Midwest travel links for October 2012

Check out some of these great Midwest-related stories I read online during this past month:

Traverse City's Abandoned Asylum-I love wandering around the Grand Traverse Commons in Traverse City (Michigan), and I especially enjoyed Heather's photo essay from the grounds of the former northern Michigan Asylum at the Our Adventures Up North blog. I've heard that there are plans afoot to offer tours of the network of tunnels built to connect some of the campuses buildings, but they didn't seem to be offering them when we were last up there in September. During an earlier trip we did, however, find the grave of Traverse Colantha Walker, a particularly prolific milk cow that provided many, many buckets of milk for the institution's residents in the early part of the 1900s.

Top 5 Ohio Graveyards-Visiting cemeteries is one of my favorite things to do when I travel. Check out the Discovering Ohio blog where Anietra shares some of her favorite Buckeye State graveyards, including some of my own favorites like Cleveland's Lake View Cemetery and the Brock Cemetery near Greenville, Ohio.

Lake View Cemetery

6 Indiana Town Cemeteries Where Things (Could) Go Bump in the Night-Jessica shares her list of a half-dozen great small-town cemeteries at here little indiana blog that look like great places to go for photo walks or to learn a little about Indiana history.

Hemingway's Michigan-Erin checks out the ghosts of writer Ernest Hemmingway's northern Michigan past at her A Beautiful Fiction blog. I especially enjoyed reading this post as I recently finished reading The Paris Wife, writer Paula McLain's novel based on the life of Hemmingway's first wife Hadley that includes the story of the couple's wedding in northern Michigan.

A Gem of an Island in Michigan-Check out one of Michigan's northernmost destinations with a post by Ross about Drummond Island at the Travel for Boomers blog. I've always heard great things about the resort on this island, but I wasn't aware of the island's great nineteenth-century courthouse!

The Motor City's Fresh Take on the Urban Bikeway-There are an increasing number of opportunities to get around the "Motor City" that do not involve automobiles. Check out this story from Angie on the DC.Streets Blog about the Dequindre Cut bike path through the heart of Detroit, Michigan.

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe - His Detroit Development-I love reading about Charlie's two-wheel adventures around Detroit at his Bikes, Books & A Little Music blog, and I especially appreciate his eye for some of the city's great architectural gems. Check out his story about famed German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and his late 1950s Lafayette Park development that earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.

City Guide: Minneapolis, Minnesota-Pola takes us on a tour of Minneapolis at her Jetting Around blog that includes a listing of some of the city's best attractions, foodie finds and tips about places that are a little off of the beaten path.

Surprising Cincinnati: Who Knew?-Check out this "top ten" list about some well-known and not-so-well-known features of Ohio's Queen City at the Baby Bloomr blog. This post included a couple of great shots of one of my favorite bridges, the John Roebling Bridge between Cincinnati and Covington, Kentucky, and mentioned some of my favorite Cincinnati stops like the Underground Railroad National Freedom Center and Skyline Chili!

Roebling Bridge, Cincinnati

Melodies and Travel Memories-Amy shared this great list of Minnesota music at her A closer look at flyover land after I tagged her for this musical meme. That reminds me...it may be time to run another one of my Midwest Music Mix List posts!