Northern Michigan brought in the summer solstice in style with record highs in temperatures and severe weather over the weekend.
Bingham Township and Glen Arbor eclipsed 92 degrees, with temperatures rising inland, away from the coast. In Northport, temperatures hovered around 90 degrees.
On Friday night, after a beautiful Summer Solstice, a severe weather pattern wreaked havoc across the eastern part of Leelanau County, including Suttons Bay and Omena where power was lost.
Hail was reported at the Northwest Michigan Research Center in Bingham Township.
Several other areas around Leelanau, including Traverse City, Gaylord, Alpena and Gaylord, all broke or nearly broke temperature records.
Hot and humid temperatures are expected to persist throughout the day.
In contrast, stormy and hot conditions are expected to continue into Wednesday and Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Gaylord.
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Cherry Report
After a Cherry Industry Administrative Board meeting Wednesday, June 18 Leelanau County could be amid the smallest harvested cherries in recent memories.
Roughly 30 million pounds of cherries are expected to be harvested in Leelanau County. In contrast, 47 million are expected in west-central Michigan and another 15 million across the state.
Leelanau typically harvests more than 100 million pounds of cherries, mostly tart, each year.
Cherry harvest, among other fruits, is up in the air after a cold spring and quick warmup this weekend.
Nikki Rothwell is more concerned about pest invasions, including Fire Blight, a severe bacterial disease that primarily affects apple trees.
“It’s so hard to farm,” Rothwell said.
Even farm-fresh advocates might grimace when dropping $7 up to $8 into a safety box while picking up a quart of sweet cherries at county roadside markets.
