Bay City & Midland, Michigan: Holiday Inn, Tri-City Brewing, Midland Brewing

 December 2020, Weekend, 1-night

Michigan restaurants, breweries, wineries, and the like are all currently closed for inside service due to COVID-19. Many businesses have gotten creative with how they are offering service. We were getting a little stir-crazy at home, and decided to visit a few places that were offering outside service. I neglected to take photos the day we started, so this is more of a brief informational post.

Breweries

We loved the beers at Tri-City Brewing Brewing Company in Bay City. Giant Slayer and Cherry Torchon were two of our favorites. The service and pricing were also excellent. We were able to get our beverages at the bar (after waiting a safe distance with masks on behind patrons filling their growlers to-go), and then take them outside to their patio area. The outside area has seating, fire pits, and heated lamps. A couple of other souls were also braving the cold to support this local business while we were there. 

Midland Brewing Company has a spacious outside area with a very large gas fire pit. The service was also excellent, although my husband and I both preferred the beers at Tri-City Brewing. We were not cold at either location, and it was not crowded at either location. Both breweries are in the 2020 and 2021 Hop Passport. Midland Brewing would only let us use the passport discount on their staple beers, which no other brewery has ever told us before. 

Holiday Inn Midland, king whirlpool suite #525

This was another good choice this trip. We reserved a whirlpool guestroom, because we thought it would be safer than going to the public pool area, even if the capacity was limited. I brought disinfectant with us; however, I am not sure if we really needed it. Our guestroom looked clean, and it smelled fresh. The bedsheets were silky, and the pillows were comfy. 

Shower across from beverage area in
whirlpool suite 525 at Holiday Inn Midland

Boyne City and Petoskey, Michigan: Water Street Inn, Hiking, Passport Visits

October - November 2020, 2-nights, weekend

We originally had a reservation at Water Street Inn for April of this year that cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, we had planned to bring our bicycles, and were going to bike the trail from Charlevoix to Petoskey. After that trip cancelled, we rescheduled for the end of October. Part of the trail we had planned to bike had washed out from high water levels this year, and it was cooler in October, so we decided we would hike instead. We were glad we changed our plans, because it was snowing and cold when we left Sunday morning!

Deadman's Hill Overlook

Hiking/nature

We stopped at Deadman's Hill overlook on the way to Boyne City. I cannot even imagine how amazing this view is near the middle of October. It was still beautiful at the end of October, even though it was an overcast day and the leaves had already started to turn brown. The second overlook parking area is about two miles off US-131 at the end of Deadman's Hill Road. The first half of this road is paved.

Deadman's Hill Overlook
Jordan River in the distance on the left

We did not hike much at this location, as it was late in the day, and we wanted to get settled into our condo before dark. Jordan River, which we had kayaked near Mancelona and East Jordan this past summer, is barley visible in the photo above.

The Hill Nature Preserve
Lake Charlevoix in the distance

In the Boyne City area, we hiked The Hill Nature Preserve just outside of town off Charlevoix Road. This was an easy and beautiful hike, although the view was not as good as I had expected.

Avalanche Preserve viewing platform

Clinton County, Michigan: Sleepy Hollow State Park, Looking Glass Brewing Company

 October 2020, 3-nights, weekday-weekend

Autumn colors were beautiful when we entered Sleepy Hollow State Park. 

Sleepy Hollow State Park reservations and arrival

We had originally planned to stay in this campground in the spring, before it closed due to the pandemic. At that time, state park trails were open for no charge, although all of the campgrounds were closed. Since my husband's employer was also closed, we visited the park in April to do some hiking. We enjoyed the recreation in the park, so we made a new camping reservation for October. 

The office was not staffed when we arrived on Thursday evening, and we checked in via the yellow phone. A bottle of sanitizer and wipes were available next to the phone. 😊 Park staff left a vehicle sticker at our campsite on Saturday morning when we were out hiking.

One of the few photos I got of campsite 114. 
There are better photos on the DNR reservation site.

Campsite 114 and more

Campsite 114 is mostly open with trees around the perimeter. It has an asphalt pad, as do most of the campsites in this park. It is mostly grass, except for the mud/dirt around the fire pit. The electrical box was closer to site 116, almost 50' away, as listed in the description on the website.

View from campsite 114 at Sleep Hollow State Park. Looking at campsite 113
where the campers were [illegally] sawing branches off trees next to their site.

Gaylord, Michigan: Otsego Lake State Park, North Central State Trail, Downtown Breweries

 October 2020, 1-night, weekend

Near the boat launch at Otsego Lake State Park

Otsego Lake State Park reservations and arrival

We had originally planned to stay in this park in June on our way home from vacation in the upper peninsula; however, campgrounds were closed at that time due to the pandemic. A last minute trip came up for October, so we decided to stay then. This was our first visit to this park. We made a reservation online with minimal choices, since we only made the reservation a couple of weeks in advance. The office was not staffed when we arrived around 1:00 PM, and we had to use the yellow phone to check in. We waited for two women to finish on the telephone who had apparently set up without a reservation. I overheard one of them say that they had set up on site XX, and were checking in for one night. I then heard her say something like, "Are you sure? Because the park is mostly empty." Not that I was trying to eavesdrop; however, when people talk loudly... When it was my turn, the first thing the agent asked me was if I had a reservation. Things went smoothly after this, although it would have been nice if there had been hand sanitizer and/or wipes next to the telephone.

Campsite 54 at Otsego Lake State Park

Campsite 54

This campsite is one of the few paved sites in this campground. Apparently, it used to be a handicap site because one of the online photos has a blue handicap symbol on the tar. This symbol is no longer on the site, and the information online does not say that it is "only ADA." It is a fairly decent site considering it was a last minute reservation, and it was not on the water. We could see the lake in the distance from our campsite, as the space is open between the restroom and site 68.

Campsite 54 at Otsego Lake State Park

Marquette, Michigan: Rippling River Resort Campground, Presque Isle Park, Downtown

 October 2020, 4-nights, weekdays - weekend, campsite 24

Carp River at Rippling River Resort in Marquette, Michigan.

Reservations and arrival

We made our reservation on the website, and were able to pick our campsite. The check-in and entrance signs were well marked when we arrived, and the check-in process did not take long.

Campsite 24 at Rippling River Resort.

Campsites

I chose site 24 because online it looked like it had trees on both sides. This is a level and spacious site with some privacy. The site was shady for most of the day. It is a full hookup site, and the cost was $59 a night. I am posting a few campsite photos in this blog. You can find more photos and additional information in the Rippling River Resort album on my Facebook page.

View toward river and tent sites from campsite 24 at Rippling River Resort.

Northeast Lower Michigan: Rifle River Recreation Area

September 2020, weekend - weekday, 3-nights, campsite 153

We previously stayed in Rifle River Recreation Area in September 2019. You can find more information about this recreation area in that post, and there are photos in the Rifle River Facebook album. I am sharing a few more photos and additional information here.

Sunset from campsite 153; fire pit is on site 152

Ranch campground, primitive site 153

After staying on sites 152 and 153, we have decided we prefer campsite 152. Although site 153 seems a bit more private located on the corner, site 152 is sunnier and grassier, which we like when camping in the spring and fall. 

Slight incline from campsite 153 to river

Both campsites have access to the river. They are primitive sites, and we think they are two of the best campsites in this park. A hand water pump is located on the other side of site 152. I am sharing a few more campsite photos for reference. 

Photo above: view from fire pit on our site toward river
Photo below shows campsites 152 & 153

Iron Mountain, Michigan: Rivers Bend RV Park and Campground

 October 2020, 2- nights, weekdays

Reservations and arrival

This campground is similar to the one where we stayed in Lake Linden, in that it does not have a website or reservation system, and you can only make payment by cash or check. The caretaker was helpful choosing a site for us when we arrived, although we later wished we had asked him if we could have walked around to choose a site. I had made a reservation for a full hookup site, as this is always easier than stopping at the dump station when leaving. When we walked through the campground that evening, we noticed that some of the power and water sites (without sewer hookup) were more private or had partial views of the river.

View from campsite 115 at Rivers Bend RV Park and Campground
The fire pit is on site 115

Lake Linden, Michigan: Village Campground on Torch Lake in the Upper Peninsula

October 2020, 3 nights, weekend-weekday, campsite 27

View from campsite 26 at Lake Linden Village Campground the first night

Reservations and arrival

I do not recall how I found this campground. I viewed the village page online, looked at the campground on google maps, and then called to make my reservation. There is not an online reservation system, and payment can only be made by cash or check. The rate was $25 a night for water and electric hook up. Our reservation and check-in experience was excellent. Initially, we had planned to stay for only two nights on weekdays, and then our travel plans changed, and we needed to change our dates to Friday - Monday for three nights instead. Campground host Shirley gladly accommodated our needs.

Campsite 27 at Lake Linden Village Campground Sunday night

Campsite 27

Friends of ours decided to stay at this campground for the first two nights of our stay, so we parked facing each other. After they left on Sunday, we turned our camper around, so we were no longer facing campsite 26. The campground host did not have a problem with us doing this.

Another view from campsite 27 at Lake Linden Village Campground

Bay City, Michigan: State Campground and Recreation

 August 2020, 3 Nights, Weekday-Weekend

I had not planned to write another post about this location, since not much has changed since my last review; however, the state website information is still incorrect for campsite 68, and I felt it was important to share this information.

Snapshot from DNR reservation site with added notes by me

Bay City State Park campsites 68 - 71

The first time we stayed at this campground, we had reserved site 68 because the description says this site is 60 x 70, that it can accommodate a trailer up to 40', and the map shows a gray area between sites 64 and 68 (grayed areas are usually unusable areas next to campsites, often creating privacy). Campsite 68 is 60' wide; however, that measurement includes the gray unusable area, and a large RV will NOT fit on this site. We had our 30' fifth wheel when we had reserved it, and fortunately, another site was available when we arrived that time. Campsite 68 has a small area big enough for a tent, or possibly a pickup camper, right next to site 64, which is where the electrical outlet is located. There is another small area on the other side of the grayed area where the fire pit and picnic table are located. The people who stayed on this site set up two tents next to the fire pit with one of their tents mostly on our site (#69). Since our bedroom is in the front of our camper, and we know that is a crappy site, we did not say anything. There were several other empty sites, so I did not understand why they would have chosen site 68. They could not use their fire pit, as their tents were so close to it, and I do not think they knew that their power source was next to site 64. We greeted them when they arrived. They did not seem to want to talk much, so we just let them be. Maybe they thought we were on their site! I am sharing a few labeled pictures here to show the details.

Bay City State Park campsite 69

Campsite 69 is a large site (70 x 70), although there is not much privacy on the sides. Campsite 70 is not private at all, and it has obstacles to consider, like a large tree trunk and the location of the fire ring. People who arrived at site 70 the first day, left, and then returned to set up on campsite 71, which is much nicer. 

View from fire on campsite 69 at Bay City State Park

Here is another labeled photo for reference.

Sunset from trail between picnic area and beach

Bay City State Park recreation: beach, hiking, biking, fishing

South Haven, Michigan: Van Buren State Park, Van Buren Trail Connector, Downtown area

 August 2020, 3-nights, Weeknight-Weekend

Campsite 162 at Van Buren State Park. 
Photo taken from edge of site next to fire ring.

Van Buren State Park campsite 162

This is a nice large campsite with trees around most of the perimeter. The only opening is at the back corner, between this campsite and site 156. The site is level with a bit of grass. I am surprised that this site is often available when many around it are reserved. I think it is a better site than many near it. It is a 50 amp site, which we did not need. We had made the reservation before selling our fifth wheel, and downsizing to our current camper. 

Campsite 162 at Van Buren State Park.
Click on photo to enlarge it and see details.

Grand Traverse Bay, Michigan: Suttons Bay, Traverse City, Marion/Power/Bassett Island, Northport

August 2020, 8 nights 

I have previously written several posts about all of these areas with information, so this post will not have as much detail. You can click on the labels at the end of this post for areas you are interested in for more details.

Sunset from our slip at Suttons Bay facing west and east (below)

Marinas: Suttons Bay, Duncan L. Clinch (Traverse City), G. Marsten Dame (Northport)

We stayed at Suttons Bay marina for four of our eight nights, as this is our favorite marina. Great staff, great rates, well maintained, and nice beach/park next door. The rate was $2 higher per night than previous years, which is still reasonable. COVID-19 protocols were in place, and we did not encounter any issues. 

Sunset in Traverse City from our boat slip on the walkway
at Duncan L. Clinch Marina

Cadillac, Michigan: Hemlock US Forest Campground and Clam Lake Beer Company

August 2020, 1 night, weeknight

If you do not happen to know about Hemlock Campground, it is difficult to find online. I wish all primitive campgrounds showed in the same place. Currently in Michigan, I need to search under Michigan state forest campgrounds, US state forest campgrounds, and National forest campgrounds. So confusing and time consuming!

View of Hemlock Campground site 15 when arriving.

Hemlock US forest campsite #15

The overnight rate at this campground is $20, and it is first come, first serve. It has vault toilets, hand pumps for fresh water, and a boat launch on Lake Mitchell. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring. It is staffed with a Host on site who came over to talk with us after we chose a site.

View of Hemlock Campground site 15 from road in front of site.

Mancelona and East Jordan, Michigan: camping and kayaking

July 2020, 3-nights, weekday-weekend

Campsite 5 at Graves Crossing State Forest Campground.

Graves Crossing State Forest campground, sites 1 - 5

This campground has only 10 campsites, and we were a bit worried about finding a site available and big enough when we arrived Thursday night. Things ended up working out very well for us. There was only one site available when we arrived; site 5 next to the outhouses. Campsite 1 was also empty; however, there was a tag on the post. We needed two sites, as we had friends arriving the next day in their fifth wheel. The man on campsite 2 came over to talk with us when he saw us looking around. He said he was going to be leaving the next day, if we wanted to move. This helped us know that there would be a site available for our friends, so we set up camp on site 5. 

Graves Crossing State Forest Campground;
fire on campsite 5 facing site 4 and back of second loop.

Other than campsite 5 being right next to the outhouses, this is a nice large site. I imagine campers in tents prefer it more than someone in an RV. The campers who set up after we moved were in tents. The outhouses did not smell when we were there, although the dumpster did, which is close to campsite 1. 

Before we finished checking in, we had learned that the campers on site 3 were also leaving the next day, so we only paid for one night. The next day, we moved to site 3, and our friends took site 2. These were two of the best sites in the front loop of the campground for people camping together. Sites 6 - 10 are in loop two after you pass the outhouses on the main entrance road.

Campsite 3 at Graves Crossing State Forest Campground.

Hesperia, Michigan: Pines Point Campground and Kayaking White River

June 2020, Weekend, 2 nights, Campsites 9 and 10 

We had driven to this campground in our car to check it out during the pandemic when it was closed, because we wanted to make sure we could get our fifth wheel back to the campsites. Be sure to follow the brown campground signs on the road, and not your GPS when arriving. Our GPS told us to drive down a seasonal road, as did our friend's and our son's. Our son decided to follow his GPS, even though I had told him not to. He said that a ways down the seasonal road, there is a sign that says, "Your GPS is wrong. This is not the way to the campground." 😳 I wish he had taken a photo of the sign! Seems like that sign would be a lot more helpful at the start of the seasonal road. Luckily, he was in his car and not pulling a camper.

Campground arrival and campsites 6 through 10

We had planned to stay in this campground 3 nights; however, the opening was delayed due to the stay home order, and it did not open until Friday morning, June 12th. We were one of the first campers to arrive that morning. We took site 9, and our friends camped on site 10. 

Pines Point campsite 10, site 9 is to the right

Campsite 9 is very spacious; however, it does not have a tar pad. The dirt ground is hard packed and fairly level. We parked on a slight angle, and the campground host came over to tell us we could not park that way. It was difficult to know exactly how he wanted us to park, since this site does not have a pad like the others. We straightened our rig out somewhat, and he did not say anything more about that. He did, however, charge us for our kayak trailer, which we later found out we should not have had to pay for. Initially, he told us we had to pay for it since it has a license plate. So, we added that in to our total when we did the self-registration. Later, he told us each site is allowed two vehicles. Our son was going to be arriving later, and our friends would have parked the trailer on their site, if we had known this! The trailer is owned by both of us, and carries all our kayaks (the guys designed and built it). At least we have this information for next time we visit.

Pines Point campsite 6 above, site 8 below

Surprisingly, I did not get a photo of site 9. I am sharing photos of a couple of other sites we looked at during our road trip. The river is barely visible down the hill from the first few sites in the campground. The traffic by the first few sites is a bit more of a concern, if you have children, because during our stay, drivers did not slow down until just before the road split in front of our campsites (#9 & #10). 

Benzonia, Michigan: Vacation Trailer Park

June 2020, weekday-weekend, 2-nights, campsites 19 & 20

We made several changes to our camping plans during May and June this year due to the pandemic. During our stay at Indigo Bluffs Resort (a substitute for two of our original campgrounds), our next two substitute campgrounds canceled our stays because they both delayed their opening. We extended our stay at Indigo Bluffs, and then found this campground for a couple of nights at the last minute. 

Lot choice, arrival, check-in

I called to inquire about two sites, because a relative was going to bring their RV up to camp also. The person I spoke with suggested two 50 amp sites near the road; 79 and 80. She said the river sites are all 20 and 30 amp, and not very big. I started to reserve the two sites she had suggested, until she said there is a $75 deposit, and if we did not fit on the sites, the deposit is nonrefundable. We were not very far away, so we decided to drive there the next day to look at the sites first. I am glad we did, because we then chose sites 19 and 20, which was a much better choice for us!

Campsites 19 and 20.

We arrived before noon, and checked into site 20. We were glad that there were only two other campers on the point near our site because it was a tight fit. If you click on the photo above to enlarge it, you can see that our awnings are almost touching. Staff came down to finish cutting the lawn while we were getting settled on our site. This did not cause any problems; we knew we had arrived early, and we had already finished parking.

View from the edge of site 19; first fire ring is on site 19.
Click photo to enlarge it and read labels.

Campsites 11 through 24

All of the sites in this area are 30 AMP, and they are located on Betsie River. There is a slight decline down a slope to the sites. Their online map shows a turnaround at the end of the road, which is only big enough to accommodate small trailers. We had to go in and out of our site the same way without using the turnaround, because there was not enough room to turn our fifth wheel around at the end. We observed small campers having a difficult time turning around, as well.

Northern Michigan recreation and breweries: Benzie, Grand Traverse, and Leelanau County

June 2020, weekdays and weekend

Following are some of the places we visited during our 6-night stay at Indigo Bluffs RV Park and Resort in Empire, Michigan.

Recreation: biking, hiking

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive is one of the closest trail heads to Indigo Bluffs RV Resort, so we loaded our bikes in the truck, and drove there to park in the national park parking lot. This is just over five miles from camp. The national park entrance fee was being waived due to COVID-19, and I am not sure if there is a place we could have parked for no charge, if this had not been the case. 

View from Glen Haven Historic Village along Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail

We then bicycled Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail to S. Forest Haven Drive in Glen Arbor and back, which was about a 13-mile ride. The trail runs along the dunes, lakeshore, and through DH Day Campground. The route is beautiful, and extremely hilly. There are several nice stopping points along the way. Before we left, I had thought we would be able to bike to Alligator Hill Trail; however, there is no shoulder along Stocking Road where the bike trail crosses at M-109, so we chose not to bike down the road. Back at the national park, there are several hiking trails from the parking lot at Pierce Stocking Drive that travel through the woods, and out to lake Michigan. It is a bit of a hike with a fabulous view. 

Alligator Hill Trail

We drove to Alligator Hill Trail, and hiked that a different day. The location is just over six miles from Indigo Buffs RV Resort. This was another hilly climb with a beautiful view! 

Islands Lookout at Alligator Hill

Scarlet Tanager at the start of Alligator Hill Trail

Empire, Michigan: Indigo Bluffs RV Park and Resort

June 2020, weekend-weekdays, 6-nights (campground site 432 and resort site 7)

Our Michigan camping vacation to the upper peninsula in May/June canceled due to COVID-19, so we chose this campground as an alternate when they opened a few weeks later.

Sunset view from campground site 432 at Indigo Bluffs

Arrival and check-in

We arrived less than half an hour after check-in time, and there were several campers in the parking area in front of the office. It only took us a couple of minutes at the office because they had everyone's arrival papers labeled and ready. Someone handed me our packet, and told us we were all set. The drive into the campground is a sharp right turn from the office directly after the pool. This was not explained to us, and we ended up driving through the resort side of the property before we entered the campground side. 😆 After you park in the pull-through spots in front of the office, you are facing the resort side when you pull ahead, and the resort gates were open when we arrived.

Fire on campsite 432; 431 & 433 labeled behind

Campsites 314, 315, 431, 432, 433

This was our first stay at this resort, and there are not individual site photos online. We were assigned site 432, which is a back-in site in front of sites 431 and 433. This site is full hookup with 50 amp power. 

Indigo Bluffs campsite 432

We thought this was a great site when we first arrived, and most of the other campsites were empty. After we got settled, we noticed that the front sites are wide because the area on both sides of our site are driveways to the back sites. A group of campers arrived late Friday and surrounded us for two nights. Campsite 432 was still fairly nice, although I did not understand why they chose to assign us a site amongst a group camping together when there were open sites farther down. The group gathered on site 431, which was quite secluded for them, as their camper and vehicles were parked between us with the woods behind them.