What is so nice about this area of Michigan is all the
little parks. It seems that all you have
to do is turn around twice and you are in another little park. One of my favorite little parks is Sayler
Park in Yuba, right off SR31. It is
wooded and yet has fields that my dogs love to run and play fetch in. The park also has a beach on Lake Michigan
where the dogs like to swim and play in the waves. It is quiet and isolated, yet well-kept
up. It’s fenced in so the dogs stay
close at hand if I take them off their leads when no one is in the park.
Driving north on 31 from Yuba to Elk Rapids, you can
visit the Elk Rapids Day Park also on Lake Michigan. In this park is a Walk of Art which features
30 different sculptures. These
sculptures are rotated in and out so that a hike along the trails offers a variety
for each hike. The trails are nestled
within pine and of course there is the ever present sound of the waves of Lake
Michigan rolling onto the beach. When
strolling along the trails and stopping to enjoy the sculptures, it is as if
you are in nature’s art museum. Indeed, you
never look at the same sculpture in quite the same way as nature puts her touch
to each depending on the weather, time of day and the sounds she surrounds each
piece with. It is truly a delightful
sensory overload.
From Elk Rapids you can drive south on Elk Lake Road
and within minutes end up at Whitewater Township Park on Elk Lake. This park is within walking distance from my
house. The trails lead to meadows and
sand dunes that are lined with pines.
There is swimming, fishing , camping and a boat ramp at this park. It is a beautiful spot for a hike with little
ones, whether the two-legged or four-legged kind as the trails are very
easy. We like to end up at the sand
dunes and just sit in the warm sand, let the dogs and or children run, and just
enjoy the sun soaked sand sifting between our toes. Of course in the winter, there is no sitting
in the sand, but a hike back to the sand dunes offers a landscape view of a brilliant
white covering over all.
Although, I have only talked about three little parks
in this blog, there are really tons more.
It is my goal to visit all the parks.
This may take me a couple of years as there are so many interesting
natural niches along the lakes. Wish me
luck!
Below are a few picture of Sayler Park taken this past week. Even though the water looks inviting, it is very cold!
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