Blog

February 28 - We're Hitting The Road! March and early April can be a bit quiet in the Republic, so we decided it would be the perfect time for a road trip! Starting next weekend, March 9-10, we'll be packing up our Traveling Test Kitchen and hitting the road. Our goal? Visit Citizens throughout the state and have them give us feedback on some new products we're thinking of rolling out this summer. We hope to see you along the way! March 8 - First Stop: Traverse City! Our Traveling T ...

If Christmas is our favorite holiday at Cherry Republic, Earth Day is a close second. Because as much as we love brightening peoples' spirits with ruby red morsels of joy, we also love caring for our planet. In fact one of our Core Values is "LIFE: We value and appreciate Northern Michigan and cherries." That's why we've given more than $2 million to mostly environmental and farmland nonprofits since our inception in 1989. Some of our favorite organizations have included the Leelanau Conserva ...

This September has truly become an extension of summer.  I am thankful that the boys haven’t had any homework, so the moment they are out of school we’ve been able to do all the million things a person can do under the sun in Northern Michigan.  Colebrook and Hawthorn caught the biggest fish they’ve ever had on a line.  They built beach structures and slept on the beach under the stars.  They’ve snorkeled and tubed and learn to water ski.  But again, these photos can express the fun far better t ...

Above is a favorite angle of the Crystal River at the Dunns Farm Rd culvert. Here is a second view of the Dunns Farm culvert looking straight up the Crystal River.  If you have never paddled the Crystal in the winter, this mild winter would be a great year to do it. Can you see the duck in flight at the far side of the Crystal.  If the river freezes over, the ducks all head to Lake Michigan. The plows were out in mass.  We had a two hour school delay, which is almost as ...

I had resigned myself to be done - that after 15 years of jumping in Lake Michigan every month of the year, that my run of invigorating dives were over.  And so, I began telling people that this October would be the first month in 188 that I did not jump in.  I felt a deep loss saying it.  And the more I said it the more painful it became.  But, I reminded myself, the last two years were the coldest in 40 years and made my fun hobby feel like work.  In February of 2013, I dove into Lake Mich ...

What should citizens do on Leaf Day? Dress up? Give gifts? Hide Baskets? Make a big dinner? Those are all too much work. How about do nothing. How about a purposeless day? A day to just reflect on the beauty of nature? Leaf Day was created by Cherry Republic to celebrate the amazing colors of fall, and to take a day to reflect or enjoy the outdoors in the last of our good weather.  We are all so busy all summer and into fall that we don’t often find time to just enjoy the outdoors.  Leaf Day w ...

An update on the progress from some of our staff Mary working the cash register in the Glen Arbor store I only work for a few hours each weekend, but people kept telling me how much they appreciated reading Bobby's Blog.  They really felt connected to the storm through his writing. Customers also wanted to know how to help and donate to the Bring the "Arbor" Back to Glen Arbor fundraiser. One woman said "That is so like Bob to do such a nice thing". Mary - Cherry Ambassador and “The Momma” ...

Here are three of the most poignant sky photos we have come across. They are beautiful images that bring you back to the time of Greek Gods and Moses. People say beauty before beast. And the beast landed hard and fast. Being first in line as the storm came across Lake Michigan, the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore received much of the fury of this storm. Look at Alligator Hill after the storm hit. Sections of this massive old growth forest was mowed down by what seemed ...

A lot has happened locally over the past few months. If you’re returning for summer, here’s a sampling of what you’ll notice. The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail continues to grow. The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail continues to grow. The three-mile trail from Glen Arbor to Port Oneida is under construction, with a planned completion date of June 1. There are some great sections in this segment that go thru swamps, cedar, pine and hardwood forests and fields with nice secluded distances from r ...

Ice formations on the Lake Michigan shoreline in Sleeping Bear Bay After a long, cold winter, spring is coming to northern Michigan! While there is still a chill in the air and doubtlessly more snow before summer, the sun is noticeably warmer and the piles of snow and ice are melting. If you picture spring in northern Michigan, you probably imagine blue skies, cherry blossoms, and tulips and daffodils. We're a long way from any of that right now. While we've had some beautiful, sunny days ...

For the second year in a row, frigid temperatures over Lake Michigan have left it nearly 60% frozen. Those cold temperatures coupled with the strong winds we've had over the past month are the perfect ingredients for the formation of ice caves. There were ice caves on Lake Michigan last year, but none had formed so far this year. Until last week, that is. Eric LaPaugh, owner of Leelanau Adventures, shot some footage from inside an ice cave near Glen Arbor and shared it with us. Inspired b ...

The Manitou Passage off Sleeping Bear Point in early May still had considerable amounts of ice. Northern Michigan has some of the most beautiful beaches and lakes in the world. Good Morning America declared it the most beautiful place in America and every year thousands of vacationers revel in its splendor. But that splendor hides some real dangers. Every year brings fresh tragedies as the unprepared, the careless, or the plain unlucky fall victim to the lakes. May and June are especia ...

Just one of the many breathtaking vistas to be found on Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive No list of northern Michigan scenery is complete without a mention of Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. Situated between Glen Arbor and Empire it offers spectacular views, firstly through forest and across Glen Lake, and then over the dunes and out across Lake Michigan. A little over seven miles long, Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive snakes its way through the steeply rolling hills of the Lake Michigan shoreline. ...

Surfers heading to the beach at Sleeping Bear Point. Photo: Beth Price. It may be about a thousand miles to the nearest ocean, but you can surf in northern Michigan. While the waves are usually small, the right conditions can produce surprisingly large and high-quality surf. Sadly, those conditions aren't that common until the fall. But after mid-October, the winds whipping off Lake Michigan really start to pick up. For the adventurous few who surf the Great Lakes, these gales create a uniqu ...

Hiking back from North Manitou Island towards the Crib with Pyramid Point in the distance. On Thursday, March 6th, 2014, we attempted something that hasn't been done for 40 years: to hike the treacherous ice across the Manitou Passage to the islands 8 miles out. In the 1970’s, Bob's father and two brothers left the shore in Glen Arbor early one morning to attempt the crossing. They were cut off by open water a mile from South Manitou. Their hike took so much longer than planned that Bob's ...