Photo by Tuomas Härkönen on Unsplash.com
Flying frisbee®-like discs heading into baskets hanging on poles? Absolutely. Disc golf is hot everywhere and especially in Northern Michigan. Disc golfers head North with their bags of discs with good reason: Disc golfing here is spectacular.
Like ball golf, a disc golf game has the same objective: get the disc in the basket with the fewest throws. It’s a great sport because it can be played all seasons- yes, winter is a great time for disc golf. It is inexpensive and it’s great exercise. Petoskey‘s River Road course is regularly groomed using snowmobiles while Boyne City‘s Avalanche course has lots of use by snowshoers and snowmobilers so is semi-groomed.
River Road Sports Complex – This 24-hole disc golf course is somewhat flat but challenging with numerous blind holes and dense, well trimmed foliage. Multiple tee pad locations provide options for novice to advanced players. There are many creeks and riverside resting spots plus wildlife, and wildflowers. 2267 River Rd., Petoskey.
Boyne Mountain Resort – An 18-hole course that begins adjacent to the Eagles Nest Restaurant atop of the Hemlock trail and includes elevation changes and forward and backward tees for both amateur and professional players. During summer months, the first tee can be reached by either a chairlift or hiking. A shuttle is often available at the hotel’s front desk or at Boyne Country Sports where golf discs are available for purchase or rental. The expansive views are an effective appetizer for the numerous on site restaurants that will help you refuel after hiking the hills of this challenging course. 1 Boyne Mountain Rd., Boyne Falls.
Avalanche Preserve – An 18-hole disc golf course is an existing hiking trail and is a perfect course for young and older golfers. It begins along the end of the ice rink, reaches a meadow, and continues along a deeply forested climb to the top of Avalanche Mountain where seating, a drinking fountain, and offers views stretching along the length of Lake Charlevoix to beyond Beaver Island. 1129 Wilson St., Boyne City.
The Crowle Hole Disc Golf Course at Kiwanis Park – This is a spectacular course that weaves through the woods with climbs and vistas of a nearby meadow. The City of Harbor Springs and a small army of volunteers made this course possible. Kiwanis Park- 11 N. Arbor St. (off East Lake Street), Harbor Springs.
Mount McSauba – This is a beautiful course wandering through downhill and cross country ski runs with many elevation changes with superb views of Lake Michigan. 09223 McSauba Rd., Charlevoix.
Harris Gardens at North Central Michigan College is a spectacular sculpture garden filled with 26 pieces of vibrant art.
The history Northern Michigan’s Inland Water Route is preserved at the Inland Water Route Historical Museum in Alanson.
The Headlands, just west of Mackinaw City, is one of six International Dark Sky Parks in the U.S. and one of nine in the world.
The Oden State Fish Hatchery in Alanson produces three strains of brown trout and one strain of rainbow trout.
The Andrew J. Blackbird Museum is named for a counselor who helped Native American veterans. Native American artifacts fill the museum space.
Sailing is a special pastime that often brings friends together in Northern Michigan. And no wonder. The sailing here is wonderful.