Looking North on the Old Mission Peninsula
By MIKE NORTON
There’s no doubt about it – those cherry trees are blooming like there’s no tomorrow! Right on schedule, this weekend will see the peak of blossom season in the orchards that surround Grand Traverse Bay – and if you’ve never seen 2.6 million cherry trees all blooming at once, you really ought to come up and take a look.
Most Traverse City cherries are grown on two peninsulas that lie just to the north of the city: the Leelanau Peninsula, a roughly triangular land mass along the Lake Michigan shore, and the narrower Old Mission Peninsula, which runs for 20 miles up the center of Grand Traverse Bay. Renowned for their natural beauty, these two peninsulas are bathed by deep glacial lakes and bays that create an unusually mild “microclimate” with cool springs, dry summers and long warm autumns that extend the growing season well into October.
I’ve been watching the progress of the bloom for the past week or more as I’ve driven to work from our home on the Old Mission Peninsula, but I was out driving through the Leelanau countryside on Thursday and it looks as though things are coming along nicely there, too.
These are producing cherry trees, grown for their fruit. Unlike the ornamental cherries familiar to visitors to Washington D.C., these blossoms are pure white, though from a distance some trees seem to carry hints of pink from their red twigs, while others take on a touch of light green from the emerging leaves around them. The color will intensify soon, though, when the light pink blossoms of 670,000 apple trees suddenly appear.
Such a dramatic display calls for celebration, and Traverse City residents have always observed the onset of the spring bloom with appropriate festivities. Early celebrations were a rough-and-ready business centered around the farm community — an annual “blessing of the blossoms” performed by local clergy, followed by an informal potluck at the nearby church.
On the Old Mission Peninsula, that will happen again this weekend during Blossom Days, a festival held by the Peninsula’s wineries that includes barrel tastings of reserve vintages and special menu offerings at local restaurants. (The Blessing of the Blossoms will be held Sunday at 12:30 in the afternoon at the Chateau Chantal winery.)
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Bay, the Leelanau Peninsulas Vintners Association is holding its Second Annual Leelanau Cherry Blossom Tour on Saturday. This year there’s an all-new tour route that will include two stops at working cherry farms, where cherry growers will explain their work, and tour guides will offer explanations along the route of the history and importance of cherry farming for Leelanau County.
At the starting point at Eagles Ridge Conference Center in Peshawbestown, participants will be provided free cherry brats, cherry drinks and cherry cookies. The day will begin with an opening ceremony at 9:30 a.m. at Eagles Ridge, bus tours will start at 10, and musical entertainment will be provided from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The final bus will leave at 2 p.m., and return around 3 p.m. (Of course, motorists can follow the tour route on their own; maps will be posted on line at www.Leelanaunews.com.
Enjoy! The blossoms are beautiful, and they won’t be here long!
Tags: Grand Traverse, Michigan, Old Mission Peninsula, Traverse City
