(upbeat music) - On this episode of UTR, we look at Ludington.

We'll meet some father and son photographers.

Stop at a House of Flavors.

Yes please.

And stay at a marvelous mansion.

Heck, we'll even show you a place where you can eat, drink, and play the day away.

Get ready to explore the cool people, places, and things that make Ludington a great place to be.

(upbeat music) (gentle uplifting music) (people chattering) - [Advertiser] A visit to the Stahls 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 Atahlsauto.com.

(upbeat music) - [Tom] 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 Michigan.

(upbeat energetic music) You know, Ludington really is one of those quintessential Michigan Beach communities.

I mean, where else are you gonna find all the cool stuff that I'm gonna tell you about in this most excellent voiceover?

Seriously, Ludington has everything you need to make your mind, body, and spirit soar.

It's got a charming and walkable downtown that's full of great art, creative shops, and inspired places to stop for a bite to eat, or even a local brew or two.

And if you walk a short ways down stately Ludington Avenue it'll take you right down to an absolutely beautiful city park and a pristine white sand beach that's right on Lake Michigan.

And if you head down to the marina, not only will you see a bounty of beautiful, buoyant boats, you just might see the mighty SS Badger pull into the harbor.

This massive floating car and people transporter connects Ludington to Wisconsin.

I think they like coming here because Michigan is so cool.

To the south of Ludington sits the lovely shores of Pere Marquette Lake.

And just north of town you'll find Ludington State Park, one of the best places to enjoy the great outdoors.

The park has massive sand dunes you can do, tons of trails to ride and or hike, and both big and small waters for swimming, boating or just floating.

You can even climb to the top of historic Big Sable Point Lighthouse.

It's located inside the park, was constructed in 1867, and is still used by ships today.

But enough of this snappy show open, let's start loving Ludington.

Ludington is located on Michigan's beautiful west coast, right where your little finger meets you knuckle.

Or there abouts.

(logo whooshes) Well, we rolled into Ludington and all of the wonderful memories from our last visit here came flooding into view.

What an awesome town.

So, we slowed down, looked around and found a place that you'll just have to see to believe.

Now picture this.

No really, I'm serious.

Picture this because you're about to meet two guys who take pictures of well, all of this.

Yep, we found a place where all of the majesty and mystery of Michigan is captured, collected, and conveniently offered up for you to enjoy.

Todd and Brad Reed Photography is exactly what it sounds like.

An award-winning father and son duo who make moments in time timeless.

So to make sure I get the full picture, I arrange for a long exposure with Todd and Brad.

I gotta tell you guys, we've been in town three days now and you two have managed to foster and get the respect and admiration of everybody in town.

Every time we mention your names, they're like, "Love those guys.

They're so talented.

Love what they do."

Todd, I have to ask you, when did you first get bit by the shutter bug, as it were?

- Well, I went to Michigan State to get a degree in journalism and had to take one photography class.

Came to the Ludington Daily News to do an internship and they very quickly handed me a camera and said, you can shoot all the night and weekend photographs we don't want.

So you had to learn OJT on the job training, and we did.

- Oh, okay.

Thank you tree, now acorn.

(all chuckle) When did you get, did you just see what dad was doing and go, that's cool.

Or did you... - I grew up following him and being a Sherpa, carrying bags and lenses and tripods and that kinda stuff.

I went to college to be an elementary school teacher.

And while I was in college, he was shooting his first book in the late nineties.

And so we spent a lot of time and I was like, this is pretty cool.

But I still got a teaching degree, became a teacher and then finally made my way here in 2004.

That was just to run the business.

I wasn't even gonna shoot.

But I took us digital and taught him how to use a digital camera.

And in that process we discovered people liked my photos as well and I was like, wow, I could do this.

So I quit my careers and we've been doing it together ever since.

- And just walking in your studio, this is a museum.

It's amazing what you guys do.

- [Brad] Well, we always say you couldn't do this in every state.

Michigan makes our job a lot easier.

That's a huge reason we're successful 'cause our state is so beautiful.

- What do you guys love about filming and doing, I mean Michigan, like you said?

- You know, we love the light.

Michigan is just gorgeous.

We have some of the best sunsets in the world in Ludington.

We're surrounded by water.

So it's a big cloud factor.

And clouds are your friends.

That's one of our big sayings in our workshops.

And we love meeting people.

So when we're out, the cameras kind of naturally attract people and we love hearing their stories and where they're from and... - And we love Mother Nature and we love nothing better than a fierce storm.

- Well, Todd, what was the first camera that you used?

Was it a pull start?

- No, I had a Nikkormat.

And the chief photographer at the newspaper, if I had to shoot a football game or something, he'd loan me a telephoto lens.

Russ Miller was his name, and he's a master photographer and a mentor of mine.

- And you guys do books as well?

- Yes.

Go ahead.

- Yeah, we've done nine coffee table books.

We just did a children's book, our first children's book ever.

And we do everything but print 'em.

So we design 'em, write 'em, publish 'em.

- [Todd] And our manager and fellow photographer, Rachel Gaudette, she made a movie outta that children's book.

And we had at Art Prize last year at the Gerald Ford Museum.

- There's photographs and then there's good photography, like what you guys do is art.

It really is art because you're with the composition and with you wait for certain moments, you find certain places, you see certain things.

It really is an art form.

- Yeah.

- And as they say, every picture is worth a thousand words.

So the photo behind me of the sand there, you got five minutes, go.

A thousand words, go.

(both chuckle) - Yeah, there you go.

Nordhouse dunes federal wilderness, Porter Creek and people can step right into it.

They are there when they look at it.

- [Brad] Triangles at the base, magic light.

- You're at about... - Lake Michigan at its best.

- Dynamic diagonal.

- That's 42 words, so- - Yeah.

- You got a ways to go.

- Yeah, that's right.

- I got time.

I'll get some coffee for us.

Well, they say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I swear everything these folks photograph is phenomenal.

And the depth and breadth of their collection in books just may have you shopping for a bigger coffee table.

If you're a lover of Majestic Michigan, come select a slice of it at Todd and Brad Reed Photography.

Their fabulous photos are a great way to remind you that you live in the greatest place on earth.

(logo whooshes) Now, if you scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream, at this next place they must wear earplugs.

Because they make ice cream for everybody.

Not to mention the fact that for generations, they've owned this classic, historic 50s type dinner that serves up iconic sweet and savory selections.

Yep, House of Flavors has been serving up ice cream for so long, all I can say is good thing they've got refrigerators.

So, to find out how one family decided to make this scoop of frozen fun their future, I sat down with a big bowl of blue moon and Barry Neal.

Okay Barry, is this place a restaurant and ice cream parlor that just happens to have a lot of history?

Or is this a historical museum that just happens to serve ice cream and really good food?

- That's a great question, Tom, and I have referred to this, especially this year as a museum, we are one of the largest collections of Mason County dairy memorabilia and, you know, family history memorabilia.

And so yes, it is a museum, and yes, it is a restaurant and an ice cream parlor.

- Well, speaking of history, I absolutely love how you took the old archival photographs from, you know, family members, from customers, from way back in the forties and fifties and now they adorn the walls here.

I love that.

- Yeah well, and those people, many of them are still alive.

One of my favorite stories, we had just put up a wallpaper panel that, you know, just reopened the restaurant after the renovation and a man came in and he sat in the same spot every day.

And it was at a booth facing this wallpaper panel.

And I said to him one day, "Sir, we're so grateful that you're here every day, do you wanna sit somewhere else?"

And he said, "Young man, that woman is my wife and I have not been able to have dinner with my wife in 20 years because she's passed away."

So there's this sense of family coming in and seeing friends and family.

So it is not at all about the food and the ice cream.

Actually, I like to say that I sell ice cream so that I can give love away for free.

- And before we even get to the ice cream, the straws on the ceiling, I love that story.

The kids used to do that.

They used to blow the straws up and it was your grandpa that had them all taken down.

- [Barry] He did, well, because if you, he was very clean, let's say that.

And kids would dip their straw papers in the milkshakes or malts, when my grandpa turned his back, they would blow them up on the ceiling.

And so, you know, you end up with this chocolate drippy vanilla mass straw paper falling on people.

So no, he didn't like it at all.

And my dad tells a story that my grandfather had cleaned the ceiling, had it repainted, and Life Magazine called and said, we've heard about this phenomenon.

- And this is 1953.

- 1953.

Yeah.

It actually ran September 21st, 1953.

It was, you know, two thirds of a page of a photograph of all these straw papers flying up.

And then my grandpa scowling in the background 'cause I have seen that look before.

Now, it's been a fun trend.

And even now, today, you know, the straws that we have on the ceiling we put there, but I will find them every now and then.

So it still works.

And not encouraging your viewers to do that, but if they do, it may work.

- Now, when your grandpa first started, he had five flavors of ice cream.

- Five.

Yep.

It was vanilla, French vanilla, chocolate, lemon and Blue Moon.

- Now the Blue Moon, I am, I have to admit, and coming from Michigan, I'm ashamed to admit I've never had Blue Moon.

- Okay.

- But tell me the story of Blue Moon.

I mean that goes way back to the forties, correct?

- Oh gosh, it does.

Yeah, it does.

You know whether we are the originators of that or Sherman's, we do know that it originated in the Midwestern United States.

Both Sherman dairies and my grandfather believed that they were amongst the first to do it.

So, you know, the lore and the legacy is still out there, but all the details are not fully known.

Yeah.

- And what is made, what are the flavors?

- I'm gonna let you describe that.

It's a little like saying what is blueberry taste like?

Blue Moon is its own distinct flavor.

- Yeah, because a lot of, there's usually a base flavor to anything.

- Yeah.

- I've heard people who've had Blue Moon say that they can't identify a base flavor.

That it just has its own whatever it is.

- So when I try Blue Moon, there's I think undertones of almond or marzipan.

There's light tones of vanilla.

You know, it's a really creamy, mild flavor.

- I'm going to taste this Blue moon.

Never had it my whole life.

I'm ashamed to say that I'm gonna try it right now and I'll tell you what I think it tastes like.

- [Barry] All right.

- Tastes like chicken.

(Barry laughs) No, I'm kidding.

- Everything tastes like chicken.

- It's wonderful.

And I have no idea what it tastes like.

But it, I can't even identify a base flavor.

I know what it does taste.

- What?

- Tastes good.

- Okay, good.

Nice.

Sweet.

That's a word we use here a lot.

- Well in spite of my self-inflicted case of brain freeze, oh it hurts so good, I managed to taste many menu items as well as a flurry of their flavors.

And I have to say that this awesome place just might become a new Daldin family tradition.

If you're looking for some good old fashioned family fun, come forage the fabulous foods and infinite flavors at House of Flavors in Ludington.

Oh, and if you find out how they make Blue Moon ice cream please let me know cuz I sure as heck can't figure it out.

But you can sure bet that I'll keep tryin.

Oh my brain!!!!

(logo whooshes) Now say you're in Ludington.

Go ahead say it.

Okay, good.

And you want to get a good night's sleep, but you don't want to just sleep, you want get steeped in history.

Well fire up your way back machine 'cause this place is a comfy blast from the past.

Yep, the Cartier Mansion in Ludington is a first-class Bed & Breakfast that will cradle you in comfort and spark your imagination.

Not to mention fill you full of history and very creative cuisine.

It's the kind of place you stay when you suddenly realize how special you are.

But, before I check in and mess up all the fluffy pillows on my magnificent bed, oops, oh, oh, I thought I'd better check in with expert inn keepers Chris & Jenna Simpler.

How many times a day do you guys hear the word, "wow"?

Because I know when I walked in today, what did I say?

- Wow.

- Yes.

What's the history?

- Well, history starts in 1905 with Warren Cartier building this Grand neoclassical home.

And we are now the fourth owners and stewards of this beautiful property.

- [Tom] The rooms, I mean, the room I'm staying in, first of all, you have to explain the shower to me.

I mean, is that original to the room?

- [Chris] It is.

It's one of maybe a dozen left in the world.

It's a wolf therapeutic needle shower and it's got hundreds of tiny little holes that treat your body like a car wash. (all laugh) - I need more than that.

I need, I need a sand blaster.

Is that a game room, a library or a study in there?

- [Jenna] Yes.

(all laugh) - [Chris] Yeah, so it's got the art deco painting that's we believe was done in the twenties or thirties, all the built-in bookshelves.

And then, you know, the fireplace?

- [Jenna] Yeah, it's just all the fireplaces are original.

They have original Italian tile around them and it's a place that the family would spend time, most likely Warren would've spent time in there as he's pouring a cocktail for himself in the evening and just reminiscing about his day.

- Yeah, that little library, study, game room, whatever it is, whatever you call it, is my, that's my spot in the house, that I'm gonna spend some time in there this evening.

- Great.

- Perhaps with a brandy.

Yeah, this place really is extraordinary from the wood to the furniture.

And this was all, this is all, a lot of original to the home, correct?

- Indeed, there are about 84 original pieces of Cartier furniture memorabilia, if you will, that has been either donated back to the home or purchased along the way, even though the gorgeous grandfather clock directly behind you is an original piece that Warren had built, which is kind of fun.

- And you're a stones throw from downtown Ludington, which is great.

So people can stay here, going to town for dinner, come back, have that brandy that I mentioned previously.

- Absolutely.

- Sit in the study/game/room/library and just have a marvelous time.

Also, any hidden secrets in the house?

- Hmm.

- Whoaaa.

There are some?

- There are some, yes.

So when you first enter the mansion, there is a bathroom off to the left hand side, and that's the original bathroom.

It's all still intact from the sink to the toilet.

- To the toilet seat.

- To the toilet seat, so- - Is this original toilet seat?

- Indeed.

- Wow.

- And Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were known to be in this house, so maybe there's some inspiration.

- This is a labor of love and it's, to maintain a place like this and to run it and to do it well, it's a lot of work.

Why do you do it?

- I can say the stewardship part is there and we've actually decided to focus our efforts on people who really do care about it.

We find that our best guests are the people who want to be in a historic mansion.

And so we wanna message that and get people excited about being able to walk into history and do this.

And so that's what's rewarding.

When somebody walks in and says, "Wow."

Right?

And has a really interest in all of the different pieces of history and, oh, look at that, and look at that.

Or maybe even bring some information to us.

That's always so much fun when someone says, oh, you know what, I know this little detail about architecture.

And then we learn things.

That really makes it so much worthwhile.

And it's so much different from, you know, a regular hotel, which is lovely.

And we've been in that world where, you know, what you're trying to do there is deliver a very neutral experience.

Here we want people to be just in love with every, every little piece of this and come back and learn new things every time.

I mean four years here, and we still will see stuff and go, oh wow, look at that.

I didn't know it worked like that or looked like that or that little detail.

So it's fun.

- I was gonna say, just driving into town, this row of homes on this street are beautiful and historic and I kept saying, is that it?

No, that must be it.

No, that must be it.

And then you see the mansion and it's like, oh, that's it.

So anyway, I'll be lounging later.

Actually, we're here for three days.

You're gonna see a lot of lounging.

- Great.

- Well, even though I'm not really that special, this place sure made me feel like it.

It's got such a warm and friendly environment.

Your hosts are the absolute most.

The atmosphere and ambiance are awesome, and the food, oh my gosh, the food, is fit for a king, a queen, and even a court jester like me.

If you want a stay that's an actual experience while you're experiencing all that Ludington has to offer, check into and then check out the amazing Cartier Mansion Bed & Breakfast.

You'll feel like an aristocrat, just like that.

Oh my, I'm special.

(uplifting music) (logo whooshes) Now, if you heard me at the beginning of the show you know that right now, we're gonna show you a place where you can eat, drink and play the whole day away.

I think I just found my new day camp.

Bonus.

Yep, Stix is Ludington's new happy place.

It's an absolute destination for great food and big fun because there's tons to do here.

If you're looking for a unique place to connect with family, friends or just live it up with the locals, this place is just what the doctor ordered.

And speaking of doctors, I made an appointment with owner and merchant of mirth and munchables, Dr. Andy Reimer.

Okay Andy, or I'm sorry, doctor.

(both chuckle) This place is, and when walked in, this place is overwhelmingly cool.

What inspired you?

Apparently you found a little local watering hose.

It's been here since what, 1954?

- Yep.

- And what inspired you to take that and turn it into like the ultimate pleasure center?

- Yeah, you know, I grew up here.

This is my hometown and I worked at the state park and college and work study, and as a kid I rode my bike by here and then drove my beat up cars to work.

You know, so I went by this place all the time.

And then over, and we bowled here, and you know, over the years the family owned business didn't really get passed down.

It was, it kind of was dilapidated Covid kind of shut it down.

- Right.

- [Andy] And so I saw that and I go, this has gotta be a good rescue.

So I talked to the family, had a good relationship with them and then decided, hey, I'm gonna pick it up.

And I'm an ophthalmologist.

I'm like, hey, I don't know much about restaurants, but this is got, this is fine.

Take an old place, restore it.

It's Ludington, we love this place, let's make it better again.

And then we got to designing and we sat, you know, right over here with about 8 or 10 people, some builders and architects, and then at the end of our eight hour discussion we go, gosh, would it be just easier to tear down?

They go, yeah, it would.

So we decided at that time we're just gonna redo.

So we tore down and start again.

- And what I love is, What I love is you kept the original door from the old, - Yes.

- [Tom] from the old rundown bowling alley bar in there, and you've got some of the original lockers - Yes.

- from the old bowling alley.

- Yes.

- That's cool.

- [Andy] We incorporate that in the bowling alley just to make it, to keep that, that's a keepsake.

And I give some of the wood to put up there too.

And, so we, you know, we just said, hey, we're just bigger and better.

- I should explain to people, you walk in this place, not only is it an amazing restaurant, but you've got this beer garden.

I've never seen a beer garden of this magnitude before.

You've got your own boulders in here for gosh sake.

You've got a concert venue where you have national acts come in here.

You've got a bowling alley.

You've got three different menus, right?

You've got the menu for the restaurant.

- Yeah.

- And the menu for the beer garden.

- Yes.

- And the menu for the bowling alley - Correct.

Kind of three different venues.

Bowling alley in different hours.

The barbecue outside is excellent.

We have a great, a great pitmaster.

And just does one, Kobe does a great job.

And then Ryan, Chef Ryan is amazing.

We interviewed nationally for a long time and found Chef Ryan and of all places Lansing.

But he does the superb job with his fish and steaks and the whole works.

- Where did you get the boats you brought in?

- You know, a lot of this came from the car fair system, you know, and I just love the boats.

They have great style.

But you know, once they know you love boats, they kinda come your way.

But I got some ships, some oars up there from the lifeboats that are 150 years old hanging up and the lifeboats from the Badger even, the famous Badger still runs across the lake now.

- Well, when you walk in here and you spend a little bit of time here, you can totally tell that you grew up in the area 'cause this place really does pay homage to the history here.

- It does.

- But it's still modern, and cool, and funky, and you've got the cool bowling alley.

It's just, it's the best of all worlds.

- It's a lot of fun.

People love it and the community supports it so well.

You know, I love it because it's family oriented.

I have 10 grandkids and so we can come and bring 'em out here, and they can sit down and I can let 'em run and they're playing the games and in the sand and around the fire pit jumping around and then two hours later you put your hand up and they all come in.

You know, they're here.

They're kind of like locked in.

And they have a wonderful time playing and families love it.

- But yeah, I mean, what does this, what does the community mean to you, the Ludington area?

- I take a lot of pride in this.

I mean, I think Ludington geographically has just, it's, it's beautiful.

I think people need to experience that.

I want the tourist to come in and speak highly of Ludington and support the businesses in Ludington.

And so to renovate and to keep Ludington going small town is just really a passion of mine.

It's just giving back to community like that.

And people will have fun.

You can sit here and work hard and then, you know, when you have Uncle Cracker here with 1500 people out here and you got your video and you go, wow, these people are having a blast.