The Leelanau Ticker rounded up a dozen-plus ways right here in the county to find fun, enrich your mind, and grow your skills during this often-listless month of March — or simply toast the fact that the sun sets at 8pm (starting with daylight saving, March 13).

The 95-year-old Leland Lodge makes an alluring backdrop for a murder mystery this Saturday, March 12. Cozy up at the lodge for a night of whodunit, with a cocktail hour bringing overnight guests, local attendees, and other “uninvited” guests together. Then the murder plays out over a five-course dinner with several interactive acts. The theme is “Death of a Gangster.”

While some may wish to make a weekend of it (accommodation packages start at $299 per person and include lunch and VIP tickets to the main event), Director of Lodging Brian Glynn says individual tickets for the murder mystery evening — including canapés during cocktail hour, dinner and “plenty of suspense and intrigue” — are still available for $90 (pre tax/tip). Tickets are not available at the door on Saturday night. (Glynn also says this weekend to be on the lookout for “Sully,” a man some claim disappeared in September 1926 on the night the original Leland Lodge burned down.) For tickets, contact Glynn at brian@lelandlodge.com or 231.256.9848 x2.

Do you know how to M.Y.O.M. (make your own mozzarella)? Cheesemakers Gary Smith and Josh Hall show you the ropes at Leelanau Cheese Co. in Suttons Bay, with mozzarella pulling classes offered at 2pm Saturday March 19, and April 2 and 16. Cost is $60 per person with handmade cheese to take home. Smith and Hall (and their spouses) are the new owners at Leelanau Cheese who bring their experience from the Dairy Plant at Michigan State University to Leelanau County.

Once you’ve mastered mozzarella, you’ll need some backyard tomatoes to go with it. Gain some new culinary skills or perfect your green thumb by signing up for a class at Loma Farm and Farm Club. 

In April, Loma Farm will offer a four-week series, “Becoming a Home Gardener” that meets in person or virtual. Led by Megan Gilger of Fresh Exchange and Nic Theisen of Loma Farm, you’ll learn tips and tricks to have a successful home garden. Classes begin at 6pm April 7, 14, 21, and 28. It’s $125 for the series.

If it’s more conviviality you’re after, join Farm Club brewer Corey Valdez for a relaxed night of beer storytelling at the Farm Club Beer Gathering 5:30-7:30pm March 21. Tickets are $35 and include four beer samplings and food.

Or bundle up for fireside drinks and stew on the patio at Farm Club. Bon Fuego runs noon-8pm on Sundays, with a slow fire-roasted stew with all local ingredients, the farm’s homemade bread, and handcrafted beers, ciders, and wines. It’s held every Sunday until the end of March.

The new programs director at Leland Township Public Library, Chelsea Hilton, continues to schedule some life-bettering classes at their small-town library. On Thursday, March 10, at 2pm, they welcome Kirk Waterstripe of the Grand Traverse Audubon Club for an afternoon discovering how to create a backyard landscape that will draw a variety of birds. It only follows that Waterstripe returns to the library on April 28 at 2pm for a program focusing on bird identification.

Leelanau County residents are lucky to be able to soak up the warmth of the largest greenhouse in northern Michigan, and the immense knowledge 3rd, 4th, and 5th generation growers at PlantMasters of Suttons Bay. The VanThomme family and staff grow most plants on site. PlantMasters also stocks orchids, succulents and tropical plants year-round, so you can get an immediate dose of green.

Little Traverse Inn in Maple City has you covered on feel-good vibes: laughs, Irish jigs and St. Patrick’s shenanigans. The inn hosts live Irish music sessions 6:30-9pm every Thursday. The gastro pub’s annual St. Patrick’s Day party is March 17-19. On April 2, the inn will feature the improv group Subject to Change from Grand Valley State University. Comedian David Dyer performs on April 23. The two shows are at 6:30 and 8:30pm with free admission. 

Join Leelanau Conservancy docents and Executive Director Tom Nelson for a guided hike at 10am March 12 at Kehl Lake Natural Area. They’ll talk about what Indigenous people did around Kehl Lake winter survival in this remote part of Leelanau. Registration required. Then on March 19, certified interpretive nature guide Gloria Garrett leads a relaxing spring equinox hike, also at Kehl Lake. It starts at 10am to celebrate the arrival of the season of renewal.

And for those not ready for the snow to go invite friends and family up north for a ski or snowboarding weekend at The Homestead. The Homestead is offering a March Weekend Ski Special for $211 per night until the season ends. The deal includes a room for up to four guests, lift tickets for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and breakfast Saturday and Sunday. Plus, you get a 4pm late checkout — all for $422 for the entire weekend.

Pictured: Kehl Lake near Northport by Mark Smith, Leelanau Cheese in Suttons Bay, Farm Club in Elmwood Township, PlantMasters of Suttons Bay