We stayed in Charlevoix, Michigan for two days, enjoying this charming town. Downtown Charlevoix and the city marina lie on the shore of Round Lake, connecting to the Lake Michigan channel on the west and Lake Charlevoix on the east.
Charlevoix’ small downtown has many unique shops and restaurants that we enjoyed. The area has been a summer vacation destination for decades, and includes many historic resorts.
The CVX marina offers an excellent boaters’ lounge in a town park with walkways, plantings, a bandshell and the Beaver Island ferry terminal. One evening we watched the community band until strong storms rolled in.
The wavy/curved masonry in the city park, boaters’ lounge and band shell follows the eccentric patterns of local stonemason/homebuilder Earl Young, who designed and built 31 homes and other buildings in Charlevoix over a 52 year career. Young’s buildings were designed to respect their surroundings and were influenced by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. Many of Young’s homes include boulders gathered in northern Michigan and stored until Young found the right place for them.
I got the last ticket on a e-vehicle tour of Earl Young’s mushroom houses. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about Young’s work and pointed out unique aspects of each of these homes.
It was a fun learning experience to tour the Charlevoix homes designed and built by Earl Young!
We got to view the Young’s Mushroom homes this summer as well.