(bold music) - [Narrator] On this episode of "UTR", we hit the Great Lakes Bay Region for an outdoor store with more in Linwood.

Then we walk above the woods and have a Loon day afternoon in Midland.

Heck, we'll even have some top notch nosh in Bay City and shake a hero's hand in Frankenmuth.

Get ready to explore the cool people, places, and things that make the Great Lakes Bay Region right up your alley.

(gentle music) - Pure is what you make of it.

It's taking it all in and never taking anything for granted.

(upbeat music) The sun sets, the moon rises, and you realize the end of one perfect summer day is the beginning of another.

Pursue your pure in Pure Michigan.

- [Announcer] A visit to the Stahl's Auto Collection will take you back to a time when cars were more than just a way to get around.

A fantastic assortment of gas pumps, neon signs, and automated music machines dating back 150 years that must be seen and heard.

Info at STAHLSAUTO.COM.

(upbeat rock music) - I've been around the world, but there's one place I keep coming back to, and the more I explore, the more I realize it's the place to be.

I'm Tom Daldin, and this is "Under the Radar of Michigan."

(upbeat rock music) (whooshing) (casual upbeat music) Now, when people say to you, "the Great Lakes Bay Region", do you pretend like you know what they're talking about, but you really don't?

Well, I'm here to help.

Just hold up your right palm.

See where your thumb meets your index finger right there?

Bingo.

That's right.

It's called the Great Lakes Bay Region because it's nestled right at the base of Saginaw Bay on mighty Lake Huron.

And when it comes to cool things to see, dine, and do, this is a multifaceted, action-packed part of our great state.

So without further ado, let's do some exploring "UTR" style.

(whooshing) (casual country music) Well, our Great Lakes Bay adventure starts right here in the town of Linwood at a place that's been around since, well, before I was born.

I know.

That's a long time.

Frank's Great Outdoors is right on your way to almost every outdoor adventure you can have in our great state.

Well, unless you live here.

Then you're already here.

It's a one-stop outdoor person's paradise with almost everything you'll need for anything you'll do outside, and it all started with a little minnow.

Pete and Andy Gorske are the third generation Franks-ophiles who keep this iconic store rolling forward.

I understand that this whole business started with a bucket of minnows back in the 1940s?

- Yeah, in 1945, Grandpa had a cement tank over by the side of the road and sold live bait.

- Yeah.

- And hooks and sinkers and whatnot, just simple stuff to get the guys out fishing.

- [Tom] Back in the forties?

- 1945.

- Yep, two trees with a rope that's had hooks hanging on it and had a buzzer on the, on the house.

- So if somebody come by?

- If you stopped here at 2:30 in the morning or four in the morning, and you rang that buzzer, he would get out of his house, and come and dip you bait.

- So that, that was your grandpa?

- Grandpa.

- Yep.

- So you guys are third generation?

- Yep.

- Third generation, yep.

- Wow, and I also have to say that driving by here, at first, you might just think, "Oh, look a sporting good store."

This place is so much more than that.

- [Andy] Yeah, it's evolved over the years.

It's been something else just from live bait to all the, the, you know, to downrigger fishing when that got big, hunting, guns, bows, and in the last few years, ice fishing's been just - Yeah, so ice fishing's - off the hook.

- kind of our niche now, but, you know, back in the seventies, the salmon boom in Lake Huron, - Yeah.

- right, that was what kinda drove the fishing business.

The region is kind of a, a sought after, it's a, it's a, you know, 10, 12-state draw in the winter, right, for ice fishing.

- I ran into guys from New York one morning, they were in here.

I was just, I, it was busy, you know, not even daylight out, and be-bopping around, talking to people, helping 'em out and this guy had a different accent.

I go, "Where are you guys from?"

"New York," I'm like, "New York?"

He goes, "Yeah, we're on our way to Lake Erie, "and all the ice blew away so we just kept coming."

(Tom laughs) I sold em everything I could, they, everything they wanted, took care of 'em.

They went out, and had a good time.

- 'Cause it's just an amazing, what you guys are doing.

And the fact that you actually put in a 3D, which I didn't even know what this was, a 3D archery course out back.

- Yep.

- [Pete] You know, that added a element to the business that, you know, gets people in the outdoors.

Andy's kind of, you know, vision to, to, "Hey, what can we do with that piece of property, "that woods that we've had forever," right?

So, I mean, what do you do, you, - Yeah.

- you know, you know people with heavy equipment, you know, bulldozed, blazed some lanes and - Yeah.

- And we cut 10 lanes in that little piece of property and put three targets on each lane.

Takes you about two hours to shoot it, you know?

- Yeah.

- And it's a wonderful thing.

It keeps you here and hopefully maybe you lose a couple arrows and you gotta come buy some more.

- Yeah, this place is a family in more ways than one.

I mean you, a lot of the family works here, right?

- Yeah, yeah, we have our three cousins that work here.

And so there's probably, you know, a total of what, six or eight of us?

- Yeah, still.

Yep.

- You know, that are here, and we're up to 70 or 80 employees, but getting back to the history of the place, you know, just like, like Andy said, people that are, that are coming in here, that, that came in here as kids, right, - Yeah.

- Gettin' bait with their dads, with their grandpas 50 years ago.

- Now they're grandpas.

- Are still, yeah, are still coming in here now - Yeah.

- [Pete] bringing their kids through and remembering those stories, right, of the pictures up front when you walk in, so that kind of stuff, man, it's stuff that you can't buy, right?

I mean, that's the true history of the place.

And we're brothers, I mean, we never really fight, right?

(Tom laughs) I mean, I mean, I never just rip his beard like that or anything.

- Well, maybe twice a week.

You know, I just gotta get a bigger stick, that's all.

I'm older, so I don't fight fair anymore.

- [Tom] I'm telling you, this store has so many great things to offer that in just 10 minutes, you'll turn into the ultimate outdoor enthusiast.

Heck, when Bigfoot's not a target out back, even he shops here.

So do your natural self a favor and come meet the whole family at Frank's Great Outdoors in Linwood.

Trust me, every single one of them will help you prepare for anything you wanna do.

As long as it's outside.

(whooshing) (gentle upbeat music) Now, have you ever been walking through the woods and you look up in the trees and you go, "Wow, I wonder what it's like to live up there?"

So follow me and I'll show you.

Actually, the beautiful and historic Dow Gardens in Midland are showing all of us with their amazing canopy walk through the trees.

Yep, this is the nation's longest canopy walk at over a quarter of a mile long.

It's, at places, up to 40 feet above the forest floor.

And it totally immerses you in a world previously reserved for our feathered friends and the creatures who can climb.

To get a real feel for this flight path through the forest, I did a little nature bathing with Debbie Anderson.

What can people expect to see at the Dow Gardens?

- Yeah, so the Dow Gardens is really a vast sort of diversified landscape.

We have 110 acres.

Half of it is sort of formal botanical garden with plantings, bulbs, annual flowers.

The other half is a little more wild.

That's where the canopy walk is.

It's the Whiting Forest, half of our campus, more native vegetation and paths out in the woods and things like that, so there's a lot to see and do.

- [Tom] And the Dow family, when did, how long has this been here?

- The Dows settled here in the 1890s.

1899, they built their house on a little 10-acre parcel over on Main Street in Midland.

And then Mr. Dow sort of acquired property throughout his lifetime, and by the time he passed away in 1930, he had over 600 contiguous acres, so he loved his gardens.

- And whose amazing idea was this canopy walk because I understand it's the longest in the nation, and it, I mean, you're walking 30 to 40 feet above the forest floor in the trees, and some of the views from up here, like of this pond, yeah, it's breathtaking.

- It is, and I wanna say that, like, the ideas weren't unique.

We had a lot of influence from other institutions, but our Board of Trustees and our director, they're visionaries.

Mr. Dow never liked to, he like to experiment and do new things, and we do that here at Dow Gardens, so it's really great to be able to try something new, and it worked.

People love it and they adore it and they like to explore.

- And this, talk about a natural experience through these beautiful woods, to be able to walk up where the, you know, only the, only the crawl or the, the climbers and the flyers are, it's pretty neat.

- Yeah, the canopy walk has a great perceived sense of danger.

You're up here, but it's completely accessible for people with mobility issues so they can get up above the trees in, inside the forest.

- Some of these like the wooden pods back here, they're part art, they're part functional, where did those come from?

- They're part adventure.

Yeah, so those are actually inspired by the Queen Anne's Lace umbel as it sort of dries out in the fall.

So one of them is sort of upside right, and the other's upside down, so it's kind of neat, and there's a bridge that goes across to one rope bridge, and the other one is accessible with a, a sort of a walkway across to it.

- [Tom] Yeah, I was gonna mention you have programs.

You have children's, I mean, you have tours here and the place is huge.

There's so much nature here and so much to share with your family that I would highly recommend.

- Yeah, we're really a hidden destination and, and destination really covers it because some people think they're gonna walk in and walk out in an hour and you could spend the day on the campus.

There's, like, a cafe.

There's lots of places to rest and, and recuperate and fill water bottles.

It's just a really great place to explore, get out in nature, and for our annual pass holders, they can come and go for a quick walk and leave and, and come back another time, so it's great for people traveling from far away and from people close by, so.

- Amazing place.

Well, thank you so much for having us.

You're amazing.

Great place.

- Thank you.

(laughs) (hands slap) Thanks for coming.

- [Tom] So next time you get the urge to become one with nature, one of the things you really need to try is the canopy walk at Dow Gardens in Midland.

It's an absolutely wonderful flora and fauna-filled way to spend the day, or my name ain't Tom Nature Boy Daldin.

Or something like that.

(whooshing) (gentle upbeat music) Now, next up, we hit a place at the southeast end of Midland.

And this is where I really have to say that if you haven't been to downtown Midland lately, you better get busy because there's a ton of awesome restaurants and store doors for you to go through and explore.

From clean and contemporary to classic architecture, this Main Street is worth a wander.

And when I say hit a place, I mean that literally, 'cause right here, you and your family can hit a grand slam home run of fun.

Well, you guessed it.

I'm talking about Dow Diamond Field and the Great Lakes Loons, a minor league baseball team that majors in great ball and a great time for all.

To make sure I tag all the bases, I checked in with President and GM, Chris Mundhenk.

Now I gotta tell you, Chris, I've been to a lot of minor league parks all over the state.

This park is amazing.

It's beautiful.

- We love it.

We are very fortunate.

Dow Diamond is, you know, special for our staff, but very special for our fans.

I think for many of our package holders and people coming to games, we treat this as an extension of their homes.

- Yeah.

- We want it to be a warm, welcoming environment, and, you know, as you can see, a lot of bells and whistles that make it a, you know, a fun, enjoyable experience.

- Yeah, I mean, it really is a special park, and I mean, obviously it's, what is it, kids, school, kids' day today because-- - It is School Kids' Day.

We have two of those each year, 11:05 AM games, a lot of energy.

The players love it because the atmosphere is great, and then they get a little back, you know, some time on the back end of their day to, to have a little bit of downtime.

- The Great Lakes Loons, are they a feeder club for major league baseball?

- We are.

We are the High-A affiliates of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

We have been since our inception in 2007.

We've been very fortunate over the years.

We have 94 former Loons that have gone on to play in major league baseball: Clayton Kershaw, Carlos Santana, Julio Urias, Gavin Lux, Corey Seager, just to name a few.

We've been fortunate over the years to cultivate a lot of major leaguers that have played here.

- Yeah, just seeing all these kids here like this, I tell people all the time that going to a minor league park with your family is one of the best times you're gonna have, because the value, because there's the action on the field, it's so much, and to watch these kids go crazy, and I love the big grass field that you have out, the grassy area - Mm-hm.

for the families, that's amazing.

- Yeah, we have lawn seating that will accommodate about 2000 people.

We get about 3,100 guests in our seating bowl, but then, you know, we have a lotta other nooks and crannies in the ballpark, and it's great, you know.

Fans bring their blankets or their lawn chairs and sit out on the lawn.

It's really great for a day game, but argue, just as good for a fireworks night.

You can kind of bring the kids, and it's a fun, safe experience for them.

We have a kid's play area, Lou E's Lookout, which is really busy on School Kids' Days, but you know, really throughout the season.

- And I also heard you have, it sounds like you've got a classic organ here?

- We do.

So we installed that for the first time last year.

Actually worked with a local person that had owned the organ, a sweet lady named Shirley.

So we named the organ in her honor.

It's Shirley the Organ.

You'll hear it at various times throughout the game, local organist that's phenomenal, and I think just adds a lot to that, you know, that experience of being in the ballpark.

You hear them a lot at the major league level, but you don't see them, so we want it to be a show piece.

It lives right on the concourse.

Guests can gather around and, and watch the organist play during the game.

- [Tom] Well, it's a great day for baseball.

It's 65 degrees, sunny, and you guys are the Great Lakes Loons, and you're playing the Lansing Lugnuts today, and I've been to - We are.

- That stadium, also a very nice stadium.

Do you guys have a mascot?

- We do.

Lou E. Loon is our mascot, Louis Entertainment Loon, and he's our, everyone's fine feathered friend.

He's our official ambassador, always out in the community, and running around at games.

- If you need a bat boy, I'm your man.

- You know one.

It's a lot of work.

- Well, I'm your boy.

- It's a lot of work.

- It is?

- A lot of work.

- Well then maybe I can just be the mascot's assistant.

(laughs) - Yeah.

(laughs) - [Tom] If you wanna enjoy some great baseball without breaking the bank and you gotta hankering for some peanuts, popcorn and cracker jacks, slide into a seat at Dow Diamond Field and cheer on the Great Lakes Loons.

Who knows, you might even make some new friends.

Heck, me and Lou E. Loon are best buds now.

Well, when he's not in fowl territory.

Get it: fowl?

(whooshing) (gentle upbeat music) Now when it comes to city halls, Bay City has an amazing one.

Well, it's actually not the oldest city hall.

There's an older one, but this one's pretty old.

Anyway, it's the kind of place that when you see it, you gotta pull over, get out, and you just gotta see it.

This amazing stone structure is the official beacon of Bay City and greets you as you cross the bridge into town.

It's the first thing you see because of its huge sandstone clock tower that rises 180 feet above the city.

Built way back in 1897, this castle-like collection of stone is now on the National Register of Historic Places, and after an extensive renovation, it was reopened in 2013 as a shining star to the city's illustrious past and promising future.

Yep, this is one incredible and cool city hall that you've just gotta see, but believe it or not, as old as it is, it's not the original.

That's where we're headed to next.

(whooshing) (gentle upbeat music) The Old City Hall Restaurant was, at one time, Bay City's original city hall, but now it's a classic and historic place to do some casual, fine dining right downtown.

But before I take a moment to mull over the menu, I thought I'd find out more from Bay City's own dynamic do-gooder, Dave Dittenber.

Every town has its signature restaurant.

And when I think, this just might be Bay City's, don't you think?

- I, well, I, you know, I hope so; we've been here for, since '97.

You know, when you look at people that, when there weren't any destinations down here, you know, 'cause it was a different time back in '97, but Old City Hall was always a staple downtown that everybody knew, so I hope, a lot of other great restaurants here too, and all friends of ours and people that we work with, but selfishly, maybe, I'd like to call it the signature place.

- First of all, the history of this building, now this was the original, this restaurant was the original city hall?

- It was the original city hall.

It started out actually as the fire barn, and that, so it was the fire barn in the room that we're here right now.

So we have some great old pictures where they would have the fire trucks.

They would actually house zoo animals here when they came, when they came (Tom laughs) for like a carnival and show, so this was really multipurpose.

And then the city hall was up above us, so all the offices and some of that were there and some of these other buildings down the block here, kinda were those governmental offices.

- Well, that's why I love places like this, and this place especially, is because there's so many stories and so much history, and the ambience and the atmosphere here, I mean, what you've created, it still has that feel, but I mean, this is what, a great place to go for dinner.

- I appreciate it.

I, you know, we've been really lucky, you know, to have some of the great historic elements and then kind of add maybe some modern things to it, but always keeping to that historical type of feel, right, and I think people are really comfortable in that.

And I think it's something that is relatively unique to this area to have this many eateries and all that type of stuff around, that's close to, to be able to have that feel, you know?

- And I know there's somebody out there watching right now is probably going, "Okay, stop, "start talking about the food.

"What about the food?

(laughs)" Because the food here's supposed to be amazing.

- It's amazing; Chef Ryan does a great job.

Very seasonally inspired, if you will.

So, you know, again, we were, we did a menu meeting yesterday, and he's been working with some local farmers to source some kind of farm-to-table items.

We have such great produce and, you know, just access to so many great things in the region, which is really fun, so, you know, people talk about supply chain and all that kinda stuff, and it's like, well, our supply chain's always been right here just because we have so many great people that we've worked with for so long, so that really helps us be able to be creative and, you know, keep up with what the customers' demands are too.

- Like I said, you've done so much for this town, and you, you've done so much for the people who love to eat in this town.

Just name off some of the place, and you've got a new place coming too, right?

- We do, so Old City Hall and The Chambers are the, kind of the flagships, as we talked about.

Tavern 101, which is our draft beer and kind of bistro pub.

Molasses 2, which is a quick service barbecue, and then Drift, which is the new food truck park.

So we don't really have any food inside.

All the food is done via food truck, and then we have a great bar and deck and dock and setting.

And just, it's a, it's a really special, you mentioned the freighters and stuff, I was sitting out the other day, just, you know, my wife and kids and I were weren't even open and the freighters going down the river, I'm like, "How cool is this place?"

So yeah, really, I think people really have a great time here, and it's great to see that place open again, so.

- I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

If you like a heapin' helpin' of history and hospitality with your next hot meal, check out the Old City Hall Restaurant in Bay City.

Besides, how many other city halls serve gourmet meals like this?

Bonus.

(whooshing) Now, let me ask you a personal question.

When was the last time you shook the hand of a hero?

Well, we found a place here in Frankenmuth that does it every single day.

The Michigan Heroes Museum is our very own military and space museum, and it pays honor and tribute to the Michigan men and women who stepped up, answered the call, and made a difference.

The museum is packed full of fascinating exhibits along with precious artifacts and archives.

And the stories of bravery and sacrifice here will overwhelm you with both awe and pride.

To make sure I give a sincere salute to these brave men and women, I checked in with John Ryder.

I feel like I should call Ken Burns and have him do a three-hour documentary because there are so many stories here, and there's so much in this museum that I could spend a month here talking to you about the stories about these people.

And these are all Michigan heroes?

- Everyone in here lived in Michigan at some point.

Either they served at a base here, were born here, or maybe retired here.

At some point in time, they called themselves a Michigander.

- When did this start, and how did you find all these incredible artifacts?

- So the museum was technically started back in 1976, in November of '76, and the gentleman who started it though, at age 13, he was going through the city of Detroit with his brothers with little red wagons after World War II, and when the guys would, when moms and wives would throw out their, their sea bags and, and stuff, they'd pick it up, you know, to go play war and everything else, their backyard, but the, this particular gentleman, Stan Bozich, he ended up, by the age 15, he says, "I'm gonna have myself a museum someday."

So he'd actually go back to the homes after they got the stuff, after 5:00 when the guys would get outta work, they'd, he'd go back and kinda interview 'em a little bit and get their stories.

- The stories here about these people who did so much for the rest of us.

- Exactly.

And for the world, I mean, I mean, especially with the world wars, - Yeah.

- I mean, they, they saved all of us.

- Yeah, we're here to honor, respect, and remember their service to the, to our country.

Every once in a while, we'll talk a little bit about their story before their service or after their service.

But for the most part, we're talking about their, their service to our country.

- Now this is also a space museum as well?

- Yeah, so we talk about our astronauts from the state of Michigan.

All but two of the astronauts that we have served in the military also, and that's the reason why we had originally started with that as well.

The last two astronauts from Michigan, curiously enough, do not have military service, but they got great stories, so they're in here too.

- [Tom] Yeah.

What do veterans, what is it like for them when they come in here?

Because not only the stories, but just the, the amazing historical stuff that you have here, what is it like for them when they come in?

- So the individual experiences vary.

Some of the guys, they might have served with one of the individuals who lost their life.

They may be here kinda remembering and honoring that life, right?

We've got other people that come in, and they're excited to maybe share something with somebody.

I know veterans that come in here and won't say a word.

We thank 'em for their service, you know, and they're just, you know, silent and introspective, right, and we just want to make sure that all of our veterans know that, I don't care if you served, I don't care if you're a clerk typist or a, a general or frontline combat or whatever, we're gonna tell your story here at the museum.

- Yeah, again, I'll say it one more time, then I'll shut up.

Everybody should come here for a variety of reasons.

Just if you're a historian, if you're interested in history, the actual artifacts here are, like I said, you could, this museum could be anywhere in the world, and it'd blow people away, just the artifacts and the actual stuff you have here, but the stories will give you chills, so thanks for what, thanks for what you do - Thank you.

- to make sure that these guys and women are thanked properly and that they're remembered.

- Well, we appreciate you guys coming and telling this story to everybody so that they know that this is here so that they could come and help honor, respect, and remember their loved ones and the people who served from the state of Michigan.

- [Tom] If you get the chance, plan to spend some time at the Michigan Heroes Museum in Frankenmuth.

It's a fascinating, profound, and heartfelt experience you'll never forget.

And for experiences like this and about eleventy billion other cool ones, head to Michigan's Great Lakes Bay Region.

It's one of the greatest places on Earth to live, work, eat, stay, and play.

(gentle music) - Pure is what you make of it.

It's taking it all in and never taking anything for granted.

(upbeat uplifting music) The sun sets, the moon rises, and you realize the end of one perfect summer day is the beginning of another.

Pursue your pure in Pure Michigan.

- [Announcer] A visit to the Stahl's Auto Collection will take you back to a time when cars were more than just a way to get around.

A fantastic assortment of gas pumps, neon signs, and automated music machines dating back 150 years that must be seen and heard.

Info at STAHLSAUTO.COM.

(upbeat rock music) (gentle piano music)