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A children's path at Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

STEVE Bay 24806724583

r 5 Li L., reGl.i
D 24 11,4 T5

Check out the ULTIMATE
Science and Adventure Day Camp
in S.E. Michigan

Week-long
sessions
for ages
9 and up.

Two Great
Summer
Camps in
One...

Program robots,
go rock climbing,
orienteering and
do a ropes
challenge course

Expert staff
helps students
build confidence,
creativity, and
teamwork skills
with rigorous
robotics and
adventure challenges

For information, call 734 645-0211
or visit www.RocksandRobots.com

1116230

STAGE

THE NEXT STAGE

will
prepare you for your future
in the performing arts!

Little art galleries and boutiques
dot downtown Beulah, Frankfort and
Benzonia. Especially fun is the Gwen
Frostic Prints/Presscraft Papers facil-
ity (231-882-5505) on River Road
between Frankfort and Benzonia.
Original block-print notepaper books
and napkins, greeting cards, pictures
and more are just some of the works
of renowned artist Gwen Frostic.
Taste the region by tucking your fork
into a slice of homemade cherry pie at
the Cherry Hut (on U.S. 31) in Beulah.
Big news in the region is how the
biking trails recently have taken off,
offering cyclists all kinds of meander-
ing paths. The Betsie Valley Trail ties
Frankfort, Beulah and Thompsonville.
Along this trail you'll see turtle-filled
swamps, old railroad beds, shoreline,
parks and more.
There also is a three-mile connector
trail from Crystal Mountain Resort to
the Thompsonville trailhead.
Beyond the trails, paved county
roads entice as do the three biking
trails at Pere Marquette State Forest.
Thick hardwoods, river bluffs and
open meadows delight cyclists.
Family-style lodging awaits at
Crystal Mountain Resort, where 36
holes of golf, a wide range of accom-
modations, a new splashpark, outdoor
activities and more entertain.
Upcoming festivals: An old fash-
ioned Fourth of July descends upon
the county with a bang in the towns
of Beulah and Frankfort. Expect fire-
works, parades and more.
Art fans should plan their trip
around the Beulah Art Fair, July 8, at
Beulah Park (231-325-6642). Crystal
Mountain Resort also features a big
line-up of outdoor concerts throughout
the summer at its Legacy Art Park.
More information: Benzie Area
Visitors Bureau, (800) 882-5801, www.
visitbenzie.com ; Crystal Mountain
Resort, (800) 968-7686, www.crystal-
mountain.com ; and Michigan Legacy
Art Park, www.michlegacyartpark.org.

-

For more info:
www.thenextstage.us
or call:
(248) 473-1857/59

Presented by
the City of Farmington Mills
Spocial Services/OW(1ra/ /Iris bivision

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SUMMER FUN • MAY 25 • 2006

248-960-7666

Sculpting Grand Rapids

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture
Park in Grand Rapids is the Rolls

1120260

Royce of botanical gardens. With its
expansive indoor gardens, including
a lush tropical conservatory, a prickly
desert-style space and even a meat-
eating plant area, this West Michigan
hot spot draws plant lovers and the
curious to its huge locale.
The outdoors boasts several walking
paths and charming children's gardens
that entertain little ones for more than
an hour with everything from sundials
and pools to a Lincoln Log-style but
and playscape.
Sculpture's the thing this summer as
the "Tom Otterness in Grand Rapids:
the Gardens to the Grand" exhibit fea-
tures 40 major sculptures at the Meijer
park and along two miles of down-
town Grand Rapids. Running through
Sept. 10, the Otterness exhibit/tour
makes stops at Calder Plaza, Monroe
Center, Gillett Bridge, the Blue Trestle
Bridge and other spots.
Otterness, born in 1952, is known
for his stylized bronzed sculptures that
evoke both a sense of animation and
humor.
Other Grand Rapids must-dos:
• Take the whole family to the Public
Museum of Grand Rapids and don't be
alarmed when staff welcome you with
an A-to-Z scavenger hunt game.
On a recent visit, our choosy "tween-
age" kids and their younger pal were
ready to stick up their noses at the
idea of a museum game, but surpris-
ingly raced excitedly through sev-
eral fascinating galleries in search of
everything from the "lady who looks
shocked!" to a "pewter ink well."
End the visit with a few twirls on
the museum's operating, indoor 1928
carousel, which looks out to the Grand
River, or look up to the stars in the
complex's planetarium. A café and
nicely stocked gift shop round out
your adventure.
More information: Frederik
Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park,
(616) 957-1580, www.meijergardens.
org ; Public Museum of Grand Rapids,
(616) 456-3977, www.grmuseum.org ;
Grand Rapids/Kent County Convention
& Visitors Bureau, (800) 678-9859,
www.visitgrandrapids.org . ❑

