When ever I'm in Gaylord, I like to stop into the Elk Park. Throughout the year, you can see the…read moreanimals at different stages. It's especially nice to see newborn animals and watch them grow throughout the year.

I'm no elk expert, but, Heavens to Betsy, those are some big animals, even from far away…read more Really liked doing this. I've only observed an elk one other time, as a child, so this was a big deal to me to see this magnificent creature again, years later as an adult. My hub has never seen a live elk, so was enthralled to see a herd in a nature setting. Stopped by on a bright Sunday afternoon and there were a lot of folks out viewing the elk. It saddened me however to see some litter left by the viewing public. As another yelper has written, this park is located right next to a local chapter of the Elk's Lodge in Gaylord. The humor isn't missed.

I love this place. And hesitate making it more known. But this place, even with the summer crowds…read moreis extremely peaceful and soul feeding place. It's beautiful and relaxing. I've had my kids get their senior photos taken here. It's out of the way, but it's so beautiful, it's a place you have to go to. Historical information, the falls are one of the key locations that the lamprey were discovered to be in the Great Lakes and a great deal of research still takes place within a few miles of this location.

cool trees. cool branches. small waterfall. but big river! many bugs, many ticks. bring bug spray.read more

A very pleasant little State Park located on if course Ostego Lake. The view is spectacular. When…read moreyou drive in the beach is in front of you and is very nice. However what you can't see right away is there are no dogs allowed on that beach. Which we were told off by the staff. However it turns out they do have a Dog Beach. The bad news is, it is horribly labeled. Signs don't cost that much how about a little help! Anyways you follow the path North from the parking lot, starting behind the Bathrooms. You'll walk about a half mile and finally see the one sign Dog Beach with an arrow down the stairs. Once you get down the stairs you immediately see a sign that says no dogs on Beach, that's it. So you continue going North and about a quarter to a third of a mile down you'll see a dog baggy station, so I guess at that point you've arrived. Anyways the view here is also spectacular and they have benches. This us always a big plus to me and I wish all beaches had benches! The Dog loved it and thought everything smelled intriguing. Overall a 4 star review. Needs better signage, but a great place to spend some time. Would I return? Absolutely!

This park is local for me. The campgrounds are kept up very well. They have a Store for your…read moreconvenience. The lake is beautiful and they keep the sand clean. I like to sit in the wooden chairs in front of the Store and just kick back. With my license plate sticker, they just wave me on through. They had to do a lot of work after the freeze when all the branches came down so they haven't been as available while they do the cleanup. I'll always be back here.

Hartwick Pines State Park is hands down one of the best state parks this beautiful state has to…read moreoffer, no question about it! It's almost a bit of a hidden gem just because it's not along any lakeshore, so I feel like it isn't as highly trafficked as you might think. Basically, the low traffic levels just feel very disproportionate to how stunningly beautiful this park is and all it has to offer! I don't think I saw a single person here throughout my entire hike, which was sad because it was a beautiful, winter day, early evening & the sun was still shining! If you like pines and old growth forests, well then...you clearly have to come here! It's so beautiful, so interesting, the views are endless and constantly changing, there's almost like too much to look at and appreciate and it kept me fully engaged throughout the entire hike. The hike was absolutely beautiful and almost leisurely, with a big hill at the end of the trail I was on to really spice things up a bit before the hike was over. It was truly perfect. I had a great time here and so did my dog and I am consciously planning when I can come back here again because it was just that incredible!

Just spent a week at the campground. Very clean facility and good staff. The restrooms need a…read morerefresh but the showers were good!

This is probably one of the best playgrounds up north, the only real downside is the location…read more Kalkaska is a humble and honest small town, but beyond grabbing a bite to eat there isn't much else to do in town... this is only relevant if your traveling to the area from down state. Not much touristy things to do if you plan to come to this park.... downtown is cool but there isn't really shopping... back to the park: this park is tucked behind some buildings and easy to miss if you are driving through. The structure is completely wooden and connected completely through bridges, tunnels, and monkey bars. There's a sign with rules and restrictions and beyond guardians and parents the playground is meant for 12 and under in age. I brought my sister in law and nephew after we grabbed lunch at the up north grill in town (only 5 minutes away so highly recommend for lunch) my nephew is almost 2 years old but there was still tons of interactive stuff for him to do which was unexpected based on the size of this huge castle themed park. There's about 5 different slides so age shouldn't restrict enjoying. The structure is very well built and laid out so, as adults we were for the most part able to maneuver it with our little guy. A bouncy tire contraption that reminded us of a bull was a win as well as a swing that allows an adult to swing with your baby which was SOOOO COOL. Better that just pushing because it adds safety and gives you a chance to do something enjoyable with your baby while making eye contact. Wyatt was all giggles. The park was busy when we visited but it never felt crowded because how it's designed. It's both 40 minutes from my sisters house in grayling but left enoug of an impression that she plans to take Wyatt with my brother this weekend again!

We love this spot for a bit of a view and some great stairs! You can also choose to go the 'back…read moreway' and hike through the woods to get to the overview which is what we do! I prefer going down stairs than up them so that is my secret hiking too! Always a lovely time to hike here as there is quiet and lots of tree cover so it is cooler and restful. The hike is not too strenuous but also not just a walk which is perfect. We didn't get many bugs which was also nice and could go without a walking stick too. I love that they have separate trails for biking and hiking as well as a disc golf course that meanders through the woods. We are usually almost alone when hiking which is perfect if you want to just focus on nature. The overview tends to be a bit busier so we did meet up with more people toward the end, but everyone is very kind and friendly. Love this spot and we go as often as we can!

The hike starts off rough if you're unable to walk up 450+ steps. It definitely makes you wonder…read morehow good of shape you're in. There's plenty of benches along the large staircase to assist your travels. The overlook at the end of the stairs makes it worth it. Absolutely stunning. The view of all the house, trees, and lake blew me away. I could sit up there for hours. Once you reach the overlook, the hikes starts. It's a beautiful 2+ miles hike. Plenty of trees, animals, and plants to keep you company on the walk. I would live in the woods here If I was able.

I'm not much of a nature walking person, but it's been a very long time since I've been up to this…read morepart of Michigan. We discovered this place while on our way to the tunnel of trees, and I said "hey, let's stop here and check it out!" So we did. Pulling in, the parking and area isn't all that huge, but it's cute none the less. It's kind of an off shoot of the Tunnel of Trees, and we also wanted to catch a glimpse of the water if possible. There was a nice gentleman who greeted us and told us about the paths. He said to stay on the trails, check out the water and it's about a mile and a quarter of a walk. So, off we went. There's a nature center at the front with bathrooms and some educational stuff, but we skipped it and went right to the trails. They have a little map area at the front, but basically this place is one big circle and a designated path so you can't really get lost here. While it is cool to look at, it's also a lot of dead and down trees. They have signage throughout about what you're looking at, and tells you a little bit about it. Things like flowers, trees, bugs and birds. It was pretty busy even for a cooler September day, which was impressive. The coolest part of the walk was getting to see Lake Michigan. It was really super cool and you walk right onto the beach. It's not a huge area at all, literally enough to have one person at a time. There's some great photo opportunities along with a view of the lake and boats, which was fabulous to see. Overall, the place is a good stop to get some exercise at if you've been cooped up in the car and start getting antsy like me. LOL. There is a bathroom along the trail, but it's not a flushing toilet one of those holes in the ground with very little privacy. No doors just walls. Kind of weird because I was afraid someone was going to walk in. Anyway, go check it out, you can do this in less then an hours time!

Beautiful well keep preserve. Worth the visit however It's so unfortunate that this organization…read morerestricts visitors from exploring the beautiful Lake Michigan Lakeshore. This lakeshore belongs to all Michiganders and restricting access is a sign of elitism!

Such a beautiful state park, whether you are looking for a perfect beach, clean campgrounds or just…read morea place to relax during a hike, this park is perfect. The beach has a concession stand with basic snacks, flush toilets, shower house and kayak rental. The campground is your typical Michigan State Park design - just double check your RV length. Would highly recommend stopping here any time of the year. Great place to spend a day at the beach.

Whether or not this for you depends on some things, the showers aren't great but from what my…read moreboyfriend says the showers are just like that at state parks. It's still beautiful and it has a great beach you can watch the sunset at.

Great beach, and not very crowded at all! Clean with very soft sand! We came here to do some rock…read morehunting and had a great day.

This rustic state park is one of our favorites. The scenery is gorgeous, with miles of sandy and…read morerocky beachfront, walking trails, 5-mile road for biking and spacious wooded lots and a prized few water front lots. There is firewood and ice at the check-in station which is very convenient. T h e grounds are well maintained and the vault toilet stalls are mostly clean (though can become odiferous when the park is full). It is usually the case that visitors to the rustic parks are more respectful of the quiet. We are bird watchers and always love spying the eagles and variety of other birds in the area. Close to the town of Charlevoix, there are plenty of options for sight seeing, eating and finding supplies. Beautiful area of our state.

Two parks for the price of nothing! The north entrance leads to a very nice beach with great views…read more Their are some great rocks for people into rock collecting. Their are places to park and trails to hike. At the south entrance you park then there are trails to hike. 1 leads back to the north park. The other one leads to about a 5 minute hike to a stream view area. You'll see the stream almost right away, but in the distance and between foliage. It's a very nice stream, though nothing epic. There is then a 3 minute hike to the beach where the stream meets Lake Michigan. Again here the views are spectacular. Thetrails could be better marked and better upkept to get rid of low branches. The trail connecting the two parks is about 0.8 miles. Overall a 5 star review.

Well, this was a delight of a park - though the hike didn't work out too well. We came here for the…read moretrail/hike, but the trail was mostly washed out from rain and it became impassable the further in we went. This is actually right along a gorgeous little stretch of beach though, a nice spot for looking for charlevoix and petoskey stones. Gorgeous shore, plenty of distance to walk, dog-friendly - what could be better? Lots of fairly rocky shoreline, but some areas that were pretty sandy as well, for folks wanting a place to lie down. I will say the main area right near the parking lot was very crowded, but the further down you walked you could get to some pretty quiet areas. You can also go partly down the trail and connect to another stretch of beach that is very quiet.