National Park Service officials have completed an environmental assessment of the Port Oneida Rural Historic District related to long-range plans that may add a visitor contact station and staff housing at the popular Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lak More...

As the youth deer hunt approaches this weekend, a conservation law enforcement officer is warning deer hunters against sitting over bait piles. State conservation officer Mike Borkovich said he is compelled through instructions from Lansing to wri More...

Heritage Celebration featured cars, boats, landmarks, Fishtown Ron Bennett of Lake Leelanau sat next to his 1981 Porsche Targa 911 Saturday afternoon while talking about the weather, politics and, of course, cars. roadster drew plenty of interest More...

Helps to create Leelanau haven for birdwatchers Fifty-one acres of property which includes 1,400 feet of Lake Michigan shoreline have been added to Leelanau State Park. The Leelanau Conservancy transferred the land to the park this week, two ye More...

The East Leland Property Owners Association will begin planting Champion Trees at the John G. Suelzer East Leland Memorial Park Monday at 11 a.m. David Milarch, who is with the National Champion Trees Project, will be on hand for the plantings. More...

THREE MORE deer taken in the special state Youth Deer Hunt last month were reported to the Enterprise in the last week. More...

Woman hopes 22-inch catch worthy of Master Angler status. More...

The first hard frost of the season Wednesday morning for much of Leelanau County came just as county fruit farmers were wrapping up a successful harvest.THOUGH APPLES have already been harvested, grapes being grown (above) at Good Harbor Vineyards in More...

The Leelanau Ski Club is undergoing a major evolution this year and will offer a wider range of programs for youngsters and adults alike at a new location.   More...

Will bow hunters' loss be firearms hunters' gain? More...

Island hunting in Leelanau County was pretty average this fall — if you could ever call a week away from home on an island paradise "average."   More...

The site of the Glen Arbor Garden/bathroom project looks like an ant farm. “There’s all sorts of activity over there,” township Clerk Bonnie Quick said. “It’s amazing how quickly things have progressed.” More...

It's been feast or famine for Leelanau County deer hunters — but if they happened upon a feast, the eating has been good. Very good. More...

Photos shown below were sent to the Enterprise by this season's hunters and were printed in the November 20 issue.   More...

Photos shown below were sent to the Enterprise by this season's hunters and have been complied here by week published. Click on the dates below to see photos. November 20 November 27 More...

Wings of Wonder will be releasing a bald eagle into the wild Saturday at 3 p.m. from the parking lot of the Sleeping Bear Dunes Visitor Center in Empire.   More...

Most hunters are continuing to behave themselves, reports state Conservation Officer Mike Borkovich, despite an increase in hunting pressure on public lands in Leelanau County. Most of that public property is part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lak More...

How clean is the water in South Bar Lake? More...

Five deer hunters from Cheboygan County who visited South Fox Island in Leelanau Township last week were arrested and issued tickets for a number of violations, including trespassing and hunting illegally on private property. More...

Photos shown below were sent to the Enterprise by this season's hunters and were printed in the December 4 issue.   More...

The deep snow is hard on deer and deer hunters alike. Take the plight of Fred Schopieray, who has been hunting deer in Centerville Township since he was 12. “That’s about 60 years ago,” said Schopieray. More...

Healthy birds and other critters should be able to withstand winter’s early fiery, although turkeys might need some help in the form of free corn handouts. More...

(as of Wednesday morning) This Week — 14.5” Snowfall this season—80” For the month — 66” By same day in 2007—39.5” More...

For Judy Packard of Lake Leelanau, the deal she’s received on snowplowing this winter through the Leelanau County Commission on Aging’s Outdoor Home Chore voucher program has been a godsend. More...

(as of Wednesday morning) This Week — 11” Snowfall this season—91” For the month — 77” By same day in 2007—54.4” Season’s record snowfall (Since 1955-56) 231 inches in 1995-96 (December r More...

Signs planned for ponds at county’s new park. County officials are warning visitors and residents of potential danger at Leelanau County’s newest park – Veronica Valley Park. More...

Poor weather may have hurt official county bird count.   The “Christmas Bird Count” conducted annually in Leelanau County by members of the Audubon Society turned up more species of birds in 2008  than in 2007, but slightly fe More...

Following years of effort, officials at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore have signed off on a 20-year General Management Plan for the park. More...

Excellent snow conditions this season have prompted National Park Service officials to expand the number of snowshoe hikes being offered weekly at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. More...

Did it seem like something was missing in 2008? Like people? Attendance at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, considered the biggest tourism draw for Leelanau County, fell 11 percent in 2008, according to figures released by the National Park More...

Snowmobilers take part in event to honor late Roy Taghon On Sunday afternoon, an estimated 100 snowmobilers gathered at the Empire Airport to raise funds for one of the two true passions in the late Roy Taghon’s life – music. More...

Temperature readings, like the weather itself, were mind-numbing this week. More...

S-B ice rink’s condition in best shape in years Jeff Dailey was impressed after lacing up his skates and taking a spin around the ice in Suttons Bay. More...

As a girl while growing up in Centerville Township, Brenda (Czerniak) Stricker remembers seeing windmills on nearby farms pumping water from the ground. More...

Race is cancelled after chief sponsor pulls out. More...

A Lansing man pleaded not guilty Friday to violating the state’s sand dune protection act in relation to a storage building and deck he had built in Leelanau Township almost three years ago. More...

County residents saw something they hadn’t in a long time when they looked out their windows this week — and in some cases, an open window: More...

Leelanau Conservancy officials this week announced that an “incredible year-end gift” and a unique friendship has resulted in the completion of the private fundraising portion of the acquisition of land for the 145-acre DeYoung Natural Ar More...

It may not be apparent by looking outside, but spring is drawing near. Naturalist Alice VanZoeren said the signs are obvious just by looking at wildlife. More...

Somehow, it seems appropriate that a man who lives in Bath, Mich., and formerly resided in Canada was one of the contingent of nearly five dozen people who took part in the Polar Bear Dip Saturday. More...

Jeanette Egeler and Joni Scott of Northport really like snowshoeing. More...

Sharri Rogers of Northport knows all about spicy chili. More...

The county’s 10-member Parks & Recreation Commission held a meeting last week to discuss plans for the county’s newest property –  93-acre Veronica Valley Park, a former golf course located on County Road 641 west of Maple More...

An effort to ban all lead shot used for hunting and lead sinkers used for fishing in national parks across America likely won’t be put in effect prior to the 2010 as hoped for by National Park Service officials. In fact, the future appears dub More...

An online petition urging local units of government to support a public/private effort to “purchase and redevelop Sugar Loaf” may be going viral – at least by Leelanau County standards. More...

Ranger-guided hikes through the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore will continue to be held on Saturdays through April. More...

A lot of snow added up to a lot more visitors counted at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore during the first two months of 2009. Attendance at the national park in January and February was up 26 percent from the same two months in 2008. More...

The beauty of nature’s bounty in Leelanau County and throughout the state has been chronicled in a new book by a Northport-area couple. More...

The population of Cedar will grow considerably Friday when an estimated crowd of 900 will line up for the Cedar Rod & Gun Club’s 49th annual smelt dinner. More...

The Suttons Bay Township Board at a special meeting last week applied for a grant that might help develop Herman-Center Community Park after it acquires the 126-acre property at Center and Herman roads across from Suttons Bay Public Schools. More...

A non-profit group will be teaching hunters willing to work before the deer season begins how to grow their own “bait pile.” More...

Elmwood Township is fighting pirates while trying to preserve buried treasure offshore from its Greilickville Harbor Park. More...

Despite fears expressed by some local golfers, it appears that the King’s Challenge Golf Course, located immediately adjacent to Sugar Loaf Resort in Cleveland Township, could open later this spring under new ownership. The Homestead, a reso More...

A closing on the sale of some 126 acres of land at the corner of Herman Road and Center Highway for use as a community park in Suttons Bay Township will occur no later than July 31 following action taken last week by the township board. At its reg More...

Working in a ship’s rigging 35 feet above the deck is almost a matter of routine for Dave McGinnis. McGinnis, the owner of the Traverse Tall Ship Company in Greilickville and the schooner Manitou, was working near the top of the forward mast More...

If all goes as planned, by the time school starts on Sept. More...

The Leland Community Improvement Association (LCIA) for the past many years has been in charge of the Fourth of July fireworks and parade in Leland. More...

Members of the Suttons Bay Bingham Fire and Rescue are offering a bonfire, a place to get out of the cold and a chance to catch a mess of fish as a way to encourage young people into ice fishing. “I’m just trying to promote parents get More...

“He saw me move, so my grandfather said, ‘You have to shoot him right now’.” And so Evan Busby, all of 10 years old and on his first hunt, let go with his 20-gauge shotgun. He dropped a turkey. More...

Youngsters between the ages of 8-14 will be able to take sailing lessons in Northport this summer. “A few of us who have grandchildren wondered why we couldn’t offer a youth sailing program right here in Northport rather than send the ki More...

Perhaps the best legacy of the six-year-old Empire Asparagus Festival is the attention it has brought to the venerable green stalk vegetable that flourishes in the county and surrounding area. At the festival, which will be celebrated this weekend More...

Glen Noonan has fond memories of the drive from his family’s Kasson Township farm to Traverse City when he as a child. What impressed him the most were trees along the road. “The Ruthardt family had planted sugar maples along the road More...

The votes are in, and so is a round parking lot. That development was one of several tidbits of information about the Greilickville Harbor Park and adjacent Elmwood Township Marina presented last week at the Elmwood Township Board meeting. But pe More...

Looking for a sure bet to catch fish in Leelanau County over Memorial Day weekend? Keep in mind that Old Man Winter hung on longer than his welcome, and some days it feels like spring dropped the baton. The result: Don’t expect to find bass More...

Last year, Keith and Christin Cruz of Indianapolis took their boys on a camping trip to New York’s Catskill Mountains. More...

SEEDS, a Traverse City-based nonprofit that focuses on ecology and education, was recently awarded two 21st Century Community Learning Center grants from the Michigan Department of Education. The grants will provide approximately $1.5 million annu More...

Heather Richards of East Jordan was getting back to her roots Saturday, and introducing her daughters to theirs. More...

Does it feel like this winter hasn’t been as bad as last year’s? It does to animals living in the woods and wild of Leelanau County, or at least, that’s what experts are saying. Rich Earle, a wildlife biologist with the Michig More...

Biologists at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore are monitoring what appears to be a new botulism-related bird die-off along the park shoreline. Earlier this week 38 shore bird deaths were confirmed within the park, all attributed to botulism More...

Nathan Zientek’s time as a “youth hunter” may be wearing out, but his luck in the deer stand has been steady. Zientek has taken three bucks in three previous youth deer seasons, annually held the last full weekend in September fo More...

Don and Sue Bogue sat at a picnic table at Woolsey Memorial Airport late Sunday morning, enjoying the sunshine and steady breeze while watching a small plane take flight. More...

Tickets are on sale for a banquet sponsored by a regional deer hunting organization that hopes to expand the quality deer management (QDM) restrictions now in place on the Leelanau Peninsula to nearby counties. The second annual Northwest Michigan More...

My son Jacob and I would like to send thanks to the many volunteers and landowners that make living in Leelanau County a place for family memories. More...

The French boys don’t always get their deer, but they do have a 28-year ritual. More...

If the 26 men who spent last week on North Manitou Island had a motto, it might go something like: “Nine in ‘09.” After a week of downright decent weather — at least for the first week in November — the hunters who pa More...

A successful season was blowing in the wind for many hunters. More...

While quality deer management rules were designed to allow young bucks to survive their first hunting season with antlers, one buck killed in the Cedar area went beyond expectations. Mark Steimel, owner of Fur-Fish-Game Taxidermy in Leland Townshi More...

If you want to know how big bucks survive the 16-day firearms deer season, just ask Rich Bahle of Suttons Bay. Bahle routinely kayaks on Sundays from his home north of the village to Bahle’s department store for a couple hours of work. More...

Cross-country skiing and skate skiing will be taught Jan. 11 and 13 through Northwestern Michigan College’s Extended Education program. Both classes are designed for beginners and open to adults of all ages. More...

Ice fishermen, start your spuds. Winter fishing has begun in earnest in Leelanau County, with all but big Glen Lake frozen over and attracting anglers. Caution, however, is still urged. More...

Fishing has been pretty good in Leelanau County, with perch and walleye drawing the attention of anglers who may get more than a good meal for their catches. Expectations are high for upcoming ice fishing contests being held by sporting goods shop More...

“The trouting season has now fairly commenced.” The announcement appeared as a brief entry in the Leelanau Tribune’s edition of May 31, 1879, and helps to illustrate how significant, going back to the earliest days, fishing has b More...

Warm and dry weather conditions have not encouraged big runs of steelhead into county streams and rivers — but they haven’t been too bad for fishing in general, either. “Overall, it’s a pretty good start for fishing,” More...

A spotty rain may have been just the ticket to get mushrooms popping in the woods, while perch have captured the attention of many fishermen on Leelanau’s lakes. “I’ve just got two little, tiny (mushrooms),” said Leland res More...

Construction work at Greilickville Harbor Park “remains on schedule,” according to Elmwood Township Supervisor Jack Kelly, who also noted that the roof from a former picnic pavilion has been placed on a new structure that will serve the s More...

Horseback riding, canoe trips, sleeping and cooking out, camp shows and songs, water sports – Camp Caho sounds like it was a wonderful place. In the archives of the Leelanau Historical Museum is a collection of scrapbooks and photographs fro More...

Professional fisherman Brent Brophy was apprehensive the afternoon before a Leelanau County walleye seminar at which he was expected to be an expert. More...

Salmon fishing in Lake Michigan has started to heat up, according to local charter boat captains. “There has been some nice four-year-old salmon in the last few days,” said captain Jack Duffy Wednesday morning. More...

Leelanau County has about the same number of deer as a year ago, and hunters will be armed with the same number of antlerless permits for the fall season. “I would estimate it’s about the same,” said Rich Earle, DNRE wildlife bio More...

A private campaign to raise funds for development of Herman Community Park in Suttons Bay Township is more than halfway toward its goal of raising $500,000 to pay for the first phase of the project. According to campaign chair Debbie Slocombe, an More...

Baiting is rampant among archery deer hunters in Leelanau County, and has led to several tickets issued early in the archery deer season. Receiving citations were hunters on both private and public land, including one Empire resident. According More...

While separate unpredictable and annual events have put the brakes to salmon fishing in Lake Michigan, perch fishing on inland lakes should be taking off soon. High winds in recent days have spread out remaining schools of salmon, which were alrea More...

Anyone who attended a Natural Resources Fair and Feast sponsored by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians earlier this month in Peshawbestown had the unique opportunity to fish for coaster brook trout in an enclosure in the tribal ma More...

Deb Ruthkowski’s big buck has put the pressure on her husband, Joe. “I told her, ‘Now you’ve gone too far. I’ve got to beat it. More...

Average, slow or great. Deer hunting, as it usually does, depends upon the success of a hunter’s last shot. More...

Bruce Braden of Bingham Body Shop says the first snow of the season always results in calls. More...

It might be cold out there, but this is no time to hang up your bow. More...

Adeline Lucas loved to ice fish with her husband, Hank in front of their Lake Leelanau home. “We had a shanty with a stove,” the 85-year-old woman recalled. “I loved looking in the water and seeing all the fish down there. More...

Tyler Lukasiak of Maple City and Richard Robertson of Empire, both 20-year-old Northwestern Michigan College students, were enjoying fresh snow and the lack of lift lines at The Homestead in Glen Arbor Township on Friday afternoon as they took a day More...

Although winter continues without the benefit of a January thaw, wildlife in Leelanau County seem to be weathering everything Mother Nature has handed them. A blast of arctic air chilled day time temperatures to the mid teens, earlier this week. More...

Sue Peplinski of Centerville Township knows her fishing. That wasn’t the case 15 years or so ago. Recently divorced, she wanted to keep her three children interested in the outdoors. More...

Did West Grand Traverse Bay freeze over this winter? The answer: Close, but no. Jerry and Nancy Zachary have lived along the bay shoreline since 1960 in Elmwood Township. More...

Rich Hounsell missed his very good friend William “Jake” Jacob Sr., especially after attending Jacob’s funeral. To take his mind off of the death of his friend, Hounsell turned to the activity that he and Jacob enjoyed: ice fishi More...

Waterfront property owners in Leelanau County will see more people surveying their shoreline and spraying herbicide to eradicate the invasive weed phragmites this summer. The Leelanau Conservation District and the Leelanau Conservancy have both re More...

“Is he going to throw up on me?” asked 9-year-old Ariel Dean of Northport, while holding a jumpy rainbow trout. Her father, Chad, comforted her as best he could, but it was clear Ariel had not yet mastered the art of fish holding. & More...

Trevor Petroskey seems a little young to have his fishing career peak, but he’ll have a hard time beating the walleye he brought in Sunday. Petroskey, just 13 and in seventh grade at Suttons Bay, spotted a big fish resting under a dock in La More...

The crops in Leelanau County are as ready for the Memorial Day crowds as the county’s storefronts and downtowns. More...

The Lake Leelanau Lake Association is one of nine organizations to receive volunteer water quality monitoring start-up grants under the Michigan Clean Water Corps Program. The association will receive $2,500 for area streams. More...

The sky was blue and so were the ‘gills’. Young anglers filled up on bluegills Sunday at Kids Fishing Day, taking advantage of a recent planting in Kids Pond at Veronica Valley Park made specifically for the annual event. One such p More...

Leelanau remains without a county-based state Conservation Officer — and will be for at least the next several months. The situation has county sportsmen concerned, but Dean Molnar said there’s nothing he can do. More...

What are the odds of someone catching a snakefish off the breakwall in Leland? “I would say pretty unlikely,” said Heather Seites, DNRE fisheries biologist. Not so fast, says John Van Raalte, a Leland student who has spent a good sh More...

The hierarchy of the Cedar Rod & Gun Club wanted to do something special Sunday to celebrate the club’s 75th anniversary. So they brought in one of the top guns. Tom Knapp, of Eagle River, Minn., who is recognized as the greatest exhibiti More...

The hunter safety class provided by the Cedar Rod & Gun Club has evolved into much more than a necessary exercise needed to buy a hunting license, as hundreds of people — mostly young inductees into Michigan’s lodge of hunting — wil More...

Four Leelanau County girls decided before heading off to college that they should hit the lakes — all but one of the 27 lakes in the county, that is. Abbie, 21, and Lily Christiansen, 18, of Maple City and Nancy, 20, and Molly Binsfeld, 18, More...

The $45,000 Michigan Walleye Tour Championship was held on Lake Leelanau last Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Cal Stier and Cal Stier Jr., guides on Lake Leelanau, were the winners, landing a fully-rigged Lund boat and Mercury motor and $4,000 in c More...

Members of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians gathered at the tribal commercial fishing marina in Peshawbestown on Saturday for their annual Natural Resource Fair and Feast. “The food is really good and it’s a lot o More...

As the use of bait for deer hunting returns to Leelanau County, so do regulations that govern its use. Department of Natural Resources Conservation officer Rebecca Hopkins expects hunters to abide by them. “I take this seriously,” s More...

Too warm to hunt? Don’t tell Aaron Wurm, who downed his first deer Sunday morning. Too late in the year to fish? More...

More than a dozen volunteers showed up at Sugar Loaf Resort on Saturday for a “work bee” to clear brush and trees that will allow cross country skiing on the property this winter. Among the volunteers was former Sugar Loaf ski lift mec More...

Jonathan Cermak sits near a campfire at his family’s deer camp on Lake Michigan in Leelanau Township. The 30-year-old Northport hunter talks about the family’s old cottage built in the 1960s, the 77 acres he’s hunted with his dad More...

A dozen members of the local chapter of the Audubon Society spent a day fanned out around Leelanau County last month to conduct the society’s Christmas Bird Count. The Christmas Bird Count has been conducted annually throughout the U.S. More...

Six deer hunters in Leelanau County “racked” up winnings at the annual big buck night sponsored by the Leelanau Whitetails organization Sunday at Dick’s Pour House in Lake Leelanau. The place was full to capacity as hunters, some More...

“The only way we can for sure make it snow is if we all put our snowblowers away and take the plows off our trucks.” So says Scot Schweikart of Maple City in summarizing the feelings of winter-loving souls in Leelanau County. More...