What is one of the benefits of spending hours adding events to the NE Michigan Regional Calendar every couple of months? Knowing about all the cool upcoming events! Even though I promote NE Michigan events via social media platforms, I am still impressed and intrigued by the variety of events taking place throughout the region whenever I settle in for a day (or two!) of maintaining the regional calendar. This past December, this particular advantage inspired a new series of adventures.
A group of my friends try to get together once a month to have a ladies’ night. I had been eyeing the Christmas movie showings at the Cheboygan Opera House for a while. What a great idea! Although I go to Cheboygan somewhat regularly over the years, I had never been to the Cheboygan Opera House. I thought it sounded like such a fun, festive way to celebrate the Christmas season. So, as my friends and I messaged each other to plan our December get together, I suggested the idea of visiting Cheboygan to watch one of their Christmas movies at the Opera House. We ultimately made a day of it – and explored, tasted, and experienced Downtown Cheboygan. We had a blast enjoying each other’s company and exploring a relatively new to us area – while only traveling 45 minutes from Gaylord.
What a delightful adventure! We chose to view A Christmas Story on Saturday afternoon. The opera house was beautiful and impressive - and the crowd was festive and fun. Afterwards, we walked around Downtown Cheboygan amidst the lightly falling snow. We explored the treasures of Bittersweet and sampled the large variety of oils, vinegars, and sweet treats. Next up: the labyrinth which consisted of Stormy Kromer A Cap and Ale House, Simply Marcella’s, Pig’N’ Whistle, The Queen’s Head Wine Pub, and The Lark Theater. The ladies simply had to have a beer from the Cap and Ale House while shopping, which led to purchasing Stormy Kromers and touring the other stores. Although there weren’t a ton of stores open that day, we were all very impressed by the stores we visited. It definitely wet our appetite to return and explore a few more places!
We decided to go with a recommendation to try Libby’s Downtown for dinner. What fun we had! Such a great recommendation. I’d recently learned about the new wine preservation dispenser at Libby’s from one of Cheboygan’s NE Michigan Regional Ambassadors, which proved to be great fun. The entire dinner experience was an adventure! We took field trips to the wine dispenser, sampled life-changing potato tots, and enjoyed a gourmet dinner in a relaxed, fun atmosphere. I am on a very restricted diet at the moment, and I usually do not eat out due to my limitations. I was prepared to eat very minimally until I returned home. However, Libby’s had a couple of really great options and I thoroughly enjoyed my custom salad.
We couldn’t end the evening there, though. We decided we needed one last adventure that festive evening, so we literally ran over to State Street Coffee Company to grab a latte before they closed. We arrived 5 minutes before closing – everyone’s worst nightmare in the food service industry. If you know, you know. The barista was gracious enough to serve us delicious lattes to cure our craving, and we couldn’t have been more pleased.
Lattes in hand, we headed back to Gaylord – talking, laughing, and dreaming about our next NE Michigan Adventure. It was such a fun day of exploration. A few of the ladies realized just how little they knew about NE Michigan, even though they’ve lived here for years. One, in fact, had never been to Cheboygan! I know how easy it is to visit the places we know – maybe the more popular, touristy places. Or those with some of the larger, more popular conveniences. Yet, we miss the treasures in our own backyard. So, our festive day of exploring Cheboygan led to a new idea: I am working on creating some new adventures for our Gaylord Gals group. We will be taking day trips to various places throughout NE Michigan to explore, adventure, find some yummy eats and drinks, and experience the best NE Michigan has to offer.
We’d love to share our journey with you – and encourage you to explore the region, as well! Use the NE Michigan website to check out the variety of entertainment options, area attractions, outdoor activities, as well as local restaurants, coffee shops, craft breweries, cideries, and wineries. Craft your own day trips and share your adventures in the I Love NE Michigan Facebook group! We’d love to see and experience your adventures, too!
Stay tuned for the next installment of “Gaylord Gals Hit the Road” – coming soon to a location near you!
