Ghost Towns Of Michigan

Northern Michigan Attractions: The 10 Best Ways to Celebrate Labor Day

North and South Manitou are two of Northern Michigan’s most serene hideouts and sit just off the shore of the Leelanau Peninsula. Take the Manitou Island Transit from Leland for a day trip or for a weekend getaway. Once you get there, set up camp, hike, and swim. It’s a great way to drink in those final golden drops of summer. manitoutransit.com

Lake Michigan, fondly called America’s Third Coast, sweetly laps the edges of many gorgeous lakeside towns. Experience Michigan’s burgeoning blue waters up close on the Little Traverse Wheelway, a paved trail linking Charlevoix and Harbor Springs. 26 miles in length, the trail travels along the Lake Michigan shoreline, making for an easy to moderate ride. Grab a picnic at Scovie’s Gourmet Deli in Charlevoix and go! scovies.com

Join thousands for the Annual Labor Day Bridge Walk in Mackinac September 5. The Bridge spans five miles above the sparkling waves of Lake Michigan. What could be a better way to end the summer? mackinacbridge.org

After a day in the sun, spend the evening at The Boondocks in Glen Arbor. Burgers, beer and live music, seal one picturesque summer in Northern Michigan. 231.334.6444

Explore Sleeping Bear by moonlight. Smooth sand and starry skies are the perfect night cap to Labor Day in Northern Michigan. To find your dune, park at the Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station Maritime Museum, head to the beach and turn left. Click to find out how to purchase a Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore pass.

Located on the historic State Hospital grounds in Traverse City, Trattoria Stella offers gorgeous classic cuisine with a local flair. A menu that ceaselessly changes with the seasons never disappoints natives or newcomers. stellatc.com

Run Beaver Island’s annual marathon or half-marathon September 3 beginning at 9 AM. The course twists and turns throughout the Emerald Isle, guiding runners through the island’s untouched wilderness. beaverisland.org .

Articles 20VN | Ghost Towns - Two Examples | ghost towns | bodie ...

When you think of ghost towns, you may have the image of a town that is completely empty of people. On the other hand, definitions vary. When I read a book on Michigan ghost towns I remember thinking "Hey, didn't I stop in a convenience store there once?" This author's definition was any town that had lost 30% of its population. I think Detroit might qualify.

Then one day, I discovered that there was actually one "true" ghost town in Michigan. Fiborn Quarry, sometimes just called Fiborn, was a limestone quarry and small town at one time, in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. When I first went there I was surprised to finally see a place in Michigan that had buildings and houses, but no people.

You approach by way of a dirt road, and then the woods suddenly open up into an open area of a couple hundred acres. This part is like a moonscape, with few trees or plants. It is the open-pit mine, and if the water in the puddles isn't too bad, you can usually drive through it to where the buildings are located on the other side. The basement and remains of the mine-owners home is in the woods nearby. If you go on a weekday you are likely to have the place to yourself all day.

My first time in Fiborn, I heard water running. I walked a short ways into the quarry from the largest building and found a stream running down from the nearby cliffs. It ended in a whirlpool in a pit, and disappeared into the ground. In some years this stream doesn't seem to be there at all - one of the mysteries of the place.

The ghost town of Fiborn is roughly thirty minutes west of the Mackinac bridge on highway two, and twenty minutes north of the highway by way of two county road. Better directions? Hey, finding these places is part of the fun. I can tell you that it still shows up on some highway maps, especially the older ones. Good luck!

Far West Ghost Towns

Ghost towns are all over the west. They are different from places like Fiborn, because they are usually full of visitors. This was certainly true of Bodie, California when we visited. There were perhaps 60 other people walking around the town at the same time.

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