Category: Blog

10 Places to Visit in Michigan

rancher
Michigan autumn foliage
Michigan autumn foliage

Michigan is a great vacation destination for people during all seasons. There are so many great places to see and things to do.

Here are some of the top ten places to visit during your Michigan vacation:

  1. Spend a day on Lake Michigan. The third largest of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan offers something for everyone. You can spend a day sailing, fishing, swimming or just dipping your toes in the clear blue waters on a nice spring or summer day.
  2. Visit Mackinac Island. This is one of the more popular tourist destinations in America. It harkens back to a simpler time before most of our modern technology. You can take a scenic drive across the Mackinac Bridge to get there, or you can take a ferry if you wish. Explore the shops, buy some fudge, enjoy the majestic view or take a tour of the island on a horse-drawn carriage.
  3. Take in a game. You have many options, depending on your sport of choice. You can visit Comerica Park to watch the American League Central’s Detroit Tigers play on a beautiful summer day. If football’s your game, you can visit Ford Field to watch the Detroit Lions in action. Basketball fans can cheer on the Detroit Pistons at the brand-new Little Caesars Arena. College sports enthusiasts can watch live competitions on the campuses of Michigan and Michigan State Universities.
  4. Go back in time at the Henry Ford Museum. Car historians will enjoy traveling back in time at the Henry Ford Museum. They can view and admire many classic cars, trucks for movers in Detroit, and read about automotive engineering pioneers. Factory tours are also available.
  5. Listen to live music at the Machine Shop. Located in Flint, the Machine Shop hosts dozens of rock, metal and country concerts every year. They draw fans from across the state and around the country. One of the must-visit destination for many music fans.
  6. Visit Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. Billed as the world’s largest Christmas store, this heralded store is a favorite destination for winter travelers. They can take their time shopping as they stroll through the building that’s larger than a football field.
  7. Enjoy the Electric Forest Festival. This summer festival held in Rothbury boasts one of the largest light shows in the nation. Several musical acts perform every year against the backdrop of majestic trees that are showered in electric light. An amazing experience for people of all ages.
  8. Spend time in nature at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. You can camp, hike, canoe or simply admire the natural beauty that surrounds you at this tourist stop in Munising. There are waterfalls, cliffs, beaches and many more attractions to enjoy.
  9. Admire creative talent at ArtPrize in Grand Rapids. This fall festival offers the opportunity to view various works of art from dozens of talented individuals. Their works are spread across three square miles in the city. Artists from around the world gather to display their works during this 19-day event.
  10. Spend a day at the Detroit Zoo. The Detroit Zoo is home to many different animal species. They have exhibits for everyone to enjoy. You can ride the Tauber Family Railroad or just spend the day visiting the animals.

These are just some of the many things to see and do in Michigan. You can find out more online or by talking with your local travel agent or you move their with help from a local moving company. Michigan offers so many incredible vacation possibilities!

10 Ranch Vacations For Families

rancher
ranch

When it comes to family vacations you want something fun, exciting, and perhaps even a little different. Ranch vacations can be quite the experience for the whole family. Here is a list of the top ten ranch vacation spots!

Triple Creek Ranch

Triple Creek in Darby, Montana is a fantastic ranch getaway spot! This luxury ranch has striking surroundings, log cabins, passing horses, almost everything from right out a movie or a book. The activities span from hiking, fishing, and even helicopter tours of Glacier and Yellowstone national parks.

The Resort at Paws Up

Located in Greenough, Montana, The Resort is another amazing family vacation spot! Not only is it surrounded with beautiful nature, but this resort offers activities for everybody, including; archery lessons, pony rides, and even fire pits and camping. No matter what your age here, The Resort at Paws Up is a lot of fun for the whole family.

Devils’ Thumb Ranch

Devils’ Thumb in Tabernash, Colorado is another fun family ranch spot! This old, historic ranch has quite a fun and unique story behind it that you can learn all about. The resort offers ice skating on the frozen lakes and zip-lining during the Summers.

Tanque Verde Ranch

Tanque Verde in Tucson, Arizona is a fun and adventurous ranch spot! This unique desert ranch celebrates being off the grid. They do not have TVs, and offer only outdoor activities such as fishing, horseback riding, hiking, and adventurous type activities. The saloon here also offers some delicious BBQ and homemade chocolate truffles that are sure to leave your mouth watering.

Paradise Ranch

Paradise Ranch in Buffalo, Wyoming is truly in the middle of nature itself! It is surrounded by lush meadows, breath taking scenery, and snow-capped mountains. They host chicken chasing games, a kid’s rodeo, and more! Also, you can make s’mores by a fire and even camp too.

Rawah Ranch

Rawah Ranch in Northern Colorado is a beautiful mountain/river escape, along with horseback riding, fly-fishing, hiking, and plentiful children’s programs, there is so much to do here and it’s in such a lovely, serene area.
-Stagecoach Trails in Yucca Arizona, is full of fun and exciting things to do! They have a moonlit wagon ride through the trails, a petting zoo, archery, fishing, and so much more!

Mountain Sky Ranch

Mountain Sky Ranch in Emigrant, Montana is another beautiful spot for a ranch vacation. From horseback riding, art and crafts, scavenger hunts, fishing, and great food, it’s a blast for the whole family. It is also close to some museums and amazing restaurants that you should experience while you’re there.

Rankin Ranch

Rankin Ranch in California is yet another fun spot! They have hiking, fishing, biking, and for the kids they have talent shows, boat races, scavenger hunts, and so much more!

Gros Ventre

Lastly, there is Gros Ventre Ranch in Moose, Wyoming. This ranch offers a special mountain cuisine for its guests. There is plenty to do here too, such as; fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and many children’s activities too, including a park to play at.

Top 5 Skiing Destinations in the Rocky Mountains

rancher

ski

The mountainous terrain of Canada is well known for skiing and snowboarding in the world. The Rocky Mountains found in Alberta & British Columbia is one of the places people love skiing. Here are top 5 skiing destinations in the Rocky Mountains:

Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort

This ski resort is the largest ski area in North America offering 33 square kilometers of ski and snowboarding area. Whistler Blackcomb is located at the base of Whistler Mountain and the area has a lot to offer besides skiing and snowboarding areas. There are shops, restaurants, hotels, entertainment venues, condos and bars too.

Panorama Mountain Village Ski Resort

This is both a ski and golf resort offers about 11.5 square kilometers of skiing and snowboarding. As for vertical drop, the resort ranks 5th after Revelstoke, Whistler Blackcomb, Jack Hole and Kicking Horse. You can get restaurants, condos, golf courses, bars and grocery stores at the bottom of the hill.

Revelstoke

The resort is about the same size as other major resorts in the area. However, after completion, Revelstoke will be the largest resort in North America with 10,000 acres to offer. Since the resort is located in higher altitude areas, the snow tends to be better and have a better quality.

Sunshine Village

Sunshine Village covers about 13.6 square kilometers of ski-able terrain in Alberta. The resort is easily accessible because it is about 15 minutes’ drive from Banff making it one of the popular skiing destinations in the Rocky Mountains. If you are to visit Sunshine Village, the skiing season starts around November to late May depending on the weather.

Fernie Alpine Resort

Although it has a smaller size compared to other major resorts in the area, Fernie Alpine Resort attracts thousands of skiers and snowboarders annually. The resort is well known for its powder skiing which attracts numerous tourists. Fernie has 12 lifts that operate 112 different trails throughout the resort.

If you are planning to visit the Rocky Mountains to ski or snowboard, these are the top skiing destinations you can visit. You can research further about these destinations to be sure you will get what you are looking for specifically because we all have different tastes and preferences

Traveling With an Allergic Baby

rancher

The good news is that with a little planning you and your family can travel safely with your baby. But before you take to the road, here are 6 things to do that will help your baby stay healthy while enjoying the trip.

1. Let your pediatrician know that you are planning a trip, and ask for advice on prescriptions or over the counter medications that can be used to avoid a flare-up, or minimize one should it occur. Depending on your destination they may be able to recommend a wealth of all kinds of resources that will help put your mind at ease, let you relax and enjoy the trip.

2. Bring your baby’s portable pack and play that he is used to sleeping in. If you don’t have one, this is an investment you’ll be happy you made. Be sure to get it several weeks before you travel, so by the time you’re ready to leave, it feels comfortable to him. This will allow you to use sheets and bedding that you know are safe and will feel more normal to your baby even though you may be sleeping in an unfamiliar hotel, family member or friend’s home.

Keeping things as familiar as possible for your baby, particularly at bedtime, will reduce stress (both his and yours) and will allow him to rest well at night. And if baby sleeps everybody traveling with you will sleep too.

4. Be sure to bring extra clothing. This sounds like a no-brainer, but you really don’t want to have to shop under pressure to find clothes that your baby can wear without causing a problem. Having to look for new clothes and only being able to find those made of materials that trigger symptoms is a nightmare that doesn’t need to happen.

It may also be difficult and expensive to locate a store that offers organic clothing or has your baby’s size. And maybe your schedule is too tight to have to take time to shop. Bringing extras that your baby has already worn, and preferably that have been washed once is added baggage you won’t mind having.

5. A favorite toy or 5 will be greatly appreciated by your little one. Purchasing a spare of the favorite toy before you leave might save a lot of anxiety should it become lost in the shuffle from one place to another. This might seem like a waste of money on this side of the issue, but from the other side, that spare toy just might seem priceless.

Then, to your baby, it feels like bringing along a piece of home, and for you, it brings peace of mind. You never know what the air quality is going to be like where you’re going, and having a portable high-efficiency particle arresting air purifier along for the ride means your baby has fresh clean air wherever you go. And fresh air is good for everyone else in the family too.