June Swoon List: What Our Editors Are Obsessed with This Month

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As I not-so-patiently await lavender U-Pick season, I’m craving all the floral goodies. So, I was pleasantly surprised when, during a recent trip to Gaylord, I discovered Alpine Chocolat Haus’ Lavender Cherry Bark—deliciously thick slabs of dark chocolate swirled with lavender essential oil and dried tart cherries. It’s basically summer in a chocolate bar, and it was the perfect road trip snack as I made my way back to Traverse City.

Honorable mentions: Great Lakes Chocolate & Dessert Co. is serving up some stunning truffles, including a shiny, light purple lavender gem (which is just as tasty as it is beautiful). And if you’re looking for something to sip while you treat yourself, try Bear Earth Herbals’ Northern Nirvana tea, featuring lavender, lemongrass, milky oat tops, anise hyssop and linden. All of the herbs, minus the linden, were grown sustainably in Northern Michigan, and together, they create a soothing blend, perfect for front porch sitting on a warm night.

Sublime doesn’t even begin to describe starting your day on the deck of The Mill in Glen Arbor, a cup of fresh drip java in hand, the Crystal River meandering just feet away. Get there early to snag a rocker.

June means kicking off summer by dusting our little Sugar Sand jet boat off, bringing the paddleboards out of storage and loading up on sunscreen. While our first boating trip of the year is typically in our sweet Suttons Bay to test if everything is good for the season, you can bet our first official trip is to Power Island. From crystal clear Caribbean blue waters to on-island campsites and hiking trails, this spot is a no-brainer for a quick day or overnight trip.

My husband and I typically opt for a day trip to the island by dropping our boat in at the West Grand Traverse Bay DNR Boat Ramp and making the few-mile trip to the island’s east side where we relax for a few hours at the sand bar. You can also get to the island by taking the 6-mile boat trip north from Traverse City or the 2.6-mile boat ride, kayak or paddleboard (with all the proper safety equipment and lots of water, of course!) from Bowers Harbor off Old Mission Peninsula.

From there, unload the picnic you packed, grab a local brew from your cooler and unwind at the sand bar. When you’re ready, you can head onto the island to explore, but I won’t blame you if you don’t make it off the boat. Sometimes sunshine, a swim and a float on the water with stunning views are just what the soul needs.

It’s not every day you get to type “Scrooge’s Alley” into your GPS, but gosh I hope you get the chance to soon. The destination: Paddler’s Village, located just outside of Munising, in teensy tiny Christmas, Michigan, is a campground (right on the shore of Lake Superior with views of Grand Island!) that caters to paddlers, hikers and anyone who loves the outdoors. A few of the many reasons I recommend it: 1) Our group stayed in a yurt. We comfortably slept five with room to spare, had our own firepit, electricity, a mini fridge … it’s camping, but cushy. Real cushy. 2) The beach! Our yurt was maybe 10 feet from Lake Superior. We swam, walked the shore and most importantly, rock hunted. The beach is covered in gorgeous blue, green and purple slag, leftovers from nearby Bay Furnace where pig iron was made between 1870 and 1877. 3) Cheese curds. The Duck Pond Eatery & Beer Garden, also on Scrooge’s Alley, is within walking distance of every campsite and has a robust Michigan beer selection along with poutine, whitefish any way you could possibly want it and cheese curds. Get the curds. 4) You can easily day trip to Marquette and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. In Marquette, don’t miss the Upper Peninsula Supply Co. and its epic “sunrise wall.”

Just good to know: We went in early June. There were mosquitoes, but the biting flies hadn’t reared their irritating heads yet. We timed our visit just before summer traffic kicked in; there were only two other groups in our section of the campground, and we were pretty spread out. On a busy August day, it could feel a little crowded. But really that just means more friends to make. We shared drinks with two sisters who were on a mini, one-night gals’ getaway and hiking recommendations with a group of guys from Chicago (who did some legit guitar picking ‘round the bonfire).

More Related Reads! Power Island + Past Swoon Lists:

• The Many Names of Grand Traverse Bay’s Power Island
• Boat to Traverse City’s Power Island
• May Swoon List: What Our Editors Are Obsessed with This Month
• April Swoon List: What Our Editors Are Obsessed with This Month