Beautiful sandy beach on Lake Michigan with free parking behind Van's garage. It's one of the…read moreeasiest places to hunt for Leland blues. Lots of other rockhounds; everyone was really friendly. We found a few pea-sized stones and were satisfied. The water is about 50 degrees in June, but there some sunbathers and even a few brave souls past knee-deep.

Van's is a great beach off Lake Michigan in Leland perfect for relaxing, swimming, taking in the…read moresunset, or, as we saw others doing, enjoying water sports like surfing and paragliding (can't speak to this directly as I have no skills in either sport but the people who were saw doing it seemed to be very happy there!). It's right near downtown Leland so parking can be a bit sticky but if you're staying in town or spending the day here it's an easy walk from the most bustling parts of this wonderful little town!

This is one of the most magnificent beaches in Michigan. It's easy to get to. It's clean and it's…read morenot well known so it's not crowded. Definitely worth the trip when you're up in Northport.

This beach has spectacular views and for the most part, pristine water! In addition to this,…read morethere's plenty of rocks all around the shoreline. My only complaint about this beach would have to be the terrible smell. If you stray away from the shoreline (which you probably will to set up a parasol and a beach towel) by the bluffs it smells so so bad. At first I thought it was dog crap but with further inspection, it smells that way all over the beach honestly. I recommend you spend most of your time scavenging for rocks and swimming instead of sitting around by the smelly cliffs.

Marina, beach, park, and steps away from downtown?! Perfect summer chill spot! Plenty of parking…read moretoo!

We love this splash pad here for young kids. It's close to the bathrooms and food area for the…read morebeach section. The splash pad itself offers a few different sections of water features, a nice rope climbing area without water and a spinning disc thing without water as well. The only reasons I gave 4 stars are the hours are short--11am-7pm. With toddlers who nap, I really wish this was open in the morning. I also wish it was a bit more enclosed. With a busy marina parking lot right next to it, and because it's a popular spot, I feel a little more on guard here watching my kids to make sure they don't wander. It is clean, the water features are great, and the location is great for other adventures to tack on--downtown, farmer's market, beach, biking, etc.

What an amazing place! We were looking for something to do and we found Shel-Haven on Yelp - I am…read moreglad we did. Easy to find and easy to get too. I have been to a couple canoe/kayak rentals down state and Shel-Haven is so much better! First, they will drive you to the spot on the river and then you kayak to where you car is parked. So convenient! Depending on how long you want your trip to be will depend how far up the river you get dropped off. Second, they do not hold your credit card and there is no annoying deposit. You just hand them your money for the time you want to be on the river and then you are done - transaction over! You do not have to check-in back and get your deposit back or have to pay more if you went over the time limit. Third, the staff is great. The gal who checked us in was amazing, so friendly and helpful! She also accepted the Yelp discount without hassle or questions. 2.5 hour trip in a two person kayak was only $18.00! Such a great deal. The kayaks were very nice, clean, and did the trick. Fourth, the river and trip itself is so peaceful and beautiful. A great trip to take if you are not an avid canoer or kayaker. River is decently wide and calm. Not a lot of crazy turns or quick current. We did not see a lot of wildlife.There are homes that line the river but some areas are pure woods with no homes, so it is a nice mix. The water is not that deep either. I would say the deepest we saw was 3 feet while on average it seemed to be about 2 feet deep. Fifth, easy ending place when you are done with your trip. You can also swim when you are done with your trip and the water here is about 3 feet deep. There was a worker at the return site to help you. Parking lot was also right there and you could go on your way.

We have been canoeing with Shel-Haven for over twenty years and have always had a great experience…read more We usually take the four hour trip from 612 and float the river for the day. Prices are reasonable and as the years have passed, more and more options for floating the river have become available. They also have a nice deck where you can watch the people arrive back from their trip.

I added this location on here, because it is listed on Village of Elk Rapids. It started from the…read moreHydro Power Plant off Ames Street, the Dam Beach is a favorite location for residents and families to spend time. There are lake houses in between public access, but since there are not a lot of traffic, so there are not a lot of concern about personal space or noise. Beach area is clean, sand are soft, and please keep it that way.

Very nice beach. The public access parking lot was small with a picnic table to sit at. The beach…read morewas very clean and the view was lovely. It seems that most of the beach is private but that doesn't take away from the charm of the public portion.

If you are going kayak or bike this is the place to be with both that can be rented. The Boardman…read moreLake Trail is here for biking and the lake is setup to get kayaks in. There is a pavilion with bathrooms and drinking fountains. Lots of open space to walk dogs on leash too.

If you're visiting Traverse City, you need to drive up to Old Mission Lighthouse Park! We came on a…read moreSaturday and it wasn't super crowded. The beach was absolutely beautiful. The water was super clear and shallow. You could walk far out into the water and the it would still only be a little bit above your knees. It's the perfect place to just relax and enjoy the nature. It was a little too chilly to swim when we came, but I would have loved to come back to enjoy the water more. Unfortunately we didn't have the time to come back during this trip, so maybe next time! To go up to the historic lighthouse, it costs money but you can go inside on the bottom floor to view the gift shop and infographics for free. We chose not to go up because it didn't seem worth the money.

This is a gorgeous spot in the Traverse City area! Beautiful clear waters with ample beach space…read moreand shaded areas. The beach was very clean and well kept. The shallow water allows for wading in and just enjoying the surroundings. The water isn't deep enough to swim for quite a ways so if you're looking for a swimming area I would go elsewhere! Parking is somewhat limited depending on what time you arrive. We got to the beach around 1:30pm and parking was a little hard to find. This doubles as a dog beach so there were plenty of dogs here as well! As a first time visitor to the traverse city area, I would definitely return to this spot!

Finally found a weekend 4 of us could all be same place same time so we decided to go fishing. 7AM…read morestart we got there at 645. Never heard from the "captain", waited until 715 and left. Luckily in that half hour of waiting to see or hear from ultimate charter, we were able to get all the info of the other charter in town. If we find ourselves another weekend together we will definitely be trying out Reel Addiction instead. It literally couldn't be any worse than a no call no show to your own business? Tough look.

What an amazing hidden gem! We are from Florida and have done several charter fishing trips at…read morehome but we have never been lake fishing, so we thought our Michigan vacation would be a great time to try! Captain Dale was AWESOME! He and his mate made us feel so comfortable! We really had no idea what we were doing with lake fishing but they did everything for us and really worked hard to make sure we were having a great time! And that hard work paid off for us, we caught tons of fish!! It was so simple from beginning to end. We met them at the slip, purchased our fishing licenses there, fished and then they cleaned our catch! If we ever happen to be in this area again we will definitely be back!