A most distinctive sound

What first springs to mind when you think about Michigan? Of course, cars, motors, and all things vehicular are front of mind for many people. But also associated with cars rolling off production lines are the sweet sounds of the Tamla Motown record label.

Dancing in the streets

Generations of kids have grown up to the distinctive sounds that came out of Detroit. The music and the manufacturing seemed to go hand in hand. As the lyric to Dancing in the Streets calls out, ‘Don’t forget the Motor City.’ Written by soul legends Marvin Gaye, Mickey Stevenson, and Ivy Jo Hunter, it reached the number two slot on the Billboard charts in 1964. It has been covered many times. Perhaps most famously by David Bowie and Mick Jagger in 1985 when it topped the UK charts and reached number 7 in the US.

Motown museum

Lovers of Motown music make pilgrimages to the Motown Museum. Even if you don’t think you are a fan, visiting Detroit is not complete without stopping for a tour. Run as a not-for-profit organization, the museum aims to preserve, promote and celebrate the authentic Motown story. The museum is located in the record label’s original recording studios. It is now one of South Michigan’s most popular tourist destinations.

The Wolverines at Michigan Stadium

Sports lovers cannot miss out on seeing the Wolverines in action while in the area. The Michigan Wolverines represent the University of Michigan in the NCAA Division of college football. This side has won more than any other team in college football history. However, the season’s biggest match is simply known locally as “The Game.” They take on Ohio State in this regular season-ending football fixture.

Have a wager on the outcome

While being part of the action at Michigan Stadium, you can also have a wager. You can usually find good odds for this legendary team. Find the best place to lay your bets by checking out online bookies. Wagering is legal for visitors and locals alike. You just need to be over twenty-one and residing in the state when you play. Watch out for the Wolverines’ distinctive winged helmets and infamous fight song.

The great outdoors just got greater

Michigan is a state with the most extraordinary opportunities for lovers of everything outdoors and wildlife. In stark contrast to the urban areas, the great outdoors here is an untouched wilderness. It boasts four Great Lakes, eleven thousand inland lakes, and thirty-six thousand miles of rivers and streams. There are six-thousand-five-hundred miles of snowmobile trails and more than forty ski areas. It also has the only ski-flying hill in the country. Harking back to some more Motown lyrics, you can see where the inspiration for River Deep, Mountain High might have come from.

Wonderful wildlife

The state has twenty-point-three million acres of forest, four national parks, and one hundred and three state parks and recreation areas. While out on the one thousand three hundred miles of designated bike and hiking trails, you might encounter some of Michigan’s fantastic wildlife. The state is home to coyotes, foxes, river otters, beavers, cougars, bears, porcupines, and moose. There are even elusive gray wolves in the more remote reaches of the national parks.

Dark skies

Hopefully, the wildlife won’t put you off the idea of camping as there are six hundred official camping grounds and an international dark sky park. With so much light pollution in the world, we can sometimes forget to look up. Michigan, particularly in the Upper Peninsula area, offers the perfect conditions for celestial gazing.

Travel differently

There are so many ways to experience Michigan’s unique outdoor spaces. As well as hiking and biking, you can take a boat or kayak. Winter visitors can get around on snowshoes, skis, snowboards, or motorized snowmobiles. There are also great opportunities for off-roading if you like your adrenaline-fueled adventures.

Worldwide wildlife

If that all sounds a little too daring, there is a less wild side to Michigan too. Detroit’s Zoo occupies a one-hundred-and-twenty-five-acre site just outside of the city. The Zoo is home to a remarkable collection of animals from around the world. There are habitat areas to transport you to Asia, Australia, and the Arctic. Look out for camels, kangaroos, and polar bears. There is also an area devoted to North American wildlife, so even if you don’t see Michigan’s wilder inhabitants in their natural habitats, you might encounter them here.  In addition, there is a peaceful indoor butterfly garden, a free-flight aviary, and a reptile conservation center.

Captured in paint

If you prefer your animals caught in pictures rather than enclosures, then head on over to The Detroit Institute of Arts. Amongst other glorious works, you can find Edward Degas’s Jockeys on Horseback Before Distant Hills or Animals in a Landscape by Franz Marc.

Art from around the globe

There are over sixty-five thousand pieces on display in one hundred galleries. There are works from Africa, Oceania, and Indigenous Americas.  Europe’s most famous masters are also on display with works from Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Matisse, and Picasso. In addition, there is a gallery dedicated to African American art.

It is time to update your views on Michigan; there is so much to see and do.