Negwegon State Park is over 4000 acres of wilderness located along Lake Huron between Alpena and Harrisville. Named for the the Ojibwe chieftain that hunted in the region it is a popular park with hikers and birders. My favorite feature of the park is a natural spring that is located between the parking lot and the beach. If you visit this out of the way park be sure to bring a few water bottles to fill up with the crystal clear water.

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Maybury State Park sits west of Northville in the Metro Detroit area. The land was originally developed in 1919 as the Detroit Municipal Tuberculosis Sanitarium, the facility was later named for William H. Maybury who spearheaded its development and actually oversaw its construction. The sanitarium had around forty buildings and could generate power and grow most of its own food. It served as a quarantine and recovery center for people with tuberculosis. At that time, there was no cure for tuberculosis and the sanitarium provided comfort for the patients suffering from the disease.  After the development of antibiotics tuberculosis was not as common and the sanitarium was closed in 1969. Most of the buildings had been torn down by 1975 when the State of Michigan acquired the land and redeveloped it into Maybury State Park. A metal sign with the words Maybury Sanitarium stands over the entrance for the hiking trails reminding visitors of the buildings that once stood there.

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Onaway State Park sits on the southern shoreline of Black Lake. At the western edge of the park a trail leads from the boat launch along the lake to a stone shelter that over looks the lake. It is a nice little hike through the trees for a nice view overlooking the water.

While I was there I noticed a little American flag and a stone memorial next to the shelter. It reads: In Memory of Al Sutton Park Ranger 1993 to 2002 Onaway State park.

Thank you to all the rangers. While I am at a park, I am on vacation and enjoying nature and you are there working to keep things running for all of us trying to relax.

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In the late 1880s, George Hart cleared the land north of Manistee where Orchard Beach State Park now stands and planted an apple orchard, which gave the park its name. The orchard sat on a high bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. By 1892 Hart had built a boardwalk and theater to attract more tourists. With its growing popularity, A trolley line ran from Manistee for people to visit enjoying the view and sunsets over Lake Michigan.

As Michiganders fell in love with the automobile few people were using the trolly and passenger trains. Trolley service to the park eventually stopped and the site was purchased by the Manistee Board of Commerce which deeded it to the state to become part of the Michigan state park system in 1921. The state built a campground among the apple trees and purchased the dairy farm across the street which is now a natural area and used for hiking trails.

The limestone buildings in the park were designed by architect Ernest F. Hartwick and built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal”. The apple trees are gone and large oak and maple trees have taken their place. The park was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2009, cited as “one of the most intact examples of a Michigan state park developed in the 1930s and 1940s

Because of the erosion of the Lake Michigan shoreline, the historic pavilion will be moved back 200 feet in order to save it for future generations.

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