October 2021, three days, weekday - weekend
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| View of Pigeon River Bridge in the distance goes to Andreae Cabin and Nature Preserve parking lot |
We decided to combine our HopPassports with a northern Michigan color and hiking tour. Although we visited a bit past peak colors, this was still a great trip! I am sharing info about some of the places we visited. See my two posts before this one for lodging information.
Hiking, trails, parks, rivers, colors...
We recently learned about Nature Megaphone in Boyd B. Banwell Nature Preserve in Afton, Michigan. This is a structure designed to magnify the sounds of nature. Unfortunately, it was raining lightly when we visited, and there was not much activity in the forest. It was still very cool! The rain in the video above sounds louder than it actually was. There is a bird chirping about 14 seconds in that is also magnified. We did not see any birds during our entire hike, and I am not sure how far away this bird was. I suggest playing the video on full screen with the volume up.
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| Nature Megaphone |
The structure is about 5½' tall at the widest point. I am 5'2" tall, and I could easily stand up inside. The hike from Agnes S. Andreae Nature Preserve parking lot at the end of Riverwoods Trail was under 2 miles round-trip, and it was pretty easy. The only hill was on the way back up to the parking lot after crossing the river, and there are a couple of small hills, if you take the longer path along the river.
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View from inside Nature Megaphone above Trail map in parking lot below |
The hike from Boyd B. Banwell Family Nature Preserve parking lot on M-68 is a longer hike. We would have hiked from this area, if the weather had been better, because the roads back to Agnes S. Andreae Nature Preserve are dirt.
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Downtown Cheboygan above Thunder Bay River looking toward Rotary Island Mill Park in Alpena below |
In Alpena and Cheboygan, there are riverwalk trails along Thunder Bay River and Cheboygan River, parks, locks in Cheboygan, preserves, and more. In Alpena, you can get to Lake Huron walking most of the way along the river, and in Cheboygan the route has more sidewalk/town walking.
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| Tawas Bay |
The bay was beautiful the day we drove by Tawas Bay! There are great trails in Tawas Bay that we biked when we camped at the state park here a few years ago.
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Entrance door into Alocona Brew Haus below |
Breweries and dining
Our favorite brewery this trip was Alcona Brew Haus in Harrisville, MI. I was impressed with the building preservation from the moment we entered. We got a building tour from the owner, and I took way more photos than I am able to post here. I am sharing a couple more below.
