Like C.S. Lewis’s Narnia, the southwest tip of Michigan is an accessible escapeland, just an hour and a half from the city yet worlds apart. And unlike other getaway places popular among Chicagoans–Galena and Lake Geneva, to name a couple–this one has a varied personality: it has beaches and beach people, forests and forest people, farms and farmers. Also artists, architects, antique collectors, gardeners, and hobbyists of all sorts. It offers hang gliding, boating, fishing, wind surfing, biking, and cross-country skiing. And for those addicted to shopping, it has a growing number of trendy boutiques, restaurants, and bookstores.
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The best things are free, especially the Big Sur-like beaches with desolate dunes and tree-lined bluffs. Sunset time at the beach is pure enchantment, the golds and ambers of the sand, the vivid summer greens or autumn oranges of the trees, the shifting pastels of an unhindered sky. Public access points to the beaches are easy to find. One at Townline Road in Union Pier offers a deck from which to watch the sunset.
Another natural wonder is the 480-acre Warren Woods Nature Center, on Elm Valley Road, off Warren Woods Road, east of Union Pier. It is by official designation a “forest primeval,” the closest thing we have to northern California’s redwood forests, a place of stunning silences and shifting, whispering sibilances.
Restaurants (in alphabetical order): Antonia’s Cafe in Sawyer, great for home-cooked luncheons; 616-426-3645. Beyond the Sea Crab House in Union Pier, featuring crabs, mussels, and a friendly, boisterous bar; 616-469-0200. Golda’s in Sawyer, a deluxe hot dog and shake joint with a 50s theme that kids will love; 616-426-4114. Hyerdall’s Cafe in Bridgman, a family restaurant known for its fried chicken, muffins and breads, mashed potatoes, and pies; 616-465-5546. Miller’s Country House in Union Pier, the cla$$iest place in the area, with Pan-Asian specialties, a popular rack of lamb, and a flourless chocolate cake that some Chicagoans send out for; 616-469-5950. Redamak’s in New Buffalo, a decent hamburger joint and bar where you can watch the Bears game and not go broke; 616-469-4522. Rosie’s in New Buffalo, the most popular breakfast spot; 616-469-4382. Sharkey’s in Union Pier, sandwiches, inexpensive gelato creations, and decor by artist-designer David Csicsko; 616-469-4800. Tosi’s in Stevensville, an old and very popular place featuring authentic northern Italian cooking; 616-429-3689,
Much of what can be said about southwest Michigan applies as well to a short string of beach communities in northeast Indiana. Also in Indiana is the area’s only real city–Michigan City, of course–some dollar-a-ticket, nearly first-run movie houses, a superb public library designed by Stanley Tigerman, and a minizoo at its lakefront Washington Park.
