Seaside on the Third Coast (Michigan)
Glen Arbor is the kind of place you want to settle into. There is a charm and coziness that mask even the ugliest of places in the autumn months. But, even during the height of its tourism and sunny days, this little patch of Michigan is just as quaint as ever.
Years ago, our friend told us that if he could live anywhere, he’d live in Glen Arbor. To us, that seemed to hold some weight , so we took it into full consideration when scheming a little fall camping trip. We found ourselves sleeping under the pines next to Lake Michigan for a week and gosh, this little sliver of the Midwest is in fact a very desirable place to live! If you like east coast charm, up north landscape, coastal vibes, and midwest nice - you’ll find your way here too someday.
We loved it so much, we brought our family back for a summer trip last year, so now. we practically own the place. Here are a few places to go and things to do in our opinion.
Cycling
Maybe this is a thing, but most all of the highways near Glen Arbor and surround towns have roomy shoulders for bikes. You can get from town to town to beach to beach with minimal stress of cars carreaning around the corner right behind you.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park has a great bike path called the Heritage Trail. It’s 22 miles long and growing. It’s a multituse trail - but the walkers and runners only get thick close to the sand dunes.
If you’re dying for some elevation climbing, the Pierce Stocking Scenic Overloon Drive is the 7.4 mile climb and descent of your dreams.
Mountain Biking
If you’re staying in Glen Arbor, you’re lucky. There’s a newer mountain bike park nearby called Palmer Woods Forest. It’s made up of two totally curated courses. And it’s fast and it’s fun! There’s a few black diamond offshoot options for those that just need to do some drops.
The other near-ish park is Acadia Park in Frankfort. A couple of really fun trails through the woods (classic mtb description). But really!
If you’re in the mood to be in the woods biking but don’t really want to mountain bike very hard, Vasa is a great beginner course with I don’t know but maybe hundreds of miles of inter winding trails.
Fly Fishing
You should actually scroll through this section, because we didn’t catch a thing. We packed for some trout fishing, but then found out we happened to be there at the time when the lake salmon were swimming in streams to spawn. So there were stacks of guys fishing for salmon that were properly equipped and knew what they were doing. We would have snapped our rods in half. But! We still found a couple of beautiful streams to stand in!
There is also an in city stream with trout right in Glen Arbor (that’s why this town is the dreamiest!)
Northern Angler Fly Shop in Traverse City was really helpful!
Hiking
Hiking really is a strong word here, but we found some beautiful places to walk.
First and foremost, you must find the beaches near you and just walk! We happened upon Esch Beach one afternoon and found wild apple trees and grape vines ON THE BEACH. The sea breeze was blowing and no one was there but us and I was honestly surprised no wild ponies ever came running toward us.
Sleeping Bear Dunes is an obvious must. However, only if you actually hike the dunes. That’s a real real hike. It’s a calf killer the entire way. But the top views are in every way worth it.
A very cool walk in the woods is Otter Creek Trail near Esch Beach parking area. It’s tall and dark and a little spooky and creaky. So if you’re into that, go there!
Eating
Eating in Glen Arbor is sadly hit or miss. The few restaurants we did try seemed to be cheap fried food hidden behind a seaside cottage facade. And way over priced for the quality (in our opinion). Here are the three diamond in the roughs that we did find.
Broomstick Kitchen and Taphouse in Maple City
Village Cheese Shanty in Leland
Port City Smokhouse in Frankfort
Honorable mention goes to Anderson’s Glen Arbor Market right in town! To make up for the lack of food restaurants, this supermarket is really small town charming and has all the goods you need.
Drinking
Our absolutely must is Tandem Ciders in Sutton Bay. It’s a little dreamy apple orchard in the middle of the country and a teeny little tasting house with a nice outdoor sprawl. You must go for dry and complex ciders!
This region of Michigan has gotten some attention for unique wines - we certainly don’t know the best of the best, but we liked what we had at 45 North Winery!
Not a brewery itself, but Broomstick Kitchen and Taphouse in Maple City has local beer, cider, and mead on tap!
