Michigan

Located just south of Charlevoix is Fisherman's Island State Park. The park offers miles of biking/hiking trails, and campsites directly on the beach of Lake Michigan.  Although located just outside of town, there is no service in this area, leaving you completely cut off from the outside world. ...

The Little Carp River Trailhead is located in the center of the Porcupine Mountain State Park, about 16 miles west of the park headquarters on S. Boundary Road. At the start of the trailhead, hikers can see Overlooked Falls. About a mile in one the trail, Greenstone Falls can be seen past both th...

Hiking in the porcupine mountains could be a day trip or a week trip. From a short rim hike overlooking Lake of the Clouds to a three day back country camping excursion, there are endless amounts of options for planning a getaway to the Porcupine Mountains.  Located in the far northwest of Michi...

The locals will tell you that if you go one place in Marquette, MI, it needs to be Black Rocks Cove. A favorite cliff jumping site in the summer, the cove is just as worth visiting in the winter in order to see the impacts of Lake Superior's winter storms on the landscape like the ice blasted tre...

Starting at the Tobin Harbor day use dock kayak/canoe northeast or out of the inlet towards Lake Superior. Stay on the left side of the inlet for roughly a mile. You will pass several small chains of islands so stay to the left. You will come upon another day use dock and you will want to get out...

Potawatomi and Gorge falls are two of the most scenic waterfalls on the black river. These two waterfalls are an easy stop for anyone and both waterfalls are accessible for wheelchairs.  The Black River Scenic Byway starts north of US 2 near Bessemer. There are signs on the highway.  The falls ar...

Taking US Hwy 41 south of L'Anse, you can see the Canyon Falls Roadside Park and trail access to the Canyon Falls gorge. The hike is mainly downhill to the first cliff jumping spot, roughly 200-300 meters down the path. A good warm-up, this cliff is roughly 10-15 feet, with the river base roughly...

This was a fun visit while at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  There was a volunteer couple running the lighthouse portion and they were friendly, kind, and well informed. The tour itself (led by a NPS ranger I believe) was just ok, but it was still interesting.  The views at the top of th...

The trip begins at the parking lot or trailhead 3 miles inland from Chapel Rock. The first three miles of the trail are pretty much flat and is a very easy hike. At the two-mile mark, you will see scenic overviews of Chapel Lake and Chapel Falls providing great photo opportunities. About 1/4 mile...

Start at the Chapel Basin parking lot at the far northwest corner (if you see signs for Chapel Rock, you picked the wrong trail!), and you will be gifted with a great hike downhill at first. The trail will split and you will have to choose to go the falls route or the direct route. I would sugges...

Located off of H-58, Sable Falls can be found about a mile north of the eastern terminus of Pictured Rocks and the Grand Sable Visitors Center. There is a large parking lot area for the falls, along with an entrance onto the North Country Trail, which runs along the falls. The hike is short, with...

The main trailhead parking for the north unit is found on the west side of Harmon Rd, just south of Predmore Rd. The north unit consists of a west loop of this parking area (Blue and White trails) and an east loop (Orange trail). While both loops are rugged and scenic, the best loop is following ...

The upper peninsula of Michigan is connected to the mainland by the Mackinac Bridge. This bridge is quite impressive from a distance and it makes a great object for photography at any time of the day. If you want to get up close to the bridge, try visiting one of the parks located on the north or...

This adventure begins at Waterworks Park in Holly. There is a parking lot, pedestrian bridge, map, nature lookout, and designated launch at this site. From here to Storm Park in Fenton, it is 7 river miles and will take most paddlers 2-3 hours. The Shiawassee is a slow-moving, warm water river th...

Begin your hike at the Noquemenon South Trailhead and follow the markings for the Morgan Creek Falls loop. You will immediately have to cross Hwy 553 to get to the main trail. From there, you have two options to reach the falls. The first and more scenic is the marked Noquemenon trail (look for b...

Park at the High Rollway Observation Deck in Kingsley. There's actually two parking lots that you will come to on a dirt road. I suggest parking at the eastern most lot (drive straight instead of making a final right turn). There are two primary wooden platform lookouts near the parking lots. Be ...