I recently got to spend a really nice weekend with friends up in Traverse City and the nearby Lake Leelenau. It's an idyllic location for Michigan summer weekend, complete with cool natural lakes and upscale eateries.

Our cottage was right on Lake Leelenau, with a small path going right down to the water. We had a pontoon boat and two jet skis (which I hadn't ridden before), and we spent a few exhilarating hours crashing around the choppy waves. Just the view from the back porch at sunset was worth the three-and-a-half hour drive.

During the day we went downtown to Traverse City, a cool town with a distinctive feeling for tourism. Between the locally-made wines and candies, foodie-influenced restaurants, and breweries serving up local food and drinks, there was plenty to do - and I racked up about a hundred points on foursquare, thank you very much.

We took a short tour around to the local wineries where we sampled some more of the local fare. Shady Lane Winery had a lot of rosé wines - which aren't always my favorite - but the servers at the tasting bar were engaging with stories about the farm and their own experiences living "up north" in the winter.

Black Star Farms provided an additional treat with their locally-made Raclette cheese, which packs a nutty cheddar punch that pairs well with both white and red varietals. They also had some interesting dessert wines that I'm sure contributed to my 6:00pm hangover.

All in all it was a great trip and I can't wait to go back!

During my recent trip to Denver, we spent an afternoon hiking in the Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs. It was probably the farthest southwest in the United States that I have been, and it was interesting to see the red rock formations.

Since that part of Colorado is about a mile higher in elevation than where I live, I got pretty winded climbing around on the rocks!