A Selection Of Great Dining Options, That Just Keeps Growing

Posted on August 11th, 2017

Pictured is Main St. Market pan seared Alaskan halibut w/ citrus chive butter, au gratin potatoes, and asparagus.
It was a recent summer Thursday evening and Main Street in Gaylord offered sensory overload in sounds of live music, the smell of a great variety of food and people watching. In the past g…

Paddling Otsego’s chain lakes

Posted on June 29th, 2017

Out See Go
By Chris Engle, contributor to GaylordMichigan.net There’s a body of water in southern Otsego County where a long-running commercial comes to mind when exploring its far corners. You know the one, with a battery-powered bunny cruising around beating a drum? The pink rabbit with black…

Where the (maple) magic happens

Posted on April 8th, 2017

Out See Go By Chris Engle, contributor Two weeks ago I wrote about tapping maple trees for their crystal-clear sap that Ivan Witt turns into prized, golden maple syrup. The time for Ivan’s alchemy has arrived. He invited me out last weekend to the “sugar shack,” his backwoods l…

Tapping into springtime

Posted on March 16th, 2017

Out See Go
By Chris Engle, contributor Songbirds whistled in the crowns of maple trees yesterday to the tune of cordless drills cutting holes into the trunks below. The morning’s labor marked the beginning of spring for Ivan Witt (pictured above), a maple-syrup maker who draws his raw material �…

‘Tie One On’ to beat winter blues

Posted on March 1st, 2017

Out See Go
By Chris Engle, contributor ***Please note: Due to poor road conditions, the ‘Tie One On’ event scheduled for the evening of March 2, has been canceled. The next event is still on for March 16. Any indication that spring is near has literally gone out the window – I’m lookin…

An Afternoon To Myself

Posted on February 28th, 2017

By: SocialJM My group had plans to hit the trails, so I decided to slip away to Downtown Gaylord in search of an outfit for a friend’s wedding. First stop was to fuel up at Seams Like New, an eclectic coffee shop and consignment store. I ordered a Berry White Latte and relaxed, swaying gently in th…

A fine day for an ice fishing derby

Posted on February 21st, 2017

Out See Go by Chris Engle, contributor Historically held on one of the worst weather weekends of the year, Saturday’s Youth Ice Fishing Derby instead came with sunshine and a sweet southerly breeze that carried with it 70 young anglers and their families ready to fish Otsego Lake. Feb. 18, 2…

Take time Feb. 18 to fish with your kids

Posted on January 29th, 2017

Out, See, Go by Chris Engle, contributor Darkness fell across Otsego Lake and the wind picked up, pounding on the fabric walls of my shanty like the cold breath of the big, bad wolf. I unzipped the door and stepped out to shovel more snow against the walls to secure the shelter in its place on the ice. By th…

What to know before fishing our frozen lakes

Posted on December 21st, 2016

Out, See, Go, by Chris Engle, contributor I had been planning to spend this month’s blog sharing some fishing and ice-safety advice before last weekend’s tragic news of the death of two local fishermen. Regrettably, in light of these terrible events, I feel I should open with a refresher in ice s…

National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day!

Posted on December 16th, 2016

We used to make fun of Uncle Bob’s ugly sweater. But now, we want to borrow it. The ugly Christmas sweater knows no bounds. As if the ugly sweater wasn’t ugly enough already, we have found new ways to embellish and add to its hideousness. The ugly sweater is now 3D with lights, tinsel and even s…