Special Places

Image: Melissa Sortman (left) and Terry Scharf on the newly-painted steps at Valley Court Park

Visitors to this year’s East Lansing Farmers’ Market in Valley Court (opening June 7) will see a new art feature just north of the market. The steps running from Valley Court’s glacial washout plain up to the Oakwood Neighborhood have been painted rainbow colors under a project led by Melissa Sortman and Terry Scharf.

What's the history of one of our community's most beloved institutions? ELi's Managing Editor Ann Nichols brings it to you.

ELi's Ann Nichols reports on the controversy over El Azteco's cheese dip.

Where can you go in East Lansing when you need a place that is the picture of peacefulness and tranquility? Jennifer Hill knows.

Tucked away at 2000 Merritt Road, between Park Lake Road and Haslett Road, is the largest beverage distillery in Michigan. It produces apple brandy, buckwheat bourbon, corn whiskey, gin, and rice vodka for its own label as well as producing distillations for private labels. In addition to the distillery, this location includes a tasting room, Red Cedar Spirits, featuring handcrafted cocktails.

A float in a canoe or kayak just a few miles north of East Lansing on the Looking Glass River conjures up wilderness areas one might associate with being “up north”—except there are usually more buildings on the rivers up there. It is not uncommon on a paddle along the Looking Glass to see no other human for hours at a time. What you often will see are sandhill cranes, kingfishers, cedar waxwings, great blue herons, woodpeckers of multiple species, muskrat, and the occasional raccoon enjoying an afternoon nap in a snag.

Editor's note: We are starting a new series at ELi called "Favorite EL Places." Submit yours! (And supply a photo, or ask us to arrange one to go with your submission.)

My name is Champ, and I live in the Bailey neighborhood. I want to tell you about me two favorite places in East Lansing: the woodlots on campus. Baker woodlot is along the Red Cedar River, near MacDonald and Holmes halls. Sanford woodlot is between Farm Lane and Bogue Street, just south of Service Drive (near the Clinical Center).

There are many things I love about these woods, but the best is that it's LEASH OFF! They are fenced, so my friend Smitty doesn't have to worry about me running into a road (sometimes when I'm in hot pursuit of a squirrel, I forget to look....). And speaking of squirrels, it's terrier heaven. They are everywhere! There are also other critters to chase like chipmunks, birds, etc. One day, I treed a woodchuck! And once in a while, I chase deer. Oh joy! But I get a little nervous about those hawks. I'm a little guy, and they always look hungry. I'm not afraid (did I mention I'm a terrier? we don't do afraid), but still.