Fall 2011 events

Fall is a great season in Kalamazoo: colorful leaves, crisp nights & clear days, apple harvests, migrating birds, college football, and pumpkins. In September, it's usually warm enough for a trip to the beach. The weather for biking, paddling, and camping is usually reliable through October. November is a nice time to hike (but be careful of hunters.)


Fall events near Kalamazoo:

September 16-18 Grand Haven Salmon Festival Grand Haven

September 20 Ribbon cutting ceremony for the newest section of the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail 1:30 p.m. Shipshewana, IN

Sept 23-24 Oktoberfest West Michigan John Ball Park Grand Rapids

September 24-25 Feast of the Hunter's Moon West Lafayette, IN

September 24 Sturgeon Release Celebration 10 am - 2 pm New Richmond Bridge County Park, Fennville

Oct 1-2 Old Tyme Harvest Festival at Scotts Mill Park Scotts


October 2 Share the Harvest Kellogg Bird Sanctuary/ Kellogg Biological Station 1-5pm Augusta

October 7-9 Cranefest at Audubon's Baker Sanctuary outside Battle Creek.

Oct 8-9 Goose Festival Fennville

Oct 9 3rd Annual Fall Color Cruise on the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail noon-4pm Markin Glen County Park Kalamazoo

Halloween Events around West Michigan

November 11 Winter Bird Feeding 101 5 pm at the Kellogg Bird Sanctuary Gull Lake

mid-November peak Sandhill Crane migration at Jasper Pulaski in northern Indiana.

Also consider

Fall recommendations from 52 Michigan Weekends

a Fall Color Tour or an Apple Tour

Fresh apple cider from VerHages Cider Mill.

West Michigan Tourist Association has a list of Harvest Time Festivals, a Weekly Color Report, and more Color Tours

Fall walks and rides on the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail

September events from Pure Michigan

October Events from Absolute Michigan

Event listings from Discover Kalamazoo

Gazelle Sports' calendar of West Michigan Races & Running Workshops

League of Michigan Bicyclist's Michigan Ride Calendar

West Michigan Coastal Kayaker's Association Event Calendar

Outdoor Athlete has lists for Michigan running, biking and triathlon events.

The Department of Natural Resources has calendars of events for State Parks and Recreation Areas: September, October, and November

Douglas Beach

Douglas Beach is a small public beach just outside of Saugatuck, MI, just over an hour's drive from Kalamazoo. Access is down a steep flight of stairs. The park is in a residential neighborhood perched on the dunes above Lake Michigan and the upper part has parking for about a dozen cars, restrooms, and a couple of picnic tables. The lower part is a nice sandy beach.

While the public beach is relatively small, the Michigan Supreme Court affirmed the public's right to walk along privately-owned beachfront, so it's possible to walk for miles along the water.

It's easy to find the beach by following the signs for the Rosemont Inn.

Douglas Beach
80 Lakeshore Drive
Douglas, MI 49406

free

Pumpkinvine Trail

The Pumpkinvine Nature Trail is a developing bike trail about an hour south of Kalamazoo in northern Indiana's Amish area. Several sections of the trail are currently open around Goshen and Middlebury.

We started our ride in Goshen. The parking lot was easy to find on 5th street north of Lincoln Ave, but the trail wasn't immediately visible. It's tucked between a grain elevator and the industrial-looking city waterworks, right next to the train tracks, which, in hindsight, was perfectly logical since the trail was a railroad right-of-way. The trail quickly passed through the semi-industrial section, crossing Rock Run Creek on multiple bridges before reaching Abshire Park (which is an alternative starting point.) The trail surface was mostly asphalt but one section of a mile or so was crushed stone-- fine for bikes but not rollerblades.

The trail was surprisingly pretty, with more curves than a typical rail-trail. At times, it passed close to farm fields and in other places it ran through woods. This section of the trail ended at County Rd 33, about six miles from Goshen.

Another six mile section, running from Middlebury toward Shipshewana, was recently completed. Its official ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held September 20, 2011. When completed in a few years, the trail will run 17 miles connecting Shipshewana, Middlebury and Goshen.

Thanks to Joann and John Smith for writing about the Pumpkinvine trail on their "Now Showing Near You: Wildflowers" blog.

Brown-Eyed Susan

Brown-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia triloba) are blooming in Kalamazoo, well after their better-known cousins, the Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta). Brown-Eyed Susan are widely distributed throughout the Central and Eastern states, but are only found in scattered counties in Michigan.

Great Blue Lobelia

Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) are now in flower in Kalamazoo. Like their showier relatives the Cardinal Flower, these perennial wildflowers need moist soil and tolerate partial shade. The flower spike grows about three feet high and they are often found along streams and rivers. They're a widely distributed plant, found throughout Michigan and most Eastern, Midwestern, and Great Plains states.

Pere Marquette Rail Trail

The Pere Marquette Rail Trail starts in Midland, MI, which is a 3 hour drive from Kalamazoo. The section I rode was paved and had mown grass shoulders. It passed through several parks in Midland, then paralleled the Tittabawassee River for several miles northwest of town. A goldfinch flew among the wildflower plantings along the trail. In other areas bracken ferns and woods edged the trail. The Averill Preserve (pdf) offered a river overlook with information about the area's logging history. I had to turn back to Midland shortly past the Averill overlook but the trail continues to Clare (30 miles from Midland).

Overall, the Pere Marquette trail was much more polished than the KalHaven trail with smooth asphalt suitable for rollerblades. Like other rail trails, it was fairly flat and ran pretty much in a straight line. Concrete mileposts marked the distance every half mile. The trailhead at Midland offered drinking fountains, restrooms, and compressed air. The Pere Marquette trail was selected for the Rail Trail Hall of Fame.


A four mile extension, called the Chippewa Trail, links the Pere Marquette trail to the Chippewa Nature Center. The trails are connected by a Y-shaped bridge, known as the Tridge, in Midland. Both trails start at the Tridge, just outside Midland's downtown.

Dow Gardens are also worth seeing if you're in Midland.

Natural Michigan part 4 (Grand Rapids)

Natural Michigan: A Nature Lover's Guide to 228 Attractions
by Tom Powers
1995

This guidebook has over 200 pages describing natural areas throughout the state, with directions & small maps. In earlier posts, I highlighted areas near Kalamazoo and areas near the Indiana border and areas near Lansing. These areas, near Grand Rapids, are around an hour's drive from Kalamazoo.

Natural Areas near Grand Rapids

1. Aman Park
"Beautiful Sand Creek winds through the heart of the park and dominates the landscape." Trails, wildflowers, cross-country skiing.

Directions: From I-96 exit onto M-45. M-45 (Lake Michigan Avenue) about 6 miles west of Grand Rapids.
Aman Park Trail map

2. Blandford Nature Center
1715 Hillburn Ave N.W.
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
"143 acres of woodland, open fields, marsh and farmland plus ... several ponds and Brandywine Creek." Trails, visitor center.

Directions: From US 131 exit onto Leonard Street. West 3 miles on Leonard to Hillburn Avenue. North on Hillburn 1/2 mile to entrance.
Blandford Nature Center

3. DeGraaf Nature Center
600 Graafschap Road
Holland, MI 49423
"The DeGraaf Nature Center is a perfect example of the old adage, 'good things come in small packages.' Though only 15.5 acres big, the area is packed with a wwide variety of habitats and plant and animal life." Trails, wildflowers.

Directions: From Holland go south on River Avenue to Michigan Avenue. Continue southeast on Michigan to 22nd street. West on 22nd to Graafschap. South on Graafschap 1/2 mile to entrance.
DeGraaf Nature Center

4. Kitchell Dunes Preserve
"Tucked away on the north shore of the Grand River a few hundred yards from where it empties into Lake Michigan at Grand Haven, the Kitchell Dune Preserve is a living showcase for a typical Michigan dunal ecosystem, where nature patiently and efficiently changes a sandy, barren dune into a hardwood forest." Trails.

Directions: From US 31 exit west onto Van Wagoner Rd outside of Ferrysburg to 174th Street. South on 174th to North Shore Dr. West on North Shore to North Beach Rd. South on N. Beach to Berwyk. East on Berwyck to entrance.
Kitchel-Lindquist Dunes Preserve

This book seems to be out of print. Amazon and Barnes & Noble may have copies through their affiliates. I found it at my local library.