A quaint town, cute shops and awesome boats – Charlevoix, Michigan

Charlevoix Harbour image from Flickr by ktylerconk

Halfway between Traverse City and Petoskey, hard along Lake Michigan, the town of Charlevoix is yet another wonderful, “up north” spot. After spending most of an afternoon wandering around the town, we decided to dine locally at  the Grey Gables Inn Restaurant, which, for 75 years has been a very popular spot. 

What we did 

She said: 

Charlevoix is only about a half hour drive from Boyne City, so we did a little day trip.  It is one of the most wonderful little harbor towns located on Lake Charlevoix and very close to Lake Michigan.  The shops are fun and unique and the restaurants are wonderful. 

The  towns to visit (and they are all within an hours drive of each other) are Traverse City, especially in cherry season, Harbor Springs, again wonderful unique shops and restaurants, Petoskey, much the same,  and  Boyne City.  Almost better than New England. 

We did meet up with a couple in Charlevoix who had sold their house in the Detroit area and bought a VERY nice boat.  They were members of the “The Great Circle Route Club”.  They had started in Detroit and were going around the Great Lakes; traveling to the Mississippi and going around the Florida Keys and back up the east coast and down the St Lawrence Seaway and back home again; 5,400 miles. They were doing this in a year’s time to prove that the Eastern half of the United States is indeed an island. 

For dinner, we ate at Grey Gables.  It is a Victorian house located in the village, and the ambience is wonderful.  We had a table by the fireplace, and it was very romantic.  It was a little pricey, but not terrible.  My meal was okay. 

He said: 

When a couple goes “up north” in Michigan, the standard way to while away the day typically includes wandering along a town’s streets, ducking in and out of cute, unique shops and trying to resist the temptation to buy some sort of memento, clothing, or artwork. And did I mention fudge? It seems every city and town, no matter how small, has a homemade fudge shop. I’m sure they pump the aroma into the streets to get you salivating, and it works! One way to describe a day doing this would be to call it a tourist version of a “chick flick”! For us guys, it’s not as good as a day on the links or other such guy thing, but I do admit, as is true with most chick flicks, there are parts of it I enjoy, so it’s not a total waste! 

For us guys, strolling along the docks of Round Lake, which connects Lake Michigan with Lake Charlevoix, and ogling the marvelous boats provides a satiating respite from the shopping. Most of the boaters are quite amiable and eager to share in conversation. We met a couple from the Detroit area on a 50 foot cruiser. They were about a month into a one year cruise of “The Great Circle Route”. You don’t know what this is? Well, what it is, is a tour that encompasses the Saint Lawrence River, the Great Lakes of Ontario, Erie, Huron and Michigan, the Chicago, Des Plaines, Illinois and Mississippi Rivers, the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean along the east coast of the United States and Canada, back to the Saint Lawrence River. What this proves is, not only does this couple have a very strong marriage, but, that the eastern half of the United States is AN ISLAND!!!! I’d never thought of this before and, picking up this little nugget of knowledge, made the time spent shopping seem well worth it. 

On a quiet street, just a few blocks from downtown Charlevoix, Grey Gables Inn Restaurant can be found in a neighborhood of stately, century old homes. Since it, too, was once a residence, there are numerous, small rooms that offer an intimate, yet casual, dining experience. The current proprietors have operated the restaurant for about 15 years and, sadly, from my perspective, are dependant on its former reputation for their continued success. The service was fine and the menu offered a wide selection of meats and fish in varied and intriguing presentations, but our meals were only average and were far from memorable.   I vote for the Walloon Lake Inn tomorrow night!

Category: Charlevoix, Michigan, Midwest, United States, what we didTags: dining in charlevoix, lake charlevoix, round lake |