A whale of a good hike

If you live in Michigan's northwest Lower Peninsula, you know you're surrounded by good hikes. Some locales seemingly have a trailhead on every block. City, township and county parks combined with hectares of state forest, nature preserves and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (the source of many future blog posts) have hundreds of miles of paths to explore. Then we have our own piece of the North Country Trail, a National Scenic Trail that takes you from New York to North Dakota.

Today's hike is much more modest than a multi-state trek, although I've always wanted to try one. Whaleback Natural Area is just south of Leland and makes for a quick but rewarding afternoon stroll. There's about two miles total of trail, complete with a lookout platform affording you a gorgeous view of North and South Manitou Islands.

South Manitou Island

Getting there is a little odd. The trailhead is down what looks like a private road (after one point it is), then you'll feel like you're trespassing on someone's Back 40 as the path winds between a home to the right and a tree-nestled vineyard to the left. Stick to the trail and you'll reach The Leelanau Conservancy's patch of land atop this glacial mound soon enough.

Take note of the woods around you. Beautiful, right? Especially in the fall when birches and maples don their flavescent foliage. 

Fall hikes never fail to delight

Parts of the trail along the bluff actually reminded me of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (you'd better believe I have a post about that place brewing). At the trail's north end you get a bird's-eye view of Leland's beachfront. This would be a great hike on a hot summer day, followed by a dip at one of a half-dozen nearby beaches (there are three in Leland alone). I also heard the drumming of a woodcock while I was hiking there, and I'm told there are thimbleberries to be found in season (for the five hours these transitory morsels are ripe and not either too green or mush, that is).

Here's one more picture for good measure.

The bluffside trail