is an easy one in most weather – but it can be tricky on a windy day, especially when the wind is out of the south. For novices, the best route is to cross the harbor to Neahtawanta Point and make the relatively short open-water crossing to Bassett Island.


For more information about islands, parks and other special places in the Traverse City area, and for a comprehensive listing of nearby restaurants, accommodations and attractions, contact the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-TRAVERSE or on line at http://www.traversecity.com/